You think you know, but you have no idea.

A couple of weeks ago, my brother introduced us to Guitar Hero for the PS2. We had a lot of fun playing it for the time it was at my folks' house. We played this game on occasions when all of the family - nephew and niece included - were around. Our nephew, AK, is four and as a bright four-year-old, he naturally wants to take part in the same kind of fun that everyeone else is having. This was possible in the case of the "dakar" game, since AK could easily push buttons and sway along to the music. He couldn't actually play the music, but we let him have a turn, cheered him on, and he managed to have some fun with it.

The songs on the dakar game are mostly hard rock, fun guitar songs ranging from "Free Bird" to "Message in a Bottle." When we were playing, AK would often request the "Da Da Cha" song, singing only the refrain "Da Da Cha!" We knew that this song was Motley Crue's "Shout at the Devil," and so we obliged, impressed with his grasp of the baseline beat of the song. The dakar game went back to its owner soon afterward, and AK kept telling uncle Bub (my brother, Patric(k)) that he missed the dakar game, and da da cha, and Lars (his avatar for the game, a big hulking fellow with punk spikes and long blond hair).

I'm sure you can guess how this story ends. Blame is evenly distributed among the hard core dakar players: me, AV, my brother, and AK's dad.

So the other night we were all together again, each of us engrossed in our separate tasks - AV and I were caramelizing some bananas for desert, Eric (AK's dad) was acquiring the ladder to continue painting the walls in his family room, and Bub was laying on the couch. All of the sudden, AK sings "da da cha! Shout for the devil!"

It was just like in a movie. Somewhere, a needle was being pulled violently off a record. We paused the bananas, Bub abruptly sat up from the couch, daddy was coming in with the ladder, and AK's mommy - not privy to the incessant requests for da da cha weeks earlier - said, "WHAT did you say?! We DO NOT sing songs about the devil in this house!" The four bad influences in the room had saucer eyes. The worst part is that he just kept on singing it. We tried to get him to change songs, urging him to sing "Sending out an SOS!" (The Police's "Message in a Bottle,"). Eric even suggested some alternate lyrics to his favorite song: "AK, why don't you sing 'Shout at the Dremel?" but even after singing SOS, he went back to da da cha.

I'm fairly sure we've learned our lesson, and now we know that if da da cha is sung anywhere near mommy, there will be some trouble. My sister's always been the responsible one anyway.

In truth, I thought it would be a swear word, with AK overhearing me in one of my more off-color moments (which I consciously avoid when the kiddos are nearby). We didn't know he had actually heard the lyrics - we could barely understand what they were singing. But then again, what do we know about a four-year-old's mind? Clearly very little.