So on Monday my little brother calls my mom's cell phone. She was talking to a customer so I grabbed her phone and answered. Brother had a car accident. Someone t-boned him on the passenger side. Both cars were totaled but no one was hurt. I tell mom the news when she was done with her customer. She is very upset because mothers get upset when their babies have close calls and she is highly emotional anyway. She calls brother back, she calls my dad, she e-mails brother's wife to get her take on brother's emotional state and has a little freak-out.
A little later she asks me if she should call my other siblings to tell them the news. I told her that I didn't think she had to, brother being fine and all. I could tell she was annoyed with me and she walked off with her phone. I just didn't think she needed to ring the fire alarm on this when there really wasn't much to tell.
Fast forward two days. Show is over and before heading home we stay the night with mom's old friend (who collects clowns...some of you got texted pictures of the creepy thing hanging over the bed where I attempted to sleep). They stayed up half the night talking in the living room while I trembled under blankets with one eye on clown look-out.
The next morning we were putting our things in the car and chit-chatting about flower beds. Mom runs back inside to use the bathroom one last time and the friend turns to me and out of the blue says, "I'd like to know why you didn't want your mother to call any of her other children to tell them about the accident." I told her that I never said she shouldn't call, just that it wasn't an emergency. But then I instantly saw 10 shades of purple realizing that Mom sat up all night pouring her guts out this woman about how controlling and emotionally stunted I am. I had to walk away because the ugly cry was coming. I pretended to be intensly interested in her hostas and waited for mom to come out so that we could escape.
Once in the car mom could tell I was upset and asked me what friend had said. I couldn't hold it in any more and had to pull over and sob. It was really pathetic. I told her what friend had asked me and she was furious that the friend had said it. But then she explained to me how she feels like her children don't even like each other (which is CRAZY because we get along better than any set of siblings I have ever known) and we don't want to hear from her (also CRAZY) because we don't responded to her e-mail (which is just an occaisonal "love you all" message that I don't think any of us ever realized was a request for attention).
So it was good in the end that friend opened her big mouth so that I could explain to mom that she is crazy. I communicate with my siblings frequently, plan my vacations around visiting, etc., because I like them so much. In fact, while she was upstairs telling friend how I want her to stop speaking to us I was e-mailing the clown picture to all of them to share the horror that you only share with those you love most. I'm just very annoyed that she sits on these things and talks about it everyone but the people that need to know.
I refrained from pointing out the irony of complaining about your children's failures to communicate by failing to communicate (apple doesn't fall far from the tree and all that) because I didn't want to be left at a rest stop. But really, mom, you can't teach your children that it is rude to call without a reason and then also complain about children never calling unless there is a good reason.
I just a friendly gal looking for options.
