20 APR 26

“Does this look like real blood?”

The question is solemn... Yali takes his SFX arts seriously and he’s curious if the five layers of burned-and-bloodied tissue on his face look authentic enough for a film set... he’s getting good at it...

Meanwhile his sister can’t decide which needs more cuteness-responsive squealing... the dog matching the color of the brown eggshells currently being spooned into the drink for a late breakfast... or her continued romance novella... Oxbear is flipping through the pages of her notebook perusing the table of contents with chapter titles such as “Trouble Baby”...

“You should record an audiobook of this and send it to your aunts and uncles...” he teases her...

And big bro is standing in the doorway with one thought on his mind...

“Toast” ...he announces like some kingly verdict...

White-English-toasting-bread toast with Irish butter... they find it addicting...

Yali is now sitting at the table for math flashcards... preparing a playlist for morning classes of mostly anime pirate soundtrack...

We pothole-bounce our way through the morning over the candy cane snails of Hispaniola to Robin Hood and how engines work...

...hiccoughed sometimes by conversations about firefighting and a few drives to get safety and emissions done on the old Civic... a petting zoo covertly established in Patience’s room... a single laundry basket covered in plush blanket secured with giant electrical clips... population one old and slightly annoyed granny cat... and of course Yali melting blood-red crayons into my various jar candles for embellishment...

“I’m a candle designer!”

We bump on through the rest of it to about four o’clock in the afternoon where Yali tears through the kitchen door...

“DID I MISS THE SCHOOL BUSSES!”

His current random goal in life of sneaking on a school bus for a free ride has been thus far thwarted by his inability to remember what time a public school day actually ends...

“Yup... missed it again Yali... go get ready for Scouts”