Garrison Keillor: ...after this message for parents of young people. (MUSIC)
Sue Scott: Our daughter Amanda is 13 and she spends most of her time upstairs in her room on the Internet or on her cellphone. She sends us e-mails now and then, short e-mails, what she wants for dinner. That sort of thing. So I run down to the supermarket and get it. We try to eat together. She has a webcam. We try to do things together. We're all over her MySpace page. I read her blog every day.
GK: When were you last in her room?
SS: In her room? You mean, like -- inside?
GK: Yes.
SS: I don't think she would like that.
GK: Maybe you should knock on her door and ask her to come down and eat supper.
SS: You mean, like-- come down here?
GK: Yes.
SS: I don't know if that's a good idea. When I called her on the way home it went straight into voicemail. I could post a message on her chat board. She usually gets back to me within a couple days.
GK: Supper. It's just a good idea. Even if you're carrying on a lot of communication with your children by various media, supper is a good platform for getting to know each other. It may be rocky sometimes--
SS: Pass the potatoes, please, darling.
SS (TEEN): (SNARL) You ruined my life!!! I hate you!!!
GK: But supper with the family is a tradition worth keeping.
(DIAL NUMBER. THREE RINGS. CLICK. SS TEEN VOICE: Yeah, it's me, so leave a message. Whatever. (BEEP)
SS: Darling, I just thought it'd be lovely if all of us could sit down and have supper tonight. You know. In real time? At the table?
GK: Supper. It doesn't have to be fancy. But you have to be there. So come to supper. A message from Americans For Evening Meals.