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PZ Myers is a biologist and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris.
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[Lemuel K. Washburn, Is The Bible Worth Reading And Other Essays]
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Category: Personal
Posted on: May 10, 2008 8:21 PM, by PZ Myers
I've had about enough. The last of my kids is doing these obnoxious things like graduating from high school, and now, attending the final prom.
They have to stop trying to make me feel old.
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Comments
Dang kids, with their crazy whatnot.
Posted by: Kane Gruber, FCD | May 10, 2008 8:22 PM
Hey, PZ, you're so old you still say "graduating from high school." The kids today have made it into a transitive verb and say "I'm graduating high school."
There's also something going on with pluralz constructed with the letter z, but I'm not down with that.
Now I must 23-skidoo out of here.
Posted by: Zeno | May 10, 2008 8:25 PM
Hey PZ, how exactly do you pronounce your daughter's name? I saw it in print once here, and it looked kind of Nordic.
Posted by: Dave E | May 10, 2008 8:27 PM
Aw...
She looks nice, but... tall.
Very tall.
Posted by: Funkstronaut | May 10, 2008 8:28 PM
Dang kids, with their crazy whatnot.
Get off my lawn!
wait, what were we talking about?
Posted by: Ichthyic | May 10, 2008 8:34 PM
I just don't have the heart to remind him that picture was taken five years ago.
Posted by: Jams | May 10, 2008 8:40 PM
"Get off my lawn!"
Sorry, Senator McCain.
Posted by: BoxerShorts | May 10, 2008 8:46 PM
Went through this with the boy last weekend. Although I would like to think this was the first. He was the 3rd so I feel a bit older each time one of them walks. But, he was the last one. It is time to launch the 3rd one, then I have no clue what we will do with all that "free" time.
Posted by: Jorge666 | May 10, 2008 8:47 PM
Nice outfit!
Posted by: Cat Faber | May 10, 2008 8:49 PM
#4 Funkstronaut,
That just means she need to hang out with ERV.
Is the seahorse meant to be some sorta comment on 'copter dads?
Posted by: Sili | May 10, 2008 8:50 PM
She is tall. Well, that or her date is really short--see! We're all putting the onus on the woman for being the weird one, and taking the male as the standard! Cue mighty digression on systemic sexism!
Posted by: grendelkhan | May 10, 2008 8:51 PM
Um...why does her prom have such a large audience?
Posted by: Rey Fox | May 10, 2008 8:55 PM
Now now now, jumping to conclusions would be unscientific, she could be wearing very high heels or platforms, that would make her perfectly normal if rather uncomfortable (which again given proms in general is perfectly normal).
I do like the dress.
Posted by: Lynnai | May 10, 2008 8:57 PM
I like her dress.
PZ, wait until she has a kid, then you'll feel old.
Posted by: me | May 10, 2008 8:57 PM
Can't it be both?
Posted by: Steven Alleyn | May 10, 2008 8:58 PM
Well, to be fair, the odds are better that she's, say, 5'9 or so (tall for a woman) and he's a little shorter, than that she's average height and he's 5' even. I think.
Posted by: Azkyroth | May 10, 2008 9:00 PM
Where's his "A" lapel pin?
Posted by: danley | May 10, 2008 9:00 PM
PZ, I just got in from watching my daughter make her entrance at the senior prom, and last night she modeled her graduation gown for me. I know every parent says it, but I'm going to say it anyway: I can't believe that eighteen years have gone by and that my child has turned into this stunning, elegant, poised, articulate young adult.
Posted by: Elf Eye | May 10, 2008 9:16 PM
Where's his "A" lapel pin?
I've met this young man. He is definitely wearing a 'A' lapel pin.
Posted by: greg laden | May 10, 2008 9:21 PM
Since other people have brought up the height issue, how tall are you, PZ? I'm curious because most people I know only from TV/internet/etc. I just assume to be average height. For example, until I actually met him, I never realized just how tall Daniel Dennet was.
Posted by: The Science Pundit | May 10, 2008 9:23 PM
He may be walking in a ditch.
Posted by: Robster, FCD | May 10, 2008 9:28 PM
So what was the prom theme?
Posted by: J | May 10, 2008 9:30 PM
Well, Dr. PZ, it looks like you've made it: You've raised an intelligent, self-sufficient, beautiful daughter, and it's just about time to turn her loose on an unsuspecting world.
May she always find her own way, in her own time, and not add to the grey in her father's beard - - - too much, that is...
Posted by: Blaidd Drwg | May 10, 2008 9:32 PM
Congratulations, PZ - my kids are only seven (twins), and they already make me feel old. I can't imagine what another decade will bring. Ungrateful little beasts.
No. 23: "Blaidd Drwg" - snort! How's the new nuclear reactor in central Cardyff going?
Posted by: William | May 10, 2008 9:49 PM
Tonight I sent my youngest one to her prom, so I won't have to do that again. I don't have to go to any more National Honor Society inductions and I don't have to worry about learner's permits.
I know how you feel, PZ.
Posted by: joemac | May 10, 2008 9:53 PM
But, PZ...
you ARE old!
Also, yeah, guys can be short just as easily as girls can be tall. I've been encountering a lot of this stuff lately... a guy can date a younger girl, but a girl can't date a younger guy. It's weird, and also annoying, because all the girls I like are about two years older than me.
Posted by: wazza | May 10, 2008 9:55 PM
Check out the eyes of the people in the audience. Humans in Northern MN have tapetums? Who knew?
Posted by: Blind Squirrel FCD | May 10, 2008 9:56 PM
Ummm, what's wrong with a woman being tall?
Posted by: Janine ID | May 10, 2008 9:57 PM
Actually if you look at the picture he is on a lower step. Although without the step I'd say they are about the same height. Ugh this reminds me my oldest daughter is about to turn 16 in a few months. If you live in Northern Indiana.. STAY OFF THE ROAD!
Posted by: Mercurious | May 10, 2008 10:09 PM
Psh, prom. My dateless friends and I had an anti-prom party complete with dinner at a nice restaurant, a play at the fine arts center, and an old movie night at my house. It's one of the happier memories I have of high school. We had a blast, actually.
But, nonetheless, best wishes to all the happy couples out there tonight.
Posted by: Shigella | May 10, 2008 10:12 PM
This entry reminds me how much of high school I missed due to self-effacing nonparticipation. I wasn't even in the yearbook (nor did I get a copy of it, for that matter). I guess it just goes to show that different people can have completely different priorities for how they spend their time.
Posted by: JM Inc. | May 10, 2008 10:29 PM
Posted by: Ferrous Patella | May 10, 2008 10:35 PM
Wait until your grandchildren are graduating before talking about being old!
Posted by: Ken | May 10, 2008 10:41 PM
Black and white rocks. Your daughter has sophisticated tastes, PZ!
And I hear ya. No kids of our own, but the nephew unit is graduating from high school in a couple of weeks. And, y'know, I actually don't know whether he went to his prom. My own high school had three per year (which meant nine during my three-year incarceration there,) and I never went to one. My husband, who keeps bemoaning his youthful nerdhood, actually did go to his senior prom, so he definitely has one up on me there.
Posted by: Julie Stahlhut | May 10, 2008 10:49 PM
Janine,
Nothing, nothing at all, other than scarcity. 6', 6'2" was just hard to find back in the day. Now of course my daughter has some friends that size. Fat lot of good it does now.
Posted by: bill r | May 10, 2008 10:50 PM
Hey, I didn't get a year book either. Partly because I pretty much never showed up for high school.
Nobody threw me a party when I got my GED, either.
Posted by: craig | May 10, 2008 10:51 PM
I like the dress!
Posted by: Dr. Cheese | May 10, 2008 11:18 PM
I like the dress too--they look great! Hope they have a fun night. But y'know, not TOO fun and all that...
Posted by: Tara C. Smith | May 10, 2008 11:46 PM
Am I the only one sad that the newer generations are still just going through the same motions our generations did? Proms? Homecomings? Proabably going to hand out the silly little scrolls while Pomp and Circumstance plays ponderously in the background. What century is this again? At least the boy's not wearing a tux.
Never did hold with "traditions". Maybe that's why I'm a skeptic.
