|
When he was not yet 3 years old...in 1971.
For an analysis, please see
this discussion.
(1) Rex: I am hot. Put this
on. I want to be warm (points to air conditioner)
Father: You mean cool, You want to be cool.
Rex: Yeah. I want to be cool.
Father: (turns unit on)
(2) R: I love my paintings. (looking at
his recently completed samples)
F: I like them too
R: But why don't you love them too?
F: I do love them
R: But...you said...(Mother walks in and R gets
distracted)
(3) R: Oh! We forgot my
coloring book!
F: How did you know?
R: Fine. Forgot my coloring book.
F: (Laughs) |
See his questions today in 1999... |
(4) Mother: (to F.) I wonder if next time
I will take the nitric oxide
R: No, you wouldn't!
M: You're probably right. But how do you
know?
R: Fine. (laughing)
(5) F: Everyone has to die sometime. (to
other adult during dinner conversation.)
R: (picking up conversation) Can I die?
F: Yes. Everything that's alive can die.
R: Can hard things die?
F: Only living things can die.
R: Can cars die?
F:No. Cars are not alive. But they can
break down!
R: Leaves can die. (seriously)
F: Yes. Leaves can die.
R:Can part of a tree die?
F: Yes
R: Can the hard part of a tree die?
F: Yes. the bark can die.
R: Can a stick die?
F: Yes
(6) R: Can I dip my cookie in there?
F: If you want to.
R: I want to. (proceeds to do it)
(7) R: Look at me (making gestures)
F: (continues talking on the phone)
R: Look at me! (insistently)
F: (interrupting his telephone conversation) I
am looking at you!
R: I am flying
F: (resumes his telephone conversation)
R: (walks away as he continues to gesture)
(8) R: Is some people gonna put some
clothes on me?
F: (taking R's wet pants off)
R: Yeah or No?
F: No.
(9) F: I'm gonna go eat breakfast
now. Would you like to come to the kitchen and talk to me? Keep me company?
R: (watching T.V. in living room) No
F: Do you prefer the cartoons to talking to me?
R: Huh?
F: Do you like the cartoons better than me?
R: But then I won;t be able to see the
cartoons!
F: I see. Well, I see you later, Champ.
(10) R: I want to go with you Daddy. (whining)
F: OK We'll go together to pick up mommy.
R: OK (smiles happily)
F: (picks up keys)
R: Am I going with you Daddy?
F: Yes
R: (smiles happily)
(11) R: Where is my spoon?
F: I don't know. (writing at his desk)
R: It's in the drawer. (pointing)
F: (gets up, finds and gives him spoon)
(12) R: Are you tired?
F: No. Are you?
R: No.
(13) R: The pipi comes out from my penis, and
the stinky poo comes out from what?
F: The anus.
(14) R: Are you helping me paint.
F: Yes.
R: Why?
F: Don't you want me to?
R: Yeah, I want to.
(15) R:Are you gonna be mad, Mommy?
M: Why?
R: Are you gonna be mad?
M: What are you doing?
R: I'm putting the apple on my toes.
M: (Laughing) No, I'm not gonna be
mad. So long as you're not going to leave any pieces on the floor.
R: (nodding) Yeah, I'm gonna leave pieces
on the floor.
M: (laughs)
R: I'm finished with apple. I don't
want any more.
(16) F:(walks into bathroom)
R: What happened? (referring to crashing sound
coming from Baby Joy's room)
F: I don't know. I didn't look
R: Which way you didn't look?
F: The room where the baby is.
(17) F: That's David Frost. (looking at TV)
R: Do you know him?
F: No, but I've seen him on TV before
R: (appears to consider answer, but no further
response)
(18) R: How many pieces? (playing at table with
pieces of an apple)
F: Ten. (joking)
R: No
F: Five
R: No
F: Two
R: Yeah...How many now? (after eating one)
F: Five (joking)
R: No. How many?
F: Two
R:No. How many?
F: Zero
R:No. it's zero over here (points to where the
other piece was lying before he ate it), but one over here.
F: Oh, I see.
(19) R: Daddy, I love you Daddy.
F:I love you too. (kisses him)
R: Your nose looks like an apple. (they
both look at each other for a second then burst out laughing)
(20) R: Where is that shirt? (pointing to F's
shirt)
F: Those are flower designs. Someone painted
the flowers on it.
R: Where is this?
F: (puzzled doesn't answer)
R: Where is this from?
F: That's a shirt Zeidy brought back from
Israel
R: Is it Daddy's day?
F: Yes, that's right. I got it for Daddy's day.
R: And where is my day?
F: (laughing) You have your birthday.
R: where is it?
F: In two months.
R: (smiles happily)
(21) F: What were you gonna say Rex?
R: What?
F: I don't know-what was it?
R: What?
F: I don't know. What could it have been?
R: Tell me.
F: (laughing) I don't know! I don't know
what you want to say
R: But you tell me what I wanted to say.
F: I can't. You are the one who knows
that.
R: But I don't want to!
F: (kissing him) OK OK
(22) R: Will you carry me, Daddy?
F: Oh, sure You're my son, and I will do
that for you.
R: But...I want to be Mommy's!
F: You're both Mommy and Daddy's. Let's go.
(23) R: What are you doing?
F: Writing down what you're saying. All
the things you are saying.
R: (talks gibberish)
F: I can't write that down. It's too
difficult.
R: Write this.
F: Oh, you're going to dictate something for me
to write down. OK Go ahead.
