Guns for Potatoes

Friday, September 14, 2007

Adam’s golden birthday.

The first thing that Collette and Puck noticed as they pulled into the driveway that Friday morning, was a PVC pipe sticking up toward the sky from a duct-taped contraption. Frances was soon out the front door into the chilly early air.

“It’s my potato gun!” He said proudly. “One of the neighbors asked me what it was yesterday while I was working on it. I told him it was a potato gun and then a big flame shot out of the top.”

He laughed and tweaked the gun’s position on the cold cement. Reminiscent of the days when OLeif would shoot potato guns as a young teenager off the deck of his parents’ house and marshmallows from a smaller piece of PVC pipe. Who could forget the evening when, perhaps seven years ago, the Silverspoons had come over for a visit and OLeif shot marshmallows out of his gun while Mom and Denae ran around trying to catch them in their mouths. Even adventurous Kitts and Carrie-Bri were not entirely enthusiastic about such stunts.

Meanwhile, inside, while Frances trucked out his math books, Puck bounced in his bouncy after Mom gave him a ring of measuring spoons, which he shook madly and tried to chew on, all of them, all at once. Greedy baby. He didn’t sit for long, however, as Carrie was soon in to retrieve him.

“Look,” she said, holding him out, suspended on his back, “he looks like a June bug flipped over on its back.”

Puck kicked his chubby legs and thought the whole thing was amusing.

Cocoa Puffs were still sitting out from breakfast. Carrie picked up a stray piece.

“Rose, if you cross me again, this is your head.”

Pop!

Carrie, snapped the Cocoa Puff to dust between her fingers.

But it was time for lunch. Carrie pulled out a bag of frozen Asian vegetables.

“Let me check the calories on this thing,” she said.

“You’re kidding,” said Collette.

“Man, you have no idea how much I weigh,” said Carrie. “It’s embarrassing.”

“Yeah, right.”

Frances pulled another Cocoa Puff out of the box:

“Carrie, if you step on the scale, the scale is…”

Pop!

Crunch – went another Cocoa Puff.

Carrie turned red from laughing. Instead of the Asian vegetables, she sauteed white button mushrooms in butter and spices and topped a fresh salad with them for herself and Mom.

Later, Mom, Carrie-Bri, Joe (after class), Frances, Linnea, and a carload of bikes departed for Klondike Park with the Englishs for Adam’s birthday, where Joe and Tor spent part of their afternoon jumping off of chalk cliffs in the quarry.

Come evening, there was shopping to be done for Mercy’s wedding. So, while Dad and Frances left for their Boy Scout weekend camp out, Carrie to a concert in the city with Lucia, and Rose at work for most of the day, Mom, Collette (after returning Puck for the evening with OLeif), Joe, and Linnea drove out to Moe’s. