|
Post by aln1982 on Oct 10, 2007 15:19:36 GMT -5
I actually am the opposite of you, janey, where I read the BSC now and just overlook the stuff. ;D I think I read them purely as an escape and because of the unreality of them. As for the unrealistic ways that kids act according to the age they are supposed to be in the books, I have always gotten around this by just imagining them as being whatever age makes sense with their behavior. If I think about some of this stuff, a lot of these points are really good questions. I think that's why I prefer to ignore them and accept the BSC world as it is - better than life when I need an escape. ;D
|
|
macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
|
Post by macca on Oct 10, 2007 17:55:48 GMT -5
How odd it was that the girls never had jobs from 5:30 to 6, on MWF That will never, ever make sense to me. I think there was one book where Stacey (I think) had a regular sitting job that went over the meeting times and it was just amazing. No, especially not three times a week. Most of them rode their bikes, though. And considering they all lived so close, it would probably take under five minutes. Still, you'd think someone would get picked up occasionally. The Pikes were desperate to get away from those kids at any opportunity ;D Agree. 1,000,000% Also, wouldn't two thirteen yr old kids look a bit weird sitting alone together in a french restaurant?! ;D ALN1982 - which I could have your attitude and veiw the books as pure escapism, nothing more. But unfortunately, all these things bugged me, even as a kid!
|
|
|
Post by sotypical42483 on Oct 11, 2007 11:22:55 GMT -5
I hate the notebook thing when they interrupt each other. So stupid!! It doesn't even make sense. Do they write in it during non-meeting times? I thought they only did it during meetings.
Oh, another thing about the meetings, doesn't it seem like they often get a LOT accomplished in 30 minutes? Half an hour is nothing, yet they take call after call and have to wait for a "break" where one of them share some huge news and/or problem with the rest of the club, then they all discuss the problem, then they spend the rest of the time talking about who was going with who to such n such dance or something.
|
|
janey83
Sitter-In-Training
Posts: 374
|
Post by janey83 on Oct 11, 2007 12:08:22 GMT -5
^Yeah, I agree with a half hour not really amounting to much time. I'm amazed that the bulk of their calls come in at that time, because I could see some parents calling whenever, or calling an individual sitter at their house. You don't really hear about last minute jobs, it's usually scheduled well in advance.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 11, 2007 18:30:13 GMT -5
Oh yeah, and if they take the books to jobs, what happens when another sitter is sitting somewhere and their kid has a problem and they need to write about it?
Maybe I think too much into it.
|
|
macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
|
Post by macca on Oct 11, 2007 18:58:58 GMT -5
The notebook makes absolutely no sense if you put any thought into it at all.
|
|
|
Post by sweetvalleygirl99 on Oct 11, 2007 20:46:43 GMT -5
The notebook makes absolutely no sense if you put any thought into it at all. I agree.
|
|
|
Post by aln1982 on Oct 11, 2007 23:33:28 GMT -5
^ Me too. That's why I don't think about it but if I did, I consider how long the entries must be to provide any worthwhile info. At least a BSC chapter worth, I guess. ;D
|
|
macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
|
Post by macca on Oct 12, 2007 1:52:19 GMT -5
^ when the chapters which began with a notebook entry I used to assume the entire chapter was the entry itself. But what 13 yr old would be bothered with doing that after every single babysitting job, on top of schoolwork and everything else they were doing.
|
|
janey83
Sitter-In-Training
Posts: 374
|
Post by janey83 on Oct 12, 2007 7:02:50 GMT -5
How did the girls remember their sitting schedules? Did they scribble down their job on a piece of paper? You never read "And Jessi pulled a notebook out of her bag, eagerly writing down her next job with the Newtons." This bugged me.
|
|
macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
|
Post by macca on Oct 12, 2007 18:03:26 GMT -5
^ yeah, I think we're just supposed to assume the girls are keeping accurate records of their schedules. No one ever misses an appointment!
|
|
|
Post by aln1982 on Oct 12, 2007 19:21:38 GMT -5
^ Did Stacey miss a job during the whole vs. the BSC thing or did she just reschedule? For some reason, I seem to remember someone missing a job. Maybe they all just have really great memories, though. ;D
|
|
macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
|
Post by macca on Oct 12, 2007 22:04:27 GMT -5
^ in Jessi and the Bad Babysitter, I think Wendy turned up late to a job where she was one of two sitters. And I don't know if Stacey missed a job, I think she just swapped with MA.
|
|
|
Post by aln1982 on Oct 12, 2007 23:39:33 GMT -5
^ It must have been Wendy I was thinking of. That's probably why she didn't get to be in the club - didn't make the memory requirements. ;D
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2007 0:40:26 GMT -5
The fact that they never had jobs during meetings always bugged me, but not as much as the fact that parents were always able to call during the meetings. I mean, sure, most people get out of work at 5:00, but then you factor in a commute (especially since some parents worked in NYC or Stamford) and picking up kids at daycare or running errands on the way home, and it's unlikely that everyone would be home to call the BSC by 6:00. And since there weren't cell phones back then, we have to assume that parents were calling from their houses. Also, in my babysitting experience, I tended to get calls like, "I know this is short notice, but can you watch my kids tonight because something came up?" That never seems to happen to the BSC. I also puzzled over how they could keep track of their appointments. MA kept great notes, sure, but it's not like she made photocopies for the others to keep track of where and when they were going. Getting as much accomplished as they did in half an hour seems unlikely as well. I was in a lot of after-school clubs in high school, and it took 10-15 minutes just to get everybody settled and ready to work. As for the notebook, it makes no sense. In my opinion, the notebook would be more useful if it was in lists or bullet points. For example: -sat for Rodowskys -Shea is upset because he's having trouble in school -Jackie broke a lamp -baby is teething. Writing everything in complete sentences seems like a waste of time and paper, and it makes it hard to flip through and find useful info later. Another word about the notebook: when do they find time to read the relevant info? Meetings are half an hour and are full of calls, dues collecting and going over plans for carnivals/plays/art shows/whatever. So when you find out that you're sitting for the Newtons on Thursday, how do you have time to read through all the wordy entries to see what's up with Jamie and Lucy lately? (My bet is they bring it to school and read through it during class, since education takes a backseat to babysitting anyway.)
|
|