Double Birthday
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Two birthdays that day – Denae and Diana, who had just climbed to 22.
The night before had been a trip to the Manchester Outback Steakhouse – or as Grandma Snicketts had once said to Aunt Rebecca, “Let’s have dinner at the Outhouse.”
This time, everyone came with Grandma Snicketts in celebration of the Silverspoon baby, Joe becoming an Eagle Scout, Grandma’s, Mom’s, and Carrie-Bri’s birthdays, and Carrie’s impending graduation (which would hopefully take place that Saturday on her 20th birthday), despite the fact that she would not acknowledge it.
And while everyone else enjoyed steaks, ribs, chickens, and Auzzie chips, Carrie ordered herself a small cup of clam chowder and ate Grandma’s Caesar salad. Rose ordered the “walkabout soup”, which Grandma mistakenly called “walkaway soup” and passed it on to Mom upon its arrival, not realizing in advance that walkabout soup contained mostly onions.
Meanwhile, Tuesday was cold and gray. Snow was in the forecast for Thursday, and there was a trip out to Trader Joe’s while the kids were in choir, after Carrie-Bri got back from work. Carrie found a box of dark chocolate raisins there among the other goodies, which Dad got into as soon as he returned from work. Collette almost got a small box of Japanese mango ice cream, however, she decided against it, realizing that OLeif would need only inhale, and the ice cream would be gone. But she did find a bouquet of flowers for Denae.
The skies were misty and the fire was going in the wood-burning stove when they returned, and Mom went on her two-mile walk, in case the following morning during her usual walking time, should be raining.
After OLeif picked up Collette for the evening, they were off to bring several boxes of carry-out from Moe’s Southwest Grill (tortillas, vegetables, meat, guacamole, cheese, chips, cheese sauce, sour cream, etc.), a bunch of bright daisies and greens for Denae, and A Prairie Home Companion. And Theodore arrived back from teaching at Mizzou at nearly nine o’clock, just as they were ready to leave for the night.
Collette hoped that the snow was really on its way that time.
“They roused him with muffins – they roused him with ice –
They roused him with mustard and cress.
They roused him with jam and judicious advice –
They set him conundrums to guess.”
– Lewis Carroll, The Hunting of the Snark (The Baker’s Tale)