Oh mother!

There's a sad tale in the Bolton News today. A mother received a phone call from the police telling her that her daughter had been found, drunk, in a park.

When the mother turned up the police held out a bottle of vodka and some cans of beer to her. "No thanks, officer, I'm fine" she said. No she didn't really. They were explaining to her why she was face down, covered in mud and puke.

The woman reacted in the most caring and sharing way possible: she wrote a letter to the newspaper and described which park it was and while not giving her name and address, described her other children and what they were doing at university, so making it not that difficult for anyone who knows her, to identify her, and her 16 year old dipso daughter.

"Thanks, mum"

She then went on to warn other parents that it's not just the "feral" kids who carry on in this dreadful way, but that even "nice" kids can succumb to the demon drink. And not only that, but that teenage children can make things up and lie about what they're up to and who they see.

Will there be letters next week explaining the workings of bears' digestive systems while out amongst trees?