Looking for parenting tips?

Just go and stand in a gas station parking lot, you'll learn tons of great parenting advice. OK, so that was complete sarcasm, and you should almost always never do the things that most parents do while at the gas station.

For example:

Today I was running into the store to get my caffeine fix before work. I frequent this gas station for the simple fact that it is right by my place. Unfortunately, not the most upstanding people also frequent this place. So what happened?

Well, I got out of my are and was approached by a young girl, probably 10 or so. She asked me if I had a cigarette that I could give her mom. After giving her I'm sure a dumbfounded look, I proceeded to tell her that I did not smoke and therefore could not give her mom a cigarette.

Soon as I walked in the woman behind the counter of the gas station asked me if that girl was pestering me. I told her that she asked me if I had a cigarette to give her mom. I guess the woman was rather unhappy because she got on this tangent about how ridiculous it is to use a kid to do those things. She said that she was a mother herself, and couldn't imagine that. I told her that I couldn't imagine letting a 10-year-old run around a busy gas station parking lot. The poor kid could have been hit, or much worse stolen.

We both agreed and she proceeded to tell me that the woman had her kid outside all weekend asking people for various things. A few seconds later the mom came strolling in with a few quarters or something. The gas station attendant refused to sell anything to her. I was shocked! The woman began to yell and cuss at her. The attendant told the woman that loitering is not permitted and that if she did not leave and came back again that she would call the police.

Here I was standing in the middle of two women arguing. I was close to freaking out, I didn't feel like being pulled into a fight. So I left my change on the counter and told the attendant to have a good day. It will be interesting to see if the woman brings her kid out to do her dirty work again.

After seeing all this happen I just couldn't believe some of the things people make their kids do. It is really sad and makes you wish that those people couldn't have kids. While kids need discipline and structure they do not need to be out peddling money out of complete strangers.