R: (talking gibberish of the following form:
Pick a backa. Ponty. Picky, sky.Burndy. Ptggy. Birdy. Gondy)
F: OK I've got it all. Thank you
R: (walks away with a smug expression)
(24) R: Baby Joy spilled water on my bed!
F: Oh, really?
R: Cause she wanted to.
F: Are you sure she wanted to or was it maybe
an accident?
R: Yeah, it was an accident. (pauses,
then looks up) No. Es wa not an accident. She did it on purpose.
F: No, not really.
R: Yes. She did it on purpose.
(25) R: I made a stinky poo after my bath. No.
Uh..uh...uh...
F: Before?
R: Yeah. I made a stinky poo before my
bath.
(26) R:(very excitedly) I saw a little boy!
F: Oh. And then what happened?
R:(excitedly) I said Hi to him.
F: And then what happened?
R: (laughs excitedly) He said Hi to me!
(27) F: Rex, you're holding it upside down. (his coloring
book)
R: Is this right up side or down? (as he
rotates his book)
F: Right side up and upside down. Right
side up and upside down. Can you say that?
R: Right down upside down (smiling aware of
approximate nature of his imitation)
F: No. Say, right side up That's this
way. (straightens book)
R: Right side up
F: Good. Now, this is upside down. (rotates
book)
R: Upside down. Right side up. (rotating
book)
F: Good.
(28) R: Daddy, Daddy. The cake spilled on the
floor. (as F was coming home from the office)
F: Oh, my God! (playfully exaggerating)
R: The cake spilled on the floor.
F: And what did Mommy say?
R: Brendaaaah! (calling loudly)
F: (laughs) And what did you do?
R: I cried (taking on a very serious look)
F: (laughs)
(29) R: Hey, I have no black chips.
F: There are no black ones.
R: Yeah, there are. Look these.
F: Those are blue.
R: Oh. (The chips R called "black"
were replacements for some missing blue chips and were of a much darker blue, hence the
mislabeling)
(30) R: Is there some juice in here?
F: No
R: Yeah, look!
F: Oh, Yeah.
R: Is there some juice in here?
F: Yeah
R: Is there some juice in here?
F: No
R: Yeah, look!
F: Oh
R: Is there some juice in here?
F: Yes. (this continued for about a dozen
repetitions as R was pouring juice from one cup to another and checking my answers)
(31) R: What are you doing?
F: I'm buttoning up your pants so they don't
fall down.
R: But I'm not gonna fall down!
F: Not you! Your pants.
(32) F: Excuse me. (to Rex)
R: What?
F: (No answer walks towards door)
R: What? (as he looks around, puzzled)
F: I'll be right back.
(33) R: Is this a finger or a brush paint? (showing a work
he did recently)
F: Brush paint. (after examining it)
R:No. It's both.
F: Oh, you used both. It's a combination
finger and brush paint.
(34) R: Daddy, show me how to do it.
F: (proceeds to demonstrate)
R: OK
F:(continues to blow) OK You try it now.
(35) R: Shakes hands. (extends left hand)
F: No, the other hand. Peace. (they shake
hands)
R: Yeah, peace...What's war?
F: War is killing.
R: War is shooting people
F: Yeah.
(36) R: Pam?(looking for her)
F: Pam is not here.
R: Where is she?
F: In the park.
R: In the sandbox?
F: Yes. (this took place a few minutes after he
refused to go with her and Baby Joy to play in the sandbox)
(37) R: (runs into room, jumps into F's lap and talks
gibberish)
F: What are you doing?
R: Ta-ta-ba-ta-ta-ta
F: You're happy, hey?
R: Ta-ta-ba-ta-ta-ta
F: You're happy I'm here, hey?
R: Tapa kata taka pa.
F: I like you too.
R: Ma ma mumu
F: I'm gonna kiss you now. (kisses him; R
reciprocates-rather unusual for him to do so)
(38) R: (playing with two cups of juice and pieces of
break) Put this one in there. Then in here, Then mix it together around.
Is there too much in here? no. where's my spoon? Oops. I didn't spill it. I
just dripped. I'm making mushy juice. I'm gonna put it in here. Is there too
much in here? I'm gonna hold it. Don't worry. I'm gonna mix it around with the
spoon.
(39) R: Where is Daddy?
M: Daddy is in there.
R: But I can't open the door.
M: He is busy.
R: But I want to see my Daddy! (begins to cry)
F: (coming out and picking him up) I have some
work to do now.
R: But I want you to come here.
F: But I have some work to do
R: (cries harder)
F: See you in a few minutes. (puts
him down, closes door behind him. Rex cries for one minute, then leaves)
(40) R: Look Daddy! (showing him painting he just finished)
F: Oh, it's the sign of the big bad
monster! (low tone)
R: Why? (examines sheet)
F: You made it!
(41) F: See, we're driving down the hill.
R: Is this east or west?
F: It's north
R: But which way is east?
F: That away. East, west, north,
south. That way is east. That way is west. That way is north. and that
way is south. Get it?
R: (nods)
(42) F: (to M) Rex said the other day that
he'd like two mommies.
M: Oh?
R: (interjecting) Yeah. I want two
daddies and two mommies.
M: Oh?
R: If you do like this there is two
mommies. (presses finger against his eyeball)
(Note: F had shown him the eyeball distortion
trick several weeks before this exchange. It's application to the present context is
Rex's invention)
Continued in Appendix
|| For an analysis, please see
this discussion.
Here's Rex's Father's Day card for June 9,
1999
