actually, for purposes of this writeup, it's just my dad. we won't go into the various examples set by both of them.

the conversation went like this:

dad: one of the guys from work got this internet video camera. he says it's really neat.
prole: you mean a webcam, dad?
dad: yeah. you use it to see people over the internet?
prole: oh. ok..
dad: anyway, he was really excited about it, so i went out and bought us some. (at this point it's necessary to explain that after living very frugally for ten to fifteen years, my dad acquired a large sum of money as worker's compensation. so he's now given to infrequent flights of frivolousness.)
prole: us who?
dad: all of us. so i need to get your address.

what can we deduce from this? principally, that my dad has no faith in my ability to support myself with my intellect alone, and thinks it would be wiser for me to combine a device for broadcasting images over the web with my not inconsiderable knowledge of photoshop in order to attain food, shelter, and the like. this is all because my little sister has made it her business to show me up to such an extreme that the scope of her accomplishments makes me look like a vegetable in comparison. her getting a webcam too is just my dad's clever ploy to disguise his motives.

i used to be the good daughter. sigh.