Yeah my brother tried to commit suicide. Thankfully he didn't succeed.
Onto a new mini rant, and it's something that's always bugged me.
As I've mentioned in this thread, I live at home, and my parents have custody of 4 of my sisters kids. My mom was complaining today because our neighbors across the street, an elderly couple, had a conversation with my mom and it went something like this:
Pam: Hey, I wanted to know if Katie could babysit the kids Saturday night so that you and Dale could go to a gospel concert with us (they're really religious...).
Mom: Oh I don't know. Katie's been pretty sick this week. I don't think she'd want to put up with them right now (My mom was using excuses because she didn't want to go. But it is true, I have been sick.)
Pam: She can't even watch them for a few hours?
Mom: Oh you know how the kids can be, especially Ethan. She's been out of it all week, the kids just fight, and they don't even listen to her.
Pam: Oh she can tough it out for one night. She's always going out and doing stuff while you and Dale are stuck at home with the kids.
Okay, this ticks me off for multiple reasons, and its been an issue ever since we first got the kids when I was 14.
1. The kids are not my kids, my parents volunteered to get custody of these kids, so it fucking ticks me off when people pull the I get to do stuff and my parents are left with the kids card. They are my parents kids, not mine. So no, it's not like I'm leaving my parents with my kids. They are my parents responsibility, not mine. I just help them out.
2. Don't you fucking act like you know what I do. I am not always going out and doing stuff. I go to my boyfriend's house and that.is.it. I don't hang out with people outside of school, I don't even have a car, so I don't go anywhere unless its with my boyfriend, which is maybe once a month because we're both hermits who don't have any money, or it's with one of my parents.
3. People here seem to have this view that I am some stubborn bitchy spoiled brat. Like I absolutely refuse to babysit or do anything for my parents. NOT TRUE. I babysit plenty, and if they need a babysitter, they just need to tell me beforehand. But another thing people don't seem to understand is that one of the kids has Aspergers syndrome. And they never fucking take our word when we tell them that he does not do well when he is under my care.
My nephew Ethan views me as an equal since I am my parent's daughter, and he views my parents as his parents. Basically, he views me as a sibling, which in his mind is an equal, even if I am 12 years older than he is. He does not view me as an adult or authority figure and anyone who knows or has a kid with A.S, they do not listen to anyone who they don't view as an adult or authority figure. They just don't. They tend to make their own social rules and standards and they tend to not budge on them, it's part of being an Aspie.
And that is why they often don't force me to babysit him, because he doesn't listen worth shit. I often have to use physical force to stop him from whatever he is doing. For instance, if its like 40 degrees out and raining and he wants to go play in the backyard, and I tell him no. I'd likely have to pick him up and carry him to his room to stop him from going outside. And he's getting to the size where he can put up a fight. He's about 4'10'' now and I'm 5'1''. Only thing I have on him right now is mass.
I'm just tired of people blaming and pointing their fingers at me when it comes to the kids. They don't know what I do or what I go through. Unless they've been with us these past 9 years, they shouldn't be saying shit to me. I've sacrificed as well. I'm not some ungrateful brat who's ditching my kids and leaving them in the hands of my parents.
Hell, when I did have a social life, I would take some of the kids with me when I'd go out. If my friends and I were going to the mall, I'd take 1-2 of the kids. I never asked for this to happen to the kids or my parents and I sure as hell shouldn't be treated like it's my responsibility. I've done a lot for my parents and it pisses me off that everyone around us views me as otherwise.