Big news broke yesterday afternoon. The New York Times revealed, after considerable investigation, that New York Governor Eliot Spitzer, had been utilizing the services of a very pricey call girl at a very pricey hotel in Manhattan. (Think Heidi Fleiss fiasco a decade later and on the East Coast.) He was known as Client Number 9. New York's Governor has a reputation for being sqeaky clean, getting rid of trash and crime and then he does something so stupid as this? He's a fairly young man with a lot of talent, a beautiful wife and 3 gorgeous teenage girls. How could he be so absolutely stupid? Like a governor and a prostitute would not go un-noticed? Come on! What is it with smart men doing stupid things? Connecticut had a promising governor as well and he was forced to resign and serve jail time for accepting bribes. And New Jersey's Governor finally came out of the closet after many, many years...

So why lie? I thought about this quite extensively last night and then I realized that I too lie quite a bit! Not to my husband. And not about anything that would hurt others or myself. Certainly not about anything that would land me in jail. But truth be told I do lie to the kids... quite a lot it seems!

I lie to Alexander all the time. This morning he wanted to go to the library after we took the kids to school but I wanted to go back and have a cup of coffee before doing so. I told him the library was still closed. Earlier he wanted to watch Blue's Clues on TV. I told him the episode he wanted was no longer on the DVR and he agreed to Dora instead. (I am so Blue's Clue's-d out!) I tell him I am out of cookies or chocolate or whatever it is that he wants instead of saying no. It makes the battles so much easier. When we are at stores and the kids want something I say I have no money. It is a form of no, but when I say I have no money they do not argue with me. Alexander was asking me why he no longer went to his gymnastics class. I told him it was over. Another lie. (I couldn't stand the program!) I have lied to all the kids about something or other. Sometimes a simple white lie is just the easiest way to avoid a major battle about something trivial and insignificant. Those happen here all the time as it is. My little lies to the children are not doing any harm, but are they really any different than the lies that do? When is a lie really a lie and when is it simply a means of avoiding having to answer or deal with the issue at hand? And is there really any difference?