Thursday, May 26, 2011

Teens Hooking-Up: Teen Slang Parents Should Know

Summer flings are around the corner as school is almost over for the year.  What will your teen be doing this summer?  Who will they be hanging with?

Parents, it is time you get in the know!


Have you ever wondered where certain expressions come from? Me too, which is why cliches and figures of speech have become a hobby of mine. Well, since it’s springtime, traditionally a time for romance, why not have a look at some expressions for getting together (wink-wink)?

Great! Here’s a list of 10 slang terms for “hooking up”, and their origins.
  1. Discussing Uganda – This one is credited to the British magazine Private Eye, a satirical publication that has a tradition of coining such euphemisms. It stems from an incident at a party where a female
    journalist used the term to explain her absence during a brief sexual rendezvous upstairs, reportedly at the time when Idi Amin and his Ugandan regime predominated the news.
  2. Friends With Benefits – A relationship wherein the partners are not romantically involved, and who would characterize their relationship essentially as a friendship, which includes consensual but non-committal sex ( the “benefits” part). The earliest reference of the phrase in this context that I could find is in the 1996 Alanis Morissette song, Head Over Feet.
  3. Starter Marriage – A term referring to a marital hook-up, meaning a first marriage of short duration and with no children. It’s a play on the expression “starter home” whose popularity is credited to a book by Pamela Paul, The Starter Marriage and the Future of Matrimony.
  4. To Know in the Biblical Sense – A euphemism for having sexual relations. Taken, as the term implies, from the Bible, as in Genesis 4:1 -”And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived…”
  5. Making the Beast with Two Backs – Another sexual euphemism, this one from Shakespeare’s Othello, act 1, scene 1: Iago: I am one, sir, that comes to tell you your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two backs.
  6. Tying the Knot –  Marriage has long been associated with such metaphorical imagery of binding ties or knots. This phrase is said to have originated with a Roman custom where the bride wore a girdle which had knots that the groom would need to untie before consummating the union.
  7. Jumping the Broom – In some cultures (Welsh  and Gypsy, for instance), it is a ceremonial tradition for the groom and  bride to literally jump over a broomstick, or a flowering branch of broom (evergreen shrub).
  8. Painting the Town Red – This expression for spending an evening in revelry can be traced to Henry Beresford, the 3rd Marquess of Waterford, who quite literally painted the town of Melton Mowbray red to celebrate a successful fox hunt.
  9. Booty Call – A modern-day reference to a request for casual sex; derived from the sexual term for a woman’s derriere, it means a call made to a prospective partner for the purpose of hooking up in order to have sex, or the act itself.
  10. And, inevitably, we have sexual euphemisms derived from this age of the internet, including a favorite of mine which needs no explanation … Putting YouTube into MySpace.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Teens Failing in School: Teen Help

This is the time of year parents are calling - their teen is failing, hanging out with the wrong peer group, possibly using drugs or drinking, and even running away.

Over the past few weeks the increase of calls relating to teen runaways is disturbing.  Many of these parents believe that finding a good two-week summer program will fit this issue.  What parents don't understand is it took longer than two weeks to get to this point, it will certainly take longer to determine where this is stemming from.

Are you a parent that is considering a Wilderness Program for the summer? Think twice again.  This can be a very, very expensive camping trip and a band-aid that will soon fall off once school opens again.

As a matter of fact, Wilderness programs will tell you about 4 weeks into it (usually at $400 a day or more) - that your teen will need a longer term program following this camping journey.  Seriously - parents, you may be at your wit's end - but think about this?  Why? 

Why not start and finish with a program that can firmly help your teen with long term results - short term programs, short term results.

Parents that believe that they will "shock" their teen into appreciating what they have are sorely mistaken.

If you are struggling with your teenager, visit www.helpyourteens.com and get some sound advice.  Don't get sucked into a summer program or Wilderness journey that will most likely only scratch the surface.

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Teen Texting - Parent Communication

"TXT 2 Connect with Teens"
Parenting teenagers today can be a challenge - and one of the biggest hurdles is parents keeping technically in touch!  Do you text yet?  Believe it or not it can help with communicating with your teen.  This doesn't replace speaking with  them, but can get you an answer fast and easy.

A Great Way to Connect
• You get quick responses from your kids.
• Kids are more apt to respond to text messages than phone calls when they’re with their friends.
• Help your child gain independence while still staying connected.
• Text messaging can be used to strengthen parent child bonds, and it can let kids know their parents are thinking of them.

The ABCs of Texting
• Take out vowels.
• Replace words with symbols and numbers.
• Use sounds to represent words.
• Use abbreviations and common words.
• Don’t use all caps unless you are mad.

A Parent’s Guide to Texting

For more information on how to stay safe with AT&T, please visit www.att.com/safety.

