One of the tools Melisa and I have used since pretty much Day One of parenting our three young hooligans is using a safe word to signal each other when we are in need. Not just in need, but in desperate need of help. Like, drop-everything-and-get-here-NOW help. Luckily we really haven’t used it more than once or twice, but it is a reassuring tool that is very easy to communicate.
What word or phrase did we choose? Nick Nolte, of course! It was a simple decision, because at the time of creation we felt a lot like some of his bat-shit crazy photos, like the one above and his infamous mug shot.
We got the idea from our good friends and neighbors, the Creeds, who thought of it while watching the Will Farrell/bear fighting scene in Semi-Pro. So a big thanks to them.
Anyway, I thought I’d pass the idea on to new parents or other families who are as crazy as us (three under two years old.)
Hi guys just checking to see whats new at the Dettbarn house and felt compelled to give you our code word. We have not thought to use it with parenting but that is an excellent idea and now we will. Being in real estate I have been in weird situations and sometimes felt uneasy. So we use Rhonda. A tribute to my deejay days, “help me rhonda” by the beach boys. We also came up with a system to pretend ordering pizza on the phone. If I was in a really uncomfortable situation, I would order a pizza with hot peppers, meaning I needed immediate help and call the police. Mild peppers was get here quick, it could turn bad. So now you know our system too. But at home we’ll just use rhonda. (typing one handed sorry)
Personally, I would have went with Chuck Norris…
Marge…. Chuck Norris is so amazing that the only help he would need would be for everyone else to get out of his way and let him do his thing… I bet he’s an awesome babysitter, although I might be concerned with the amount of weaponry use during his watch. Or does he only kill with his incredibly nimble bare hands? Nick Nolte (as demonstrated by the pic above), on the other hand, looks exactly like how I feel when I must use his name to signal “help’!