...and not exactly prey.

Meanwhile, our eldest had a close encounter at her high school this week. While she was standing in the hall, chatting with some friends between classes, a boy came up behind her. She had not ever met him before-- entirely possible, as hers is a very large school. For whatever reason, this young man apparently decided that this was not his day to be a gentleman. He reached over on his way by, and grabbed her backside.

I should probably say here that my daughter is not a formidable figure. Quite frankly, she's tiny: standing up very straight, she's still only a little over 5 feet tall. So maybe this kid assumed that small meant more easily victimized.

However, someone forgot to tell her that part. Her reaction was to whirl around before he had time to think, and crack him good. A solid, open-handed slap, right across the face. And a stern injunction: "Not public property! MINE!"

Now, this could have escalated to be a big problem. Because they were right in front of the door to her classroom, and her teacher happened to look up just as she swung around. And in this day and age of "zero tolerance," striking another student, for any reason whatsoever, is grounds for suspension.

Fortunately, CJ had two things going for her: other students in the hall who were witness to the initial grab; and a teacher who did not feel bound to enforce the letter of the law.

You know, parenting is many things. But it is never, ever dull.