Is This Thing On?

Last week Flebb (That’s my husband’s longtime nickname since school) and I had a little bonfire outside after we put the baby to bed and we always bring the baby monitor outside with us to hear every breath she makes, even though the window to her room is directly behind us when we are outside and we would most likely hear her without the monitor if she made any real noise. Doesn’t matter we still like to use the monitor.

The next day, I had put the baby down for a nap in her crib and then went downstairs to use the pooter and she had a great sleep. A rather long sleep I thought. Then I heard this faint yet urgent crying noise coming from upstairs! So I rushed upstairs to see what it was and it was nothing, she had just woken up, had her little happy awake time and transitioned into unhappy – I want outta this crib now – time. So I wondered why I hadn’t heard her wake up while I was downstairs working on the pooter. Usually I would hear every little noise she makes, especially something so ‘monumental’ as her having woken up from sleepy bye nigh-nigh time…. Then it occurred to me that the monitor must have been left outside during the night. Then shock and horror overtook me as I rushed outside to find it thinking all the while “Oh my gosh! The whole neighborhood could probably hear the goings on of our household all night and all morning” because we keep the volume turned up pretty loud especially when we head outside for the bonfire – again – there doesn’t seem to be any real point for us doing that but we do it anyway. Not that anything real exciting happens around our house throughout the night or during our morning rituals BUT it did have me running through conversations I had on the phone that morning and things I had said to my daughter or tones I might have taken with her etc,etc, yadda yadda yadda. The point is this:

Had I known the monitor was on and the whole neighborhood could hear my life, I might have paid more attention to what I was saying and doing and possibly taken more care.

When I got out there, I discovered that the monitor was in fact NOT out there but someone other than myself had indeed brought it in and just hadn’t plugged it in again inside. Well the feeling of relief I felt at not having to decide whether or not I had said or done anything inappropriate for the whole neighborhood to listen in on was remarkable!


Now here’s the ‘preachy’ part as I am SOOOO in the position to be preaching at all o’ you! I have resolved, since then, to (try) speaking and acting as though the monitor IS on. This resolution will come back to bite me in the ass I’m sure as there will be a certain amount of accountability at having shared it with you but that’s okay. It’s probably best for everyone that I just assume that ‘this thing IS on’ and mind my P & Q’s. I’ll admit I haven’t been doing that well when it comes to certain topics but I am going to try and do better. For instance: when I am getting ready to say something about someone who isn’t in my immediate presence I will stop and think “would I say this if the monitor was on and they were at the listening end?” or when I am busy doing something that frustrates me quite a bit, like ANYTHING in my kitchen and I feel like dropping a few choice yet unsavory words, I will (try) to stop and think “would I be saying this if the monitor was on and the whole neighborhood was listening in on my life?”

Of course I have to take into account the fact that I DO have privacy and the monitor isn’t really on especially at times when I need to vent a little, or someone needs to vent to me a little or when I want to do any number of the things I do everyday that are embarrassing yet necessary. I am sure I do not need to give examples of what these things might include. No, mostly I would just like to take more care in how I speak. Maybe give things a little more thought? Well, we’ll see how it goes. Lord knows I do NOT like the feeling I had when I thought the monitor was on without my knowing it. Remind me to write up the little story about the man who sang “ I Did It My Way”…..talk about putting your foot in your mouth! Well long story - short - I said some nasty things about him with his wife sitting in the same waiting room as me listening to everything I said right up until he came out and joined her and they left together! Yah, that’s about how it feels when you think the monitor has been on all day and all night without your knowing it. Just wanna avoid that.