Posted by: Quiet Desperation | May 11, 2008 12:00 AM
"But, PZ...
you ARE old!"
I disagree, he's aging...like a fine scotch.
Posted by: Rick Schauer | May 11, 2008 12:00 AM
"Aw...
She looks nice, but... tall.
Very tall."
Nothing wrong with that, I'm 6'3" and my ex-girlfriend is 6'5". She never let this bother her (even with all the "how tall are you?"s and the "do you play basketball?"s), and never hesitated to wear high heels at fancy dress events. I remember trailing through a crowd behind her at a Mardi Gras banquet and catching the whispered conversation of onlookers. Personally I just felt proud to have my tall, beautiful, and smart lady who was the center of so much attention.
And congrats to PZ on getting the last one through K-12. Cheers!
Posted by: Diego | May 11, 2008 12:34 AM
I imagine that the "graduated high school"/"graduated from high school" thing is more regional than generational. There are many regional things in the US that sound bizarre to me, as an outsider. Another is people who'll say "a couple oranges", rather than "a couple of oranges".
Posted by: Russell Blackford | May 11, 2008 12:54 AM
Why is there an audience for promenade? That adds more pressure to an event that already has a too much in the first place.
Posted by: GOD | May 11, 2008 1:29 AM
I see a beautiful young lady. Then I glance over at dad's pic.
Must be one georgeous mom, is all I got to say.
Posted by: trog69 | May 11, 2008 1:54 AM
Who the hell is george? GORGEOUS!
Posted by: trog69 | May 11, 2008 1:56 AM
Dave E #3 - I believe Skatje is pronounced like "SCOT-yeh", sorta rhymes with "Gotya!" Brains and beauty, yes indeed. Sigh. As a 5'9" humanfemaleperson, I question the "Nice, but tall" characterization. But? BUT? I believe the word you're looking for is and. ;-)
Posted by: Kseniya | May 11, 2008 2:03 AM
I bet secretly you look at that picture and think that, no matter what, you've had a successful life.
I know I would.
Posted by: Giffy | May 11, 2008 2:08 AM
I believe the word you're looking for is and. ;-)
damn straight!
I'm definetly biased towards tall. Last 4 have all been over 5'8".
I'm only 5'6"
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/femail/article.html?in_article_id=477179&in_page_id=1879
Posted by: Ichthyic | May 11, 2008 2:15 AM
I am a 5'6" guy, and my date for my senior prom was 5'9".
If anyone had thought of having anything to say about it, they knew I would just go all Napoleonic Complex on their asses.
And she would have had my back.
Posted by: Autumn | May 11, 2008 2:21 AM
"Ummm, what's wrong with a woman being tall?"
Oh... Nothing.
...
Ever hear of the term, "Death by snoo snoo?"
Posted by: Funkstronaut | May 11, 2008 2:21 AM
I have met the lady in the pic. She is tall. Delightfully tall, IM<HO.
Kseniya, if you ever graced me with your presence I'd be apt to give you some appreciation also.
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | May 11, 2008 2:22 AM
ahhhhhh hes short!
Posted by: Paul Johnson | May 11, 2008 2:23 AM
"Death by snoo snoo?"
"The spirit is willing, but the flesh is soft and spongy..."
Posted by: Ichthyic | May 11, 2008 2:29 AM
Man what a wimp. Wait until your middle grandchild, who you raised as a single parent, turns 22(on Cinco de Mayo no less!!) and yoour oldest is 28! And tall is good, but short is good. Damn! For me a brain is the most important and given her father's endowment and my belief in environment and inheritance....Odds she is smarter than most of us?
Posted by: robert estrada | May 11, 2008 3:13 AM
There is a Dutch word "schat" which means darling (wife, husband or just someone you really like) or treasure (pirate). Schatje is the diminutive. The "ch" is pronounced like a soft g. When you pronounce it with the english "g" (like in good) and you overdo it you get skatje, with a "k". In the northern part of the country some people actually pronounce the word like skatje.
I have no idea wether this is a correct analysis but it could be!
Nice dress!
