Two Points

I adore my sons.  Even as rowdy teens, when I would have happily paid somebody to kidnap them until they grew to be men, I adored them.  They have become handsome, responsible professionals with families of their own.  I am so proud.

All that having been said, we have a stiff competition in the brains department.  I regularly get a text or email from one of them demanding an answer to a riddle or puzzle.  I hold my own.

One of said sons, who shall be nameless at his request, sent me a link for an IQ test online.   This young man was willing to challenge his Mom to a battle of wits.  Foolish boy.  Living this long has some perks.

Let me say that I LOVE IQ tests, especially ones that don't have word-math (you know the ones--if a train leaves Atlanta at 6...).  This one was right up my alley.  I zipped through it in record time. So easy! The results came quickly.  I waited for my son's smug answer. Then it came. 137.   I was surprised to see my score come in at 139. TWO POINTS!!  I whooped and hollered, laughing till my sides hurt.  Yes, you could call it childish celebration. 

Oh, I could not wait to rub it in.  I sent a text, then an email.  No response.

I called him live.   I think he may have been pouting.

In the end, he was proud of his Mom and said so.  I, meanwhile,  have been having a load of fun and bragging rights over that TWO POINTS.  Whenever a question comes up, I am quick to remind him that I am TWO POINTS smarter than he is.  I work TWO POINTS into general conversation, occasionally breaking into a fit of choking chuckles as I relate the story.  He is not amused, sometimes surreptitiously giving me the finger under the guise of scratching his nose.  Dang, I enjoyed that.

The other son, while every bit as smart, will not subject himself to this tomfoolery.  Neither will their father.  My gloating may have gotten out of hand.  I certainly won't subject myself to another test, bragging rights or not.

Still, TWO POINTS counts.  It will win a Scrabble game or a volleyball tournament.  It's the difference between freezing or not, simmer and boil.  It makes my boys realize that Mom is a heck of a lot smarter than she looks.

He is better educated than I am, with a job that pays more.  He is techno-savvy, I am a techno-moron.  He can build and repair almost anything.  I can barely tie a square knot.  His brother can fix things, too, even modern TVs.  He can sell ice to Eskimos, as the saying goes.  All in all, really good kids.

Imagine how it would be if  Mama didn't have that TWO POINT edge.