The “pageant mom” of a little girl who looks to be about 4 years old is sitting here at the gate barking out pageant commands to her little girl who has been deeply spray-tanned and painted up with makeup. It’s just like on that TV show by the same name that I’ve only seen once or twice.

I think the mother thinks that all of us sitting here think that it’s cute how well-trained, darkly tanned and made-up the little girl is. It’s a creepy and kind of sad thing to watch – at least it is when watching in the mood I’m currently in. To each his (or her) own but all I see is a mother who looks like a plump Kim Kardashian showing off the command and control she has over her daughter and I’m not impressed.

Who knows, maybe the little girl loves it? If she does, that’s great for both of them. But if she’s being trained like a monkey so that her mother can live out her dreams like I suspect, I sure hope that little girl grows up to be a happy adult, and is not apologetic to her mother about driving a Subaru Forester and playing on an all-women recreational softball team.

(I should probably start minding my own business.)