Communication, Part II

So yesterday I used my blog to remind myself of good communication skills and to give myself a little pep talk before having a conversation with my son, Matt, about some of the little things that have been bothering me of late. When he got home from work, the conversation went something like this:

Me: Hey, Matty, how was work today?
Matt: It was good. So you wanted to talk...
Me: Yes.
Matt: Well, I meant to tell you what happened yesterday with the doggy door, but I forgot to tell you. I came home from work on my lunch break and I didn't have my key and I needed to get in the house, so I came in that way.
[Note to readers: the boy is 6'2" and the dog is 6 lbs., so he had to jerk the panel which holds the doggy door to and fro (since it is screwed in) to access the house, hence it is now torqued with gaps where there should not be gaps.]
Me: Well, you have two choices here as far I can tell: (1) fix the door, or (2) buy a new one.
Matt: Okay, I will probably have to buy new one.
Me: So, I do want to talk you about some of the little things that have been going on lately, but first I want you to know that you should be really proud of yourself because you have made some amazing changes in your life. You have done a complete 360 and you are doing great as far as the big picture goes.
Matt: Yeah, so what are the little things that are frustrating you?
Me: Matt, I don't want to overlook all of the really great choices you are making, so I want you to know that you are really doing great with all of the big things that really matter. This other stuff is just minor irritants that are no big deal in and of themselves, but they just add up.
Matt: Uh huh.
Me: You should be so proud of yourself, Matt, because you are getting your life back on track and really doing great in the important things...
Matt: So, Mom, just get to the bottom line, what is really bugging you? Just tell me...

There was more to the conversation, but I have to admit that I am somewhat amused because my son is a lot like me in terms of how he wants to communicate--spare the fluff and get to the point. I worked with a gal once who said she was going to call me "Frank" because I was always so direct. I'm thinking maybe I should call my boy "Curt!" As my mom would say, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.