Kids, Sweet and Not So Sweet

I overheard two funny conversations involving children today. The first was between a girl of 4 or 5 and her young father sitting a table over from me at a pizza place. The girl reached into her mouth, and the following conversation ensued, girl first:

"What does the tongue really do?"

"It helps you taste."

"The tongue?"

"Yeah, it has taste buds on it."

"I thought they just came and went, those bugs."

"Not bugs, buds. They help you taste your food."

"Mmm. They sure do a good job of tasting... But they're not animals?"

"No, they're not insects. They're just bumps on your tongue."

Very soon after that, in a coffee shop, a boy of about eight or nine and his hobo-chic father (think Tom Waits) were talking to a blonde barrista. She had two simple tattoos of a skull and crossbones, one on the inside of each forearm. The father asked, "Why two?" and she said, "To preserve the symmetry of my arms." I think she then talked about another possible addition to her markings, and the young boy said, "Yeah, no big deal. Just get another crappy tattoo." The father smiled and said, "We better be going."