FF – The Bigger Sin
Here is my story for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by Rochelle. This week’s photo comes from Rochelle as well. I hope it wasn’t her car 😦
(Just in case non-Brits are not aware, a shopping “trolley” is called a “cart” in the US.)
Click on the blue froggy for this week’s other stories.

Copyright Rochelle Wisoff-Fields
“I’m waiting, Son.”
“Well, Dad, I went grocery shopping, see, and someone crashed into it with their trolley.”
“So, someone rammed their trolley into the car at… what? 50, 60 miles per hour?”
“That’s about the size of it, Dad.”
“The Hulk, was it? And this isn’t you on the camera sneaking out at 11pm?”
“Hmm, looks like me but isn’t. Weird.”
“Son…?”
“Okay, I snuck out on a date with Suzy and had a ding.”
“Cheerleader Suzy? Straight-A-student Suzy? Hot Suzy?”
“Yep!”
“Woo, nice one, Son! High five!”
High five slap.
“But you’re grounded for lying. ‘Til you’re 50.”
Good one! ha-ha Now that everything is on security camera I bet it’s much more difficult for kids to come up with plausible excuses! 🙂
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Big Brother is everywhere! My camera activates at 11pm and caught me coming in late on Monday. I was only out babysitting though, nothing so exciting as this fellow 😦
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His dad knows him well enough to know that Suzy would never never give him the time of day. Haha! 😁
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I’m guessing she won’t wait for him until he’s 50 either 🙂
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Ha ha, made me smile this one. I like the Dad’s attitude 🙂
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He’s quite a modern dad, but there must be rules… 🙂
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Lol, that would have to be a really fast trolley/cart, Dad is right! Son is going to have to get better at lying, obviously!
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He didn’t really think that one through, did he?
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Is having a ding what I think it is? 😮
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LOL a “ding” is a car smash. It’s also called a bingle 😀
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A “bingle”? I like that 🙂
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Heh 🙂
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And this was funny. 😊
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Thanks 🙂
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Sounds like they have a great rapport. Or almost. Dad will learn to sleep with the car keys under his pillow for a few years. 🙂
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At least the son took it for a “good cause” 🙂
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That’s a LONG time out. Very long. I never made it past a single day and that was exhausting.
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Hopefully Dad will relent around the son’s 30’s 🙂
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A story said in hilarious dialogues… too good!
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Thanks, I’m glad you liked it!
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This is wonderful. Love the lying, the “catch,” the dialogue.
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I’m glad you enjoyed it!
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Suitable punishment me thinks 😀
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The son doesn’t think so 🙂
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Kids never do 😀
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Wow, that’s a stiff penalty. Grounded until he’s 50. He’s going to have a problem finding a wife. Good writing, Ali, and hilarious. 😀 — Suzanne
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He has to learn his lesson 🙂 I’m glad you liked it!
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Dad is not thinking. Does he really want his son STILL living with him at 50? I sure as sh** wouldn’t! 😀
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And while the son is grounded, Dad will be the next one to get a ding while sneaking off to visit Suzy…
The proper term for a wheeled apparatus you would use in a grocery store is the subject of much debate in America and is often brought up as another example of the more well known soda/pop war of terminology. Most Americans (including me) use the term “cart” as you mentioned. However, there’s another decent segment of Americans, mainly from the South, who call it a “buggy.” I’ve heard both used quite a bit where I live, which is not exactly in the South, so they’re both pretty widespread regionalisms…
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The field is now open!
Hmm, most confusing. We Brits know about “cart” because online it’s a “shopping cart”. As for “buggy”, that has fallen into use here in the UK as an alternative word for the more traditional “pushchair” and sometimes for “pram”. It may be that “buggy” was once used here but when I was growing up a baby went in a pram (“perambulator” technically) and a toddler went in a pushchair.
Wouldn’t it be great if Mer uses a different word to you. Then you could have words over that as well as pop/soda 🙂
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Kids don’t understand that parents are smart!
