A friend recently told me a story of an electrician he knew who was doing some work in a residential home. While he worked in the basement, the mother told her teenage son to carry some rock salt bags downstairs and put them in the water softener. The son did exactly what his mom told him. He carried them to the utility room and placed the bags, without opening them, directly into the water softener.

When the mother got irritated and asked why he didn’t pour in the salt, he said he thought the bags were like dishwasher detergent packets that dissolved in water. This type of story seems common with teens. Another example is a woman I used to work with who told her daughter on the phone to take the laundry out of the washer and put it in the dryer. When she got home, she checked the dryer and found the clothes soaking wet. Turns out, the daughter never turned on the dryer because her mom didn’t tell her too.

Brett Martin is a columnist who’s been a Shakopee resident for over 15 years.

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