Nothing like your children. There is absolutely nothing like my son but we got a real chuckle out of the following description of being a Mom or Dad. We are sure all of you parents will appreciate the following:

POSITION: Mom, Mommy, Mama, Ma

Dad, Daddy, Dada, Pa, Pop

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Long term, team players needed, for challenging  permanent work in an often chaotic environment.  

Candidates must possess excellent communication  and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends  and frequent 24 hour shifts on call.  

Some overnight travel required, including trips to  primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments and band competitions in far away cities!  

Travel expenses not reimbursed.  

Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The rest of your life.  

Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily,  until someone needs $5.  

Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly.  

Also, must possess the physical stamina of a   pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat  in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf.  

Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges,  such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets  and stuck zippers.

Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects.  

Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks.  

Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, and be an embarrassment the next.  

Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices.  

Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.  Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and  janitorial work throughout the facility.

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION:

None.  

Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you.

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE:

None required unfortunately.

On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.

WAGES AND COMPENSATION:

Get this! You pay them!  

Offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because  of the assumption that college will help them  become financially independent.  

When you die, you give them whatever is left.  

The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS:

While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth, unconditional love, and free hugs and kisses for life if you play your cards right.  

THERE IS NO RETIREMENT

***

In a software design meeting, we were using typical technical jargon to discuss a data exchange interface with a vendor. One co-worker said the programming we had ordered was delayed because the vendor was suffering from a "severe nonlinear waterfowl issue."

Curious, the team leader raised his eyebrows and asked, "What exactly is that?"

The programmer replied, "They don't have all their ducks in a row."

***

A group of country neighbors wanted to get together on a regular basis and socialize. As a result, about 10 couples formed a dinner club and agreed to meet for dinner at a different neighbors' house each month.

When it came time for Jimmy and Susie Brown to have the dinner at their house, like many women, Susie wanted to outdo all the others and prepare a meal that was the best that any of them had ever lapped a lip over.

A few days before the big event, Susie got out her cookbook and decided to have mushroom smothered steak. When she went to the store to buy some mushrooms, she found the price for a small can was more than she wanted to pay. She then told her husband, "We aren't going to have mushrooms, because they are too expensive."

He said, "Why don't you go down in the pasture and pick some of those mushrooms? There are plenty of them right in the creek bed."

She said, "No, I don't want to do that, because I have heard that wild mushrooms are poison."

He then said, "I don't think so. I see the varmints eating them all the time and it never has affected them."

After thinking about this, Susie decided to give this a try and got in the pickup and went down in the pasture and picked some.

She brought the wild mushrooms back home and washed them, sliced and diced them to get them ready to go over her smothered steak. Then she went out on the back porch and got Ol' Spot's (the yard dog) bowl and gave him a double handful. She even put some bacon grease on them to make them tasty.

Ol' Spot didn't slow down until he had eaten every bite. All morning long, Susie watched him and the wild mushrooms didn't seem to affect him, so she decided to use them.

The meal was a great success, and Susie even hired a lady from town to come out and help her serve. She had on a white apron and a little cap on her head. It was first class.

After everyone had finished, they all began to kick back and relax and socialize. The men were visiting and the women started to gossip a bit.

About this time, the lady from town came in from the kitchen and whispered in Susie's ear. She said, "Mrs. Brown, Spot just died."

With this news, Susie went into hysterics. After she finally calmed down, she called the doctor and told him what had happened.

The doctor said, "It's bad, but I think we can take care of it. I will call for an ambulance and I will be there as quick as I can get there. We will pump out everyone's stomach and everything will be fine. Just keep them all there and keep them calm."

It wasn't long until they could hear the wail of the siren as the ambulance was coming down the road.

When they got there, the EMTs got out with their suitcases and a stomach pump and the doctor arrived shortly thereafter. One by one, they took each person into the master bedroom and pumped out their stomach.

After the last one was finished, the doctor came out and said, "I think everything will be fine now, and he left."

They were all looking pretty peaked sitting around the living room, and about this time, the town lady came in and said, "You know, that fellow that ran over Ol' Spot never even stopped."