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And also that their parents were one day just like them so they know all the tricks 🙂
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Exactly!☺
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Hahahahaha! Pretty cool dad but the son is still grounded! LOL! Cute story, Ali!
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Cool but still enforces the discipline 🙂
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This was great fun, Alistair! Kids are so dumb when it comes to lying. Like we weren’t young once too… sheesh!
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I’m guessing that’s how he saw through his son’s lie so easily. Or maybe it was because it was a pretty bad attempt 🙂
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Indeed
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That was a fun read. Grounded until he is 50, that’s harsh.
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Harsh but fair 🙂 I’m sure he’ll relent in a few days!
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As the parent of a teenage son, this seemed all too plausible! Well done.
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I bet it happens all over the world with regularity 🙂 I’m glad you enjoyed it.
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Dad better be careful, he is driving his son to hard.
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I’m sure his grounding will only end up being a week or so.
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MOL…that will teach him…MOL 😀 Pawkisses for a Wonderful Day 🙂 ❤
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He won’t soon do that again 🙂
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Dear Ali,
Hilarious! I loved the dialogue. I could see this happening.
I love the cultural exchange in our blogging community. Thanks to my friends across the pond I know where the boot and the bonnet are on a car. And there’ve been more than a few stories about shopping trolleys. My vocabulary has expanded as have my spelling options. Of course, used to get strange looks from my fellow decorator when I would write “colour” on a cake order. 😉
Shalom,
Rochelle
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PS Grounding the son until he’s 50 is going to be very hard…on the father. I learned a long time ago that grounding was more often than not MY punishment.
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It’s going to be a very long time listening to grumbling, very loud music and the like 🙂
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Dear Rochelle,
I’m glad you liked it!
I’m used to American words and spellings, even words you take for granted like “sidewalk” which doesn’t exist at all in English, through lots of American TV. I’m glad you’re getting the chance to learn some UK English (as well as AU English etc) through all the stories! It can also lead to some fun – I read something from an Australian lady the other day where she casually “removed her thong” and did a double-take – before remembering that AU thong = GB sandals (and to complicate matters a US thong is called something different again in GB English, though the word has filtered in) 🙂
Ali
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Ha ha – good one! Some kids just don’t come up with plausible lies.
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These thing are learnt and improved with time. I’m glad you liked it!
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Such a touching relationship between them.
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They seem quite close, though it doesn’t prevent Dad from meting out justice when warranted. I suspect he’ll relent in a couple of days, though!
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A fun read – thanks!
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You’re welcome, I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂
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Oh that was mean, his father grounding him just when things were heating up with Suzy. Nice read.
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Well, he did crash the car! I think dad will let him out in a couple of days, though. I’m glad you liked it!
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Loved this, Dad is just my kinda guy. Great humour
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I’m glad you liked it! I think Dad has the right balance between “friend” and “discipline”.
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Ha, talk about mixed messages, really love it… better learn to tell the truth (it there is ever a next time)…
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It’s hard to get into trouble when you’re stuck in your room. I’m glad you liked it!
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Great last line – but Dad won’t keep to it, not with Hot Suzy to date vicariously!
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Yeah, sounds like he’s gonna want to hear all the details 🙂
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If only grounding kids till they were 50 was an option. Loved dad’s character – could just see this playing out.
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It’s probably a bit bit of an unreasonable goal 🙂 I’m glad you liked it!
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Haha! Love the dialogue between father and son – very natural. And the relationship comes across well too. Cracking last line. Nice job 🙂
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Thanks, I’m glad you liked it! Those two seem to have quite a good relationship.
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My pleasure and you did convey that relationship so well 🙂
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Great dialogue. Dad’s tolerant, understanding approach shows he knows exactly how to handle his son. I think he knows all the tricks a teenage lad could come up with and will meet his son head on every time. A great last line!
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Kids forget that their parents have already been there, done that 🙂
I’m glad you liked it!
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I hope Suzy is allowed to vist;)
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There’s always the time-honoured “climb in through the window” trick 🙂
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Haha! Makes it even better;)
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Yeah, that extra thrill from the danger…
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