I was watching TV this afternoon when Mom approached me. She sat on another couch and watched TV with me for a few minutes.
Then she talked.
"Honey, can I talk to you for a second?"
"Yea sure Mom." I paused the TV.
"John I've been thinking about your 'idea'." She raised her hands and made air quotes.
"Yeah?"
"And I have questions. The truth is we need money." She was completely serious and spoke in a matter of face tone. "We'll run out of money in the next couple of months if things don't change and it doesn't look like they will change. It's a strange idea to put it lightly, but these are strange times..."
"Like I said Mom, I really think it's something we should try. What's there to lose?"
"What's there to lose?" Her eyes widened. "A lot if you ask me."
"I don't see it that way."
"Well then that's why I have questions. I mean who's going to be able to see these 'pictures'?"
I had thought about it for a long time and I had figured out ways to sugarcoat the truth but at that moment I knew I had to be sincere. Mom looked so serious and I could not lie to her. "Truthfully, anybody. I'm not gonna lie to you Mom. Anybody with internet access can potentially see them but that doesn't mean everybody will."
"John I have to think about family and what about my coworkers? If they found out about..."
"Mom there's no way your sister will ever find this website. She barely even uses her phone. How would she? Other than that who are you worried about we have hardly ever seen anybody else in your family."
"Your father's family is what I'm worried about."
"Fuck them."
"John!"
"Mom why do you care what they think. They're all assholes who sided with Dad and never treated you right. I won't hear it, you have to stop caring about them. As for your co-workers well what co-workers? You don't work there anymore."
"They know me, they know where I live and some of them are my friends."
"True but even then the chances they'll see these pictures are very small. Listen the only way everyone that you're worried about finds out about this, is if you become extremely popular and known to a lot of people. There's so many people doing this that if we become that extremely popular it will mean that we're swimming in money. We'd have to be making that much money and at that point who cares what anybody thinks?"
She sat silently and thoughtful.
"Mom we're not doing this to get rich. We're doing it to pay the rent. There's a difference."
She got up and went to the kitchen. I closed my eyes for a minute and thought I hadn't convinced her.
I was about to hit play on the remote when...
"Okay."
I turned my head towards the kitchen and she stood there with a new glass of wine in hand.
"Okay." I responded. She didn't look at me.
*************************************
She held a comfortable smile as she spoke. "Hello everyone, I wanted to introduce myself. My name is Kitty and I'm very new to this stuff. I think it's going to take me a little while to learn the ropes but I hope y'all can join me on my journey. Buh-bye." Mom sent kisses towards the camera.