Popular Text Messaging Lingo


• CUL8R = See you later
• TY = Thank you
• IMO = In my opinion
• CYR MA/PA = Call your mother/father
• DBL84DNR = Don’t be late for dinner
• KIT = Keep in touch
• TTYL = Talk to you later
• POS = Parents over shoulder
• PIR = Parents in Room
• P911 = Parent alert
• KPC = Keeping parents clueless

Text messaging is a central force in the way tweens and teens connect with each other.
To stay in better touch with their kids, parents can embrace the texting trend.

How to Send a Text Message

• Choose the “text” option on your phone’s main menu.
• Type your message using the key pad
• Enter the 10-digit wireless phone number address of recipient.
Hit send!

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Teen Dating Tips - Be safe and have fun!

Make is a safe date.
Dating can be a fun and great time for you as a teenager. The first teen dating tip is the most important. It is totally possible to maintain good standards while having a good time. In fact, you will have more fun when you do. The easiest way to do this is look for and date people who have the same high standards as you do. The bad boy or girl may look intriguing, however the fun wears off really quickly.

Manners matter when you are dating, especially as a teenager. Always remember your ‘pleases’ and ‘thank yous’ with the person you are out with. There is nothing more annoying than an ungrateful date. The second teen dating tip is to remember the golden rule: treat others like you want to be treated.

All of this aside, the following are some more great teen dating tips. Hopefully most of these will already be second nature, but if they are not it is a good time to start working on them.

Before The Date

~Asking the Person Out~ When you have found someone that you would like to go out with, practice asking them out (especially if you are nervous). When you have it mastered, just do it. You don’t have to come up with a fancy shmancy way to ask. A simple, “Do you want to go out on Friday?” is totally okay.

HINT: It is NOT good dating etiquette to show up in their driveway, call them on their cell phone and ask them out right then. Parents do not like this.

~Get a Group Together~ It is so much more fun to go out in a group, especially when you are just getting into the dating mix. A bunch of people can come up with so much more to do and talk about. It will also help with the nerves of the date.

~Take a Shower~ Truly… clean up and look nice for the person you have asked out or that has asked you out. Grooming is a good habit anyway, but take it to the next level for your date. Honestly, no one wants to go out with someone that just got done with team practice and smells like it.

HINT: Extra cologne and perfume do not cover up the smell of sweat….

~Know Where You Are Going and What You Are Doing~ This is good teen dating tip manners. You will be able to let the other person know what to expect. Also, they should know what kind of clothing and dress to pick out. Most importantly, when your date’s parents ask what you are doing, you will be able to give them a good answer. Very important.

HINT: Your date’s parents will know when you are not telling the truth…

The Date

~Picking Up Your Date~ Go up to the door to pick up your date.  I don’t care how scared you are to meet your date’s parents… you need to do it! Man up! My father was a very scary man to boys who came to pick me up. Most of them left the house shaking. Yet, the ones who manned up and did it earned not only my respect, but his. The ones who didn’t were quite simply not good enough.

HINT: Honking your horn for your date shows fear and a lack of respect. DON”T DO IT.
~Be Yourself~ The reason why your date said yes to you is because of you. If you pretend to be someone else it will only get harder, especially if you spend more time with that person. Really, trying to be someone other than you is just a big fat lie you have to keep up…how exhausting.

HINT: It is so much more fun being the nerd you really are inside.

~Conversations~ Believe it or not, you will have to talk to your date. It is a good idea to have a list of things in mind that are interesting about that person that you want to know more about. Ask questions and then listen to what they say. Answer questions you are asked. This is good manners.

HINT: Don’t sit and talk about yourself the entire night… boring.

~Put the Electronics Away~ You are out with someone to have fun with, talk to and have adventures. It is impossible to do any of this if your ear buds are in, attached to your text conversation or chatting with your friends on the phone. Unplug for the night.
~Respect Curfew~ Nothing good happens after curfew. Your date’s parents have a very good reason they want their son or daughter home by a certain time. Even if you don’t understand it, respect it. Chances are, if you do, you will be allowed to see your date again.

HINT: Being in the driveway ‘chatting’ in the car is not respecting curfew. Your date needs to be in the house for it to count.

~Respect Yourself~ Unfortunately there are times when your date is not very respectful of who you are and your standards. If this ever occurs, it is important that you remember: IT IS OKAY TO SAY NO AND MEAN IT. Stand up for yourself. Get out of the car. Walk away, get somewhere safe, and call someone. No one is worth giving up who you are inside.

~The Doorstep~ Every date has to come to an end. Remember curfew? Walk your date to the doorstep. This does not mean that you have to kiss them, it just means that you want to see them safely inside. Let your date know you had a good time (if you really did). Only tell them you are going to call them if it is the truth. Otherwise your date will be agonizing and staring at the phone for the next few days. Give their parents a break and be honest about calling this person.

Hopefully these teen dating tips will give you an idea of what to do when you are out with someone. My mom always used to say to me, “Remember who you are, use your manners and have fun.” She knew what she was talking about. Enjoy!

Source:  Modern Manners and Etiquette