Questionable Choices in Parenting

Laughing at life as a parent so they don't commit me

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All They Need to Know, They’ll Learn From 90210

January 19, 2013 by amushro

Don’t be fooled by these blonde locks, I have been highlighting my hair since I was in seventh grade. I really couldn’t even tell you what my real hair color should be. Here is my best guess: If you head out to your local drug store and walk down the aisle with boxes of hair color, take a look at “Blahhh” or “Meh” that would be the best description of my natural color.

Since I have been cursed with such lackluster hair, I have been forced to shell out big money every few months to make sure I remain a bouncy blonde and not some crazy lady pretending that her six inches of dark roots is her attempt at ombre.

Don't Care

In fact, when I am super stressed and life gets a little sad, I am a firm believer that blonder is better. So if you see me and I am totally bleached out, give me a little sympathy, maybe a gentle pat on the back because I am one meltdown from dropping my bucket.

A young gal was highlighting my hair this week and she was over sharing stories of her “bad boy” and “womanizing” boyfriend. I patiently listened to her story, nodded periodically, and even gave the shocked “No!” every so often. When she finished the sordid details of her love life, I decided to pass down some sage wisdom from a slightly older, wiser, been-there-done-that-lady. Here is what I told her:

“Honey, you date the Dylan, but you marry the Brandon.”

Brandon and Dylan

I knew I was in trouble when she got this dumfounded look that screamed “What the hell are you talking about?” Then I got the “Who?”

“Dylan McKay and Brandon Walsh? 90210? The real 90210. Only one of the greatest shows ever! Really? No idea who I am talking about?

First I felt old. Then I felt sad for the wayward young girl that didn’t have 90210 during her formative years to guide her along her journey to maturity.  So then I got to thinking about Monkey and Mimi and all of the conversations I will have with them in the future and I shudder at the thought. What if I just lock the kids in a room and force them to watch all ten seasons of my favorite show? When they are done, they can come out and we can discuss what they have learned. I am confident all of those difficult conversations will be addressed in each hour of 90210, and I will simply just need to reiterate some of the most important:

  1. Don’t get drunk at prom and pass out in front of the principal. While I am sure you are charming, no one is going to stage a walkout and chant “Mimi graduates, Mimi graduates.”
  2. Don’t wear the same dress to the spring formal as your best friend, don’t date the edgy new girl that takes drugs, don’t dress Kelly and Brendaslutty at Halloween parties, don’t date the broken hottie that has mommy issues, and don’t lose your virginity at the spring formal you wore the same dress as your friend—for reasons other than you are wearing the same dress as your BFF—Didn’t you learn anything from Brenda’s pregnancy scare?
  3. Just because your friends have bigger houses, amazing clothes, a bitchin car, tons of money, and the super, cool, fun mom that is sometimes in and out of rehab, the grass is not always greener and your friends probably wish they had a snarky, sarcastic Mom like yours that can make a mean pepperoni roll. Boom!
  4. Drugs are bad. So are diet pills, cults, gambling,  plagiarizing your college papers,  cheating on your girlfriend with her BFF, cheating on your boyfriend with his BFF, cheating on your girlfriend with a lame music executive—OK, let’s just generalize that with cheating—it’s bad –all bad.
  5. Violence against a woman is never OK, and if some guy pushes you down the stairs, he does not love you. While I do not condone violence, I would kick a guy’s ass if he ever laid a finger on my Mimi.
  6. When faced with two options and neither feels right, always choose yourself. While she made lots of bad choices during the course of the show, Kelly got this one right—“I choose me!”

So there you go. Six very important lessons that cover all things I need my children to know as they grow up to be functioning members of society.  Man, this child rearing is easy! While the girl that colored my hair missed out, Monkey and Mimi will be ready to face the world and know a little more about terrible 90’s fashion.

Bad Fashion

Believe me, I know. I dated the Dylans but I married the Brandon, and I am one smart and lucky girl!

Brandon

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Filed Under: Questionable Choices Tagged With: 90210, Brandon, Dylan, hair, humor, kids, teenagers

Comments

  1. whencrazymeetsexhaustion says

    January 19, 2013 at 11:28 am

    I had several thoughts as I read this. 1. that wayward stylist should have most certainly done her research and at least familiarized herself with 9012 and all its glory. With all the drama that is discussed in a salon, 99.9% of them can be solved and/or referenced with an episode of 9012. Everyone knows this. 2. You have thoroughly impressed me with your 90s knowledge. My respect and love for you continues to grow 3. SHUT UP with Mimi’s hat. Your kids are always stylin’ and profilin’. Says this mom whose son is currently wearing shorts and a t-shirt in 41 degree weather…

    • amushro says

      January 19, 2013 at 2:01 pm

      My secret talent is 90210 trivia. Of course this talent is useless used for the good of my blog. I need a talent that is actually profitable 🙂
      Isn’t the hat amazing! I got in on clearance at Janie and Jack because, let’s be honest, who can afford to shop at the store full price? I
      t’s been a hard week for your guy. He can wear whatever he wants 🙂

  2. Lana says

    January 21, 2013 at 9:49 am

    HAHA! Want to hear the saddest story ever? My mom and dad are divorced and I spent the evenings that 90210 was on at dad’s house. Dad didn’t have TV. So when all of my middle school girlfriends were talking about 9-0 (that’s how they shortened it-so chic, so cool!) I had no clue what the hell was going on.
    Thanks for a 2 minute recap. 🙂

    • amushro says

      January 22, 2013 at 7:11 am

      No!!! How could your dad do that to you! Parents are the worst 😉 My knowledge of 90210 is actually kinda sad. Why couldn’t my special talent of useless info on 90’s shows earn me a little cash? Oh well, I am glad I was able to fill you in on all the highlights!

  3. The Dose of Reality (@TheDoseTweets) says

    March 4, 2013 at 7:32 am

    LOVE THIS. I learned everything I needed to know from 90210. I can still quote entire scenes of dialogue and let’s just say that REM’s “Everybody Hurts” still instantly takes me back to the Brenda/Dylan break-up scene.

    • amushro says

      March 5, 2013 at 6:59 am

      Oh my! You and I are going to be best friends! Let’s plan a 90210 marathon soon!

Trackbacks

  1. Well, I Suck. « WhenCrazyMeetsExhaustion says:
    January 19, 2013 at 9:10 pm

    […] colleague, gal pal, and SSS (same-sex soul mate) over at Questionable Choices in Parenting is fall-down funny. You will L.O.V.E. her. And I don’t say this because she knows my home […]

  2. It all comes back to 90210–Meeting Tori Spelling & Jennie Garth for a Mystery Girls Viewing says:
    June 27, 2014 at 7:03 am

    […] all started when I wrote this little gem about life lessons from 90210. It was featured on Scary Mommy when I was just a little baby blogger and the adorable Jason […]

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