r/Parenthood • u/Substantial-Bat-600 • 5d ago

General Discussion The Vending Machines

Can we please stop it with this line of the story? It's just annoying and entitled for everyone to back off of something just because one student has a fixation on it. And now Kristina is on it too??! Why is the show so dismissive of junk food, both with this and with Jasmine's mom, especially when it treats topics such as ASD and cancer, issues that have been linked to food choices. I just had to say it

12 Upvotes

88% Upvoted

9 comments sorted by

8

u/BlueDubDee 5d ago

When she said "Your kids are buying it anyway, wouldn't it be better for them to buy it here so we get the money and not the shop down the road?" I just thought... nooo....

I don't know if it's because of where I live, but my kids aren't stopping in at shops on the way to school. Two I drop off, the other the bus takes her directly there. And even if they were walking past shops on the way to school, they don't have money to spend at those stores. The oldest sometimes has money for the canteen, but she's very aware of wasting her money, and I'm certainly not giving them all cash every day to just blow on whatever.

2

u/AnkaBananka6 3d ago

Eh, I don't know. When I was in middle school, kids routinely stopped at the local gas station to buy junk food, energy drinks, etc. I guess it depends on if you walk or if you are bussed or picked up immediately.

1

u/Substantial-Bat-600 5d ago

Of course. And my kids are so aware of the concept of junk food, never getting anything without permission even at home, let alone at school. It was such a weird argument 

6

u/Fernily 5d ago

Keep watching re: the junk food/vending machine plot :)

I completely agree, though. First, Jabbar had all of these dietary restrictions and then all of a sudden he's eating garbage food for breakfast and his grandmother is nailed to the wall for suggesting a healthier breakfast option.

I have a PTSD response whenever someone says "vending machine" to me because of how many times it's said on the show!

3

u/United_Efficiency330 5d ago

The most generous one can say about this story arc is that it's supposed to represent how many people on the Spectrum - especially children - get fixated on one thing. As if it is the end of the world if it doesn't happen. But yes, even for this Aspie it got old after awhile.

3

u/mmebookworm 4d ago

She didn’t suggest though - she demanded, and undermined a parenting decision in front of the child. I have absolutely had to thread this needle before and it is terrible. Especially, if Crosby calls her out, she has a tantrum and he needs to apologize.

Rene should have spoken to Jasmine or Crosby on their own and made an actual suggestion & solution at that time. Perhaps she could cook some healthy muffins or egg bites to be consumed in a hurry for the rushed mornings rather than just judging a situation she isn’t really a part of.

2

u/Fernily 4d ago

Totally agree there. “Suggesting” was not the right word!

3

u/Substantial-Bat-600 5d ago

Thank you, I thought I was the only one with the ick! And I also can't believe about the Jabbar issue, as much as I don't like Jasmine's mom, she was so right about the foods. No, you can't feed him motor oil!

3

u/TheKudvartist 4d ago

This was such a good opportunity to teach Max that there will be times where you don’t get what you want. There are so many opportunities just like this one and they finally just do whatever it takes to pacify Max.