My mother

Tonight, I went with my mother to a nearby shopping center for our nearly weekly ritual of window shopping and talking. As an afterthought to dinner, when we stopped to eat a sandwich. My mother told me about a conversation she had with one of her employees who seems way over her head.

As background, my mother is an office manager for a real estate and lending firm. The employee chick apparently was upset with my mother for making a change to one of their systems based on a decision made by my mother and the firm's owner. My mother treated employee chick, 28, as family. That's just my mother... She's extremely motherly. At any rate, employee chick lived at my mother's home (free, of course) for several months as it did not make sense for her to commute nearly five hours each day for work. During the evening, my mother always called her to make sure she was OK, and to check in when she would come "home."

At any rate, employee chick is/was upset at my mother for a management decision. Displaying her immaturity, she gave my mother a $1,000 check as "rent" for the months she stayed at the house. (Please, if you rented a room in the Bay Area, $1,000 wouldn't cut it. But anyway...) Employee chick also said that she wanted to return all gifts my mother gave her. Goodness.

My mother shredded the check, and explained that she never asked for her money. My mother was hurt, but didn't show it. Employee chick said something to the effect of: "You're just jealous. I am 28-years-old and own five houses. And by the time I am 30, I will own ten houses." (By the way, none of the houses are rented to tenants, so she is losing money.)

My mother politely said, "Dear, I am nearly twice your age. I've been around much longer than you have. Owning many houses is not something I care for. I have three beautiful children. And that's what makes me happy."