Sep 22 2006
Who is Summer’s Groundhog? (Pic of the Week)
Ben plays with a neighbor friend in our garage.
As the weather’s cooled, we’ve spent more time hanging out with the neighbors. Several of us typically congregate in a driveway, kids either frolicking in the front yard or playing in the garage. There’s a palpable sense of relief at summer’s imminent end, and we had no groundhog to guide us. Winter has Punxsutawney Phil, so what does summer get?
No, really, I’m asking.
I’ve become part of an online community, reading a few blogs here and there while their authors read and contribute to mine, and I call those folks friends. They are no less real than the friends I can pat on the shoulder, but I missed that last part as the summer’s heat kept everybody inside after work. It’s nice to talk instead of type, and to see eyes squint at the setting sun.
Unlike Shannon, who takes Ben to playdates during the week, I rarely get to see our boy play with other kids. The cooler temperatures have fixed that, too. I noticed that Ben is into sharing now, and always very carefully explains the plan to his friend Z. (photo at left by Ben’s mommy)
“Z, I’m going inside my house to get cars. You stay here, and you can’t go inside your house.”
This kid is not shy about speaking, no matter where he goes.
At the vet yesterday with Shannon, when they went to get a refill on Lexie’s doggy Geritol, Ben saw two little girls holding dogs by leashes. “Are those your dogs?” he asked.
“Yes, you can pet them if you want.”
“I can? I have a dog. Her name is Yexie. I yiv at my house with my mom and dad.”
Lately he tells everyone he sees that last detail. Hey, there are worse things he could share.
Ben’s teacher has commented that he’s always talking.
As many of you know by now, my wife unwittingly gave the phone a ride around town Wednesday, after it spent a slightly nippy night outside. One of us had left it there while talking to neighbor friends in our driveway.
I thought it would be funny to write about it, and Shannon figured a picture would be a nice addition to the post. It spurred some funny comments and today I was ready to move on to something else.
This evening, as Shannon recounted the story “Phone on a Van,” I headed inside to order pizza. There, exactly where we had posed it for its re-enactment the night before, was the cordless phone.
My laughter echoed off the houses across the street.
This time the stowaway went to drop Ben at school, to the grocery store, to Starbuck’s, to the bank, and to get Ben from Shannon’s mom, who had picked him up from school.
Apparently it got rained on a little bit while Shannon enjoyed coffee with her friends. We’ll know Friday whether or not it survived.
I might just declare the phone our official gnome, and start sending it to all those online friends to have its picture made at various points in the world.
Sitting here writing this, I don’t see how I could have left that phone out there. Shannon walked back inside while I snapped the pics, and I know I grabbed the phone when I finished.
Didn’t I?
Tonight, after I returned from returning a video that we thought we already returned, I walked into our guest/computer room to find Shannon perusing Halloween costume websites. She had filled in for me and put Ben to bed, where he sleeps with his door open. He wasn’t quite asleep yet, and as far as he knew, he and his mommy were the only ones in the house.
I passed gas noisily.
Ben shouted from his bed, “Excuse you, Mommy.”
Shannon duly thanked me for that and I walked down the hall trying to stifle my laugh.
LOL
The old “blast and blame” trick. I love to do that in Wal-Mart to A. She’s started to catch on though. She knows when I walk away that she needs to get moving. I know it’s as juvenile as it gets, but the thought of someone walking up next to her in the aisle and thinking…”whewww, are you ok?” just makes me laugh. Later when she catches up to me, I’ll say, “Did you notice anything foul…”, “you kiddin’ me? You left a haze. Did you not see that whole family point and stare at me as they did a 180 and headed the other way like they’d hit a wall? That’s just wrong…there’s something wrong with people who would do something like that. It’s NOT FUNNY.”
Yeah, keep telling yourself that while I split my sides laughing. I think maybe something is wrong with me…seriously. I’m like 10 years old when it comes to bathroom humor. Whatever day maturity was supposed to hit me on that issue, I was absent. I’ll laugh at that when I’m 80 if I make it that far.
Charles - I love that story, but you better watch out. Some day, you might feel a can of pinto beans smack your head from that aisle you just abandoned, and you’ll know exactly who threw it.
Unfortunately (I guess), we both have the fart humor problem. I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I just chuckled at the thought of a fart sound.
Lady that I am, I’m going to “pass” on this one. No pun intended…
Thanks for considering us all friends :-) Right back atcha.
You gave the phone a ride… AGAIN??? *ROTFL*
Pretty soon, you’ll have to get steamer trunk stickers for it… like “Carson City”, or “Reno”.. just too funny!
Oh, and I WONDER where Ben gets his gift to gab…. Mister 1000 word posts! *LOL*
I guess when you say that the summer’s over and things are starting to ‘cool down’, it’s all pretty relative, eh? Same thing goes up here, but that means the overnight low temperatures are edging closer to the freezing point and we may just see the first frost before the month is out.
Hallowe’en costume selection is always a dicey gamble for the fact that one can never be too sure if it’s the sort of year that will necessitate wearing a parka underneath one’s getup. Very few Cleopatras knocking on doors on October 31st. Some well-padded cowboys and indians are normally a safe bet.
And I would totally show your cordless phone a good time. I’d probably take it to a movie, out to the playground where Dex and I go a lot, maybe for dinner at Boston Pizza or something like that. Seriously.
It might come back with stickers though.
Linda - Lady? We’ll go with “woman” for now. The jury’s still out on the rest. ;-)
Dave - Yep, it needs something to show for its travels. Nowhere fancy, really. Mostly just Plano, Texas. Get it, plain ol’ Texas? Nevermind.
Ben definitely comes by his talking tendency honestly — from both branches of the parental tree. Sometimes we get downright loquacious.
Simon - Of course it’s relative. We’re excited this week that our highs are only in the mid to upper 80’s. It was too cool one day for me to drive into work with the top down, but the after-work drives have been perfect.
Hallowe’en can be chilly here, but not enough to keep little girls from sporting ballerina costumes.
We might not send out our phone, but I’ve been thinking of getting a little gnome for folks to photograph in their respective cities. Maybe one with that convenience store you frequent in the background.
Simon! Did you see what Mark said to me??? You shan’t let him get away with that. You know better than anyone here that I am nothing, if not a Lady. Tell this laddie what the score is. My honor is challenged and I’m feeling a wee bit feint…
Dear Mark,
Apparently you have slighted the delicate constitution of Linda by referring to her as a woman. Outrageous!
In order to restore her from her vapours ere she faints dead away, you shall henceforth refer to her as: a sexy broad, that winking dame, lascivious Linda, hey Blondie!, flirtatious femme fatale, or, um, well… a Lady.
There. I hope that clears things up.
Okay, this calls for a Tom Jones moment.
She’s a lady. Who-oh-uh-oh-oh. (or however you spell it)
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/tomjones/shesalady.html
Oh no, the women (I mean ladies) are going to start throwing their panties soon if you’re gonna be singing Tom Jones stuff.
Gee Simon, I didn’t expect such a lengthy commentary on my, um, character. Also, I didn’t mean “faint”, but “feint”… ;-)http://www.answers.com/feint
Thank you though, sincerely. Hardly imagined myself as you described, was quite flattering. You’ll not be getting my panties tossed at you Mark, as I am a Lady. :- Þ
Hi Shan :-) Get busy with Tom ;-)
“Oh no, the women (I mean ladies) are going to start throwing their panties soon if you’re gonna be singing Tom Jones stuff.”
I suddenly had an image from ‘Shallow Hal’ go through my mind. Is that wrong?