Posted by: Eddie Janssen | May 11, 2008 3:14 AM
Oh my, the Evil Overlord shows some tenderness and acts like the proud daddy he is. Don't let the Fundies know PZ, they'll begin to think some atheists have hearts. Congrats to you and the Trophy Wife for raising an intelligent, thinking and beautiful daughter (and, of course, your other children).
PS I'm almost 6 foot tall and Mr Shrek adores it when I wear high heels (preferably with nothing else!).
Posted by: Bride of Shrek | May 11, 2008 3:32 AM
5'1" humanfemaleperson...do I win the Shortest Pharyngulite award?
Posted by: Etha Williams | May 11, 2008 3:49 AM
5'1" body stature, 7' 1" presence. Pocket Rocket - our Etha !!!!
Posted by: Bride of Shrek | May 11, 2008 5:27 AM
I'm glad I moved to England before I went to high school in the US. I would never have had a date. It seems like a very Big Deal.
Posted by: maxi | May 11, 2008 5:30 AM
Eddie, your analysis sounds plausible, but unfortunately you're looking at the wrong country - Skatje is a Norwegian name (but there is a similar word "Skat" with the same meaning as the Dutch word you mention).
Posted by: Kristjan Wager | May 11, 2008 6:30 AM
Nothing wrong with tall, I am 6'4". Back in my day, so long ago that the prom theme was fire, it was hard to find many women over 5'8. I loved tall women, still do. Well, don't actually love them anymore, my 5'4" girlfriend would not like that.
Lovely girl, nice presence. I have five kids, oldest will be 30 this year. Now into the grandkids, four granddaughters and counting. I am soooooooooooo looking forward to them dating so I can watch their fathers and mothers cringe and worry. Payback is wonderful, being a grandparent is wonderful. Fill them with caffeine and sugar and send them home. Life can be good.
Ciao
Posted by: JeffreyD | May 11, 2008 7:26 AM
At least your kids got to do the prom thing, PZ. I was raised a Pentecostal Christian. We didn't do dances.
Posted by: mikespeir | May 11, 2008 8:39 AM
No. 26a guy can date a younger girl, but a girl can't date a younger guy
Dahling, where have you been? There's even a name for it: Cougar (if some biologist could explain if/why this is apt, I'd love to hear it) and it is all the rage. I'm 42. I don't think I've dated anyone over 30 since I was 17.
Posted by: TheWireMonkey | May 11, 2008 9:12 AM
Are those tentacles on the hem of her dress?
Posted by: Bob L | May 11, 2008 9:42 AM
Since there's a lot of speculation and I actually know something on the subject for once, its "Skaht-yeh" and, IIRC, 5'8" (Which I remember cause its my height too). No idea how tall Collin is.
Posted by: Nerull | May 11, 2008 10:35 AM
Well, I'm 6'2". I've dated women from 5 feet even to 6' 0". It seems to work out if I like the person. Height doesn't seem to make a difference. Not that I've ever dated a woman taller than me. I've only met a few.
Skatje is a beautiful young woman. PZ must be proud.
Posted by: Mark B | May 11, 2008 10:48 AM
Ah yes, the feeling old thing. It really got to me when my college roomate's oldest kid started graduate school.
Before that it was when I started getting grad students who were born the year I finished by bachelors' degree. Still a little too early to be getting grad students born the year I finished my doctorate, but I can see it looming...
Posted by: MS | May 11, 2008 10:55 AM
Is the boyfriend an Atheist?
Posted by: Reed Braden | May 11, 2008 11:12 AM
#68:
Yeah, he is. Co-Chair of the UMM Freethinkers group (along with Skatje).
Posted by: Nerull | May 11, 2008 11:22 AM
I thought it rhymed with "gotcha". Is the J pronounced like it is in in English or no?
Posted by: Karley | May 11, 2008 11:44 AM
It's "Skaht-yeh". The gotcha thing is how her parents pronounce it, apparently, but not the way she allows anyone else to.
Posted by: Nerull | May 11, 2008 12:01 PM
Sorry, Etha, but I beat you with 5' even. Of course, I make up for my lack of height with enhanced circumference. I'm continually astonished at how tall (5'6") my own sprout is. He's 28, but still rolls his eyes like a teenager when I mention it.
Posted by: Rugosa | May 11, 2008 1:04 PM
"It's "Skaht-yeh". The gotcha thing is how her parents pronounce it, apparently, but not the way she allows anyone else to."
Untrue. The only person that I've heard call her "Skat-yeh" is Collin, and she's my best friend.
Posted by: Lori | May 11, 2008 1:04 PM
I'm Norwegian, and I have never met anyone named 'Skatje'.
(I'm 6'4'', but that may not be relevant.)
Posted by: Paragon Kobold | May 11, 2008 1:14 PM
She's gorgeous! And she has great taste in dresses.
I thought she was already at UMM though - how can she be going to the prom?!
Posted by: Robin Zebrowski | May 11, 2008 1:40 PM
Lori: Well, that is how she says her name should be pronounced. She yelled at Collin for telling people it rhymed with "gotcha" once. ;)
Posted by: Nerull | May 11, 2008 1:52 PM
My mum usually pronounces the J as a Y these days, too. She's trying, at least. People at UMM call me skaht-yeh, people at the high school and work call me scotcha.
Robin: I've been doing full-time PSEO for the last two years of my high school, so I'm a sophomore at UMM, but a senior at the high school I never actually attend but am still enrolled at.
Posted by: Skatje | May 11, 2008 3:44 PM
Ahh, supergenius. I should've guessed that!
Posted by: Robin Zebrowski | May 11, 2008 5:22 PM
Those damn atheists and their book learnin'
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | May 11, 2008 7:01 PM
Thasright, Rev. They cain't teach common sense in them thar eye-vree towers!
Posted by: Kseniya | May 11, 2008 9:26 PM
PZ
I; am so happy that education will change in this era that I don't have words for it. You will be on the forefront of such teachings.
You will be able to teach science as it is.
A capitalist arrangement will verify your credentials. You don't like it? Too bad the writing is on the wall.
Posted by: JamesR | May 11, 2008 10:25 PM
Indeed, tallness in the humanfemaleperson is a Feature, Not a Bug™!
My father was 5'4" (on his best day), and partook of his culture's typical fascination with breasts to a reasonable degree; he suffered from no shortage of jokes and appreciative comments about the joys of slowdancing with tall women.
I'd like to think my own thoughts on the issue are somewhat more refined, but yeah... tall is really nice.
Posted by: Bill Dauphin | May 12, 2008 7:54 AM
My boyfriendless daughter's date to prom is her (also boyfriendless) gay best friend.
She and her friends did hold an anti-homecoming party each of the last 2 years, but that was more of a political protest than anything to do with their dating status: When the school started administering breathalyzers to students attending the homecoming dance, my daughter's crowd (none of whom drinks, BTW) decided they couldn't be associated with such a guilty-until-proven-innocent approach.
PZ, I feel your aging-parent pain: My own just finished her last high-school play, will attend her prom next weekend, and just Saturday received a big packet of freshman orientation materials from Yale. At least with Skatje, you have had a bit of a phase-in period, because of the way her college and high-school years have overlapped.
My family has been a trio for so long that I find myself wondering if my wife and I still remember how to be a couple. Find out soon enough, I suppose...
Posted by: Bill Dauphin | May 12, 2008 8:13 AM
You'll figure it out. Consider it a Golden Opportunity, and A Good Uuse Of Your Time while Daughter is off figuring out how to be an adult. :-)
Posted by: Kseniya | May 12, 2008 9:32 AM
She looks a bit like my mother (tall redhead with glasses). And my mother married a man shorter than her.
Posted by: Jon Meltzer | May 12, 2008 12:06 PM
PZ, you should be one proud far! I wonder how long it will be before you become a proud bestefar? My beautiful, extremely intelligent, 5'11" daughter is only two years away from graduation.
Posted by: Jeff Knapp | May 12, 2008 3:08 PM
What a beautiful daughter PZ! You have every right to be proud.
The person wondering about Cougars, you don't need to ask a biologist, there are several Cougars on this list. ;)
Posted by: Patricia C. | May 12, 2008 10:42 PM
I don't remember an audience at my prom!
Posted by: Zachary B. | May 13, 2008 2:04 AM