Thursday, May 03, 2007

a brother story

Interesting story.

My brother Stephan is obsessed with video games like any normal kid. He's in first grade and he beats me in every video game he bugs me to play with him.

He's a very smart kid. I don't think any of us could have half of his savvy at his age. And I truely believe that now that I heard this story about it.

You see, he doesn't do too well in school. What?! A smart kid doing poorly in school? It's madness, you exclaim! So knowing that he's such a smart kid, my Dad makes him a proposition:

Bring me ten As on your daily tests and I'll get you a new game.

Sound like a good deal? Or an impossible deal for a six-and-a-half year old?

Well let me tell you something. The first day, he brought home an A. The second day, another A. And so on. After the sixth ace, my Dad was anxious. Dad would go into a rant. Geez, I'm gonna have to buy him a game! Not only that, I'm probably going to have to buy him another game, after another ten As. I can just imagine the day he walks across that graduation stage at the University of Texas (sighs, hiss) after getting that first-round draft pick (ugh), after getting engaged to a nice Hispanic virgin (man, it goes on!), and after he opens up his very own Medrano & Sons Low-Riders Repairshop...
The first things he'll say to me is Where's my game?!!!

Positive Reinforcement is just a fancy phrase for Bribery.

So it eventually happened. The tenth A came. Dad reluctantly kept his end of the bargain and bought him a game.

On a later date, it was Parent-Teacher Night. Dad questioned, "How did Stephan get all these As on his tests?" And the teacher answered, "What? I don't know what you're talking about Mister Medrano" Dad was confused, "So all these As he bought home where fakes?" "Those are As, Mister Medrano, but they are from practice tests. I give them out everyday so the children can learn how to take tests. I don't test everyday. That would be excessive. The practice tests are even graded and corrected by the child himself. Didn't you notice the massive eraser marks? Or the red-crayoned A?"

I laughed my ass off after I heard that! Kudos to Stephan for following through with his web of lies! That's my brother!!!

Labels: familia

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