I think I'll eat some worms

A few weeks ago I went with Teh N00b and his Favorite Person in the Whole World (and associated parents) to the Garfield Conservatory. There they have a kids' area. There one finds a toddler-level table where kids can dig in the "dirt" to look for "worms" and "insects" and plant "vegetables."

Everything has to go in quotes because all the things involved are actually plastic. I suppose this is cleaner, and means they don't have to install a sink for washing up. Plus it means that real potatoes and carrots will not be harmed. Fair enough. But I think this is also about the parents and their fear of the "ick factor."

For example:
Now, I don't have a problem with worms. I keep them in the basement, after all. But I guess many other people think that worms are disgusting.

Me, I save my disgust for truly nasty things. Like cockroaches.

Or maybe they just want to protect real worms from the inevitable. Teh N00b is, I fear, way ahead of the curve there. Last summer while gardening I left a small bowl of worms I'd found (and intended to return to their bin) near him.

"Where did they go? What did you do with them?"

That's the day Teh N00b learned to shrug. For my part, I intend to go on believing that he just dumped them in the dirt. Because that's the sort of thing parents do.