I always tend to get the frantic texts from my twenty-year-old daughter during school. Not over the weekend. Not at night. Only when I am teaching.
11:17 a.m. text:
"I think I'm going to need a new phone before summer. This week I've taken out my SIM card 5 times because it keeps breaking. It stopped working a day or 2 ago."
Hmmm....She did not let me know about this over the weekend. I can feel my chest start to tense. I think And what am I supposed to do?
11:19 a.m. response
"You are due for an upgrade, but you will have to go to the AT&T store."
She had all weekend to take care of this, but she decides to wait for Monday morning. I know she wants me to do something. I can see that in the responses she is sending, and then she reveals her motive for texting.
11:21 a.m. text:
"Lily suggested to have the phone send to me."
Meaning I go to AT&T and get the phone for her. BUT, I live 1,100 miles away.
I start taking some really deep breaths. Several of them. I look for an AT&T store near UW-Madison and find one not too far from campus. I send her the address and tell her to take an Uber.
The conversation goes on as she explains that she has to go to the gym and then eat before she can go to the store. She also has a chapter meeting at 5:30. Basically, she is insinuating she does not have a lot of time. She is quite the busy girl.
12:27 p.m. text:
"That's plenty of time right"
Yes, it is! Just go! I want to write this, but I try to keep my frustration out of the texts. It is probably good that her phone does not work and we can't talk.
1:33 p.m. text:
"Going to AT&T now."
The texts continue as she makes her way to the store.
I anticipate a call. I even make a back-up plan with the teacher across the hall to cover for me when it comes. However, it never comes.
2:06 p.m. text:
"Getting it now!!!!"
She is taking some of her first real adult steps with only a little help from mom.