Kid stuff

I spend a lot of time with people's kids. I guess that doesn't narrow the population down at all, but I mean I get to know a lot people without ever meeting them, because I get to spend time with their kids. You can learn a lot about someone by getting to know what kinds of kids they created.

Creating a kid combines both nature and nurture, and one of the things that I enjoy about meeting parents during conferences is getting the answer to "Where did that come from?" It's certainly not an exact science, but if I see a kid that I really like, chances are good that I'm going to like their parents too.

This brings me back to my cousins, who I am visiting this weekend. This is really the only extended family that I have. I have cousins on the other side of my family, but I was never close with them, though I'm very fond of my uncle on that side. But these cousins are special to me, and I've always felt like they were quality people, good-hearted people. And this weekend I'm getting a renewed opportunity to get to know their kids, and I've gotta say, it's confirmed everything I thought.

I don't feel comfortable about going into more detail, because I've made a policy of not writing about other people. It feels like an invasion of privacy and this blog is specifically about me, it's not a 3rd person thing, but I'm comfortable saying that these "kids" (they range from late teens to mid 20's) are spectacular. They are a credit to their parents, just as their parents are a credit to them. I hope people feel the same thing when they meet my kids.