Tag Archives: Freshman

“Jaw With John” – Be The Uncool Mom Here

I am the mother to a 15-year-old daughter who is a freshman in high school. She attends a prestigious private school and she has great grades and generally makes very good choices.

I have never heard anything out of her about trying drugs or alcohol, but the other day she asked me if it was “cool with me” that she attended a kegger every once in a while.

I am torn because since she chose to go from public to private school, she is no longer with a majority of her friends, and she sees these keggers as a social event and nothing else. I want her to have fun in high school like I did, but I also don’t know if it is right to accept underage drinking. What should I do? — Distraught Mom

Dear Distraught:

She’s 15.

15!

Last I checked the drinking age in this country is 21. Sure kids will get around that, I did (but not a lot until I got to college), but as a parent you should not condone it. Tell your daughter that she is allowed to see her old friends in other social settings. A kegger is no place for a 15-year-old. So it’s not “cool with you” for her to attend one. You need to be looking out for her well being and not her social status.

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“Jaw With John” – Robbing The Cradle Is Better Than Robbing The Grave

I’m a 16-year-old guy, and am going to be a junior in high school this year.

I’m attracted to a girl, “Randi,” who is a friend of my younger twin sisters. She is 14 and is going to be a freshman at the same school I go to.

We are very close friends, which causes a lot of tension with my sisters and my parents, who think I’m being inappropriate. Randi and I talk all the time, and she has also expressed some interest in me. I’ve been considering whether to ask her out and make it official.

Is my family right about her being too young? She’s very mature for her age. Should I continue to pursue this, or wait and possibly miss my chance? — Slightly Older Guy

Dear Slightly Older:

You’re not being inappropriate. You’re being a 16-year-old guy who happens to have a thing for a Freshman.

You might want to hold off on saying things like “She’s very mature for her age.” That’s the kind of stuff guys said on To Catch A Predator.

I say go after her. You can hold off for a bit as she settles in to the new school surroundings, ultimately still being present and letting her know you’re around to help. Stay her friend and when you feel that the time is right, ask her out.

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