Brooklynites can now rent moms without the pageantry and hidden lessons of the 1994 film “Trading Mom,” in which Anna Chlumsky learns to love Sissy Spacek for who she is, flaws and all.
After spending years as a theater producer, drug rehab counselor and mother of her own two sons, 63-year-old Nina Keneally started NeedAMom, a service aimed at providing a motherly presence for 20- to 35-year-olds for a cool $40 an hour.
Keneally dreamed up the plan after meeting Millennials in yoga class, in her art program, through her sons, Zeb and Eli, and walking her dog through Bushwick.
She realized there are young adults still in need of guidance who don't turn to their own parents due to attached strife, guilt or baggage.
She told NBC News,
We talk, and sometimes they ask my help and advice. I figured there must be others out there who could use a temporary mom without the baggage… [My clients] are all great, smart, ambitious and hard-working but sometimes just need some perspective or hard-earned life wisdom.
She gives advice to her clients and helps with tasks like party planning, visits to the doctor or editing a résumé, as any great mom would. New clients are offered a $10 discount, and Keneally claimed the $40 fee is not necessarily set in stone.
The mother explained,
If someone is in dire financial straits, I'm willing to negotiate a bit.
Keneally insisted the best way to deal with a mom, whether real or rented, is to use her nuggets of wisdom as helpful, loving suggestions, not rules.
She said,
Agree with them as much as possible, thank them for their love and concern and then do whatever you think is best for you.
Citations: Is Mom Nagging Too Much? Now You Can Rent a New One (NBC News)
