Tidy up- in the name of the law!

If you have a teenager or two, you'll be familiar with Messy Bedroom Syndrome. I remember my mother complaining about the mess in my room (usually homework all over the floor) but she left me alone. I was after all, attempting 10 GCSE's, many of them completely beyond me, sucking the life out of me. My sister and I used to share a room, and she eventually moved into the spare room because of my mess. (We won't mention the fact that her room now usually looks like a Chinese laundry.)

My own two teenagers are no better. Although Mr. Minimal has a rather well, minimalist bedroom (he got rid of everything to make room for a ping pong table some time in the future), he still manages to make his bedroom floor disappear under a trail of clothes. The kid literally walks out of his trousers at night and leaves them on the floor, looking for all the world as if he's simply vaporized. The Queenager tries, bless - but organization isn't her strong point. It's a lot better now than it ever was, and I no longer find lunch bags (with lunch still in there) which have been festering in her closet for 4 months, imitating the pong of a dead mammal or two.

This all pales when compared to a story I read in the news yesterday about an Ohio man who argued with his 28 year old (?) son over a messy bedroom and then "over -reacted" and called 911 (999).

The son is a school board member in the Cleveland suburb of Bedford, and works as a political consultant. What on earth is he doing still at home in his parents' basement? When challenged about his messy room, he threw a plate of food across the kitchen table and made a fist at his father. (Sounds like politics is the right career choice for him then.) Apparently after the incident, the son admitted that he's lucky to be living in the house rent free, and promises to keep his room clean.

While it's annoying that people use law enforcement services to settle minor disputes and rescue cats from trees (when will they learn that they can't get down?), I place more blame and disdain on the son than the father. As someone who left home for university at 18 and never lived there agin, I can't imagine living with one's parents at the age of 28, although it seems to be quite common over here as young people struggle to pay for college and then college loans. However at 28 you should be evolved enough to do the decent thing and stop behaving like a teenager. Fighting over a messy room and throwing plates about it. Indeed!

By the same token, if it's that much of a problem, the parents can always just kick him out. He's 28 fer cryin' out loud. He probably won't end up on the streets. He'll be fine, and perhaps he'll be forced to grow up.

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