It is safe to say most kids have no idea what their parents do for a living, nor do they care, until it might be useful to them. Sure, there are cool job exceptions like firefighter, nurse, teacher and lion tamer, but kids really don’t care about what their parents do for most of their waking hours.
When our daughter, Josie, was in third grade, the teacher asked her what her dad did for a living. She said, without hesitation, “He works at Toyota.” He does not. In Josie’s defense, her uncle does work at Toyota and it sure sounds way cooler than, “My dad does economic development and tries to bring jobs and industry to Kentucky.” It was recently confirmed that she has no idea what I really do either.
At school, she and a group of fellow students are promoting a series of musical events to raise money to restore a former school that is a National Historic Landmark. Imagine the look on her face when I said, “I can help you get the word out. I have a system that allows me to target journalists all over the country. I can also just target people in Kentucky who would be interested in this.”
She has heard me yammer on about my work her entire life but is still apparently clueless as to what I do for a living. PR is the correct answer. I have had my own public relations business for years. The main component of my job is trying to garner media coverage for my clients.
Josie made me explain how I could help and how it would work multiple times before she believed I was not just making shit up. She finally decided I was legit and not a con artist. She then contacted her mentor and put us in touch.
The first thing the mentor and I agreed on was the fact that Josie is awesome and we both love her. That is all I needed. I was totally at their service. This woman is also really amazing, a fantastic role model for my daughter, and all the kids at her school. I’m very grateful to her and happy to try to help the cause.
All teenagers think their parents are clueless and out of touch. However, I’m actually pretty hip in some circles and I know a lot of people. It just so happens these are the circles Josie is moving in right now. Score one for Mom.
She was slow to ask for and admit she could use some help in the beginning. However, when I actually got her to listen, she began calling and texting regularly for insight and help. This made me quite happy.
During one phone conversation, I think I heard the light bulb click on above her head as she realized, “‘Mom knows a lot of people. She also has experience doing this stuff. My mom is useful. Who knew?!”
This, my friends, is a major mom win.
Josie wants to be a chemical engineer. I have a journalism degree. Josie loves me but dismisses my help in most things because I can’t do math. That’s fair. However, what I can do is send out some press releases, pitch story ideas to magazines and help book some bands. That shit is all in my skill set.
These kids are working so hard. I’m so impressed and proud of them. I would do anything to help them out.
In the end, I’m just glad I get to work with my fabulous daughter and get to be a cool mom for a bit. This is really all I signed up for when I became a parent: Cool Mom Duties as Needed.
Angela Traver
What is this blog about? Well, it's a general blog, but it is also a very specific blog. If you get that reference, you get a gold star! I have been a public relations professional and writer of press releases for more than 20 years—primarily in the booze biz. I decided to do some writing for fun and embrace the humor that gets me through most days. Hopefully it will make you chuckle—or at least smile. I’m a certified crazy magnet, and more than a little nutty myself, so buckle up. Also, I have two vices—profanity and red wine/whiskey. You’ve been warned. It should also be noted, that I’m a HUGE Bob & Sheri fan. I’ve been a listener for more than 20 years. This opportunity is a dream come true and it may have made me cry. That being said, I cry at everything. If you are into booze, dogs, food and/or knitting, hit me up on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter (although I’m terrible at Twitter and it scares me) @kyspiritsgal. You can also find all my previous blog posts at www.kyspiritsgal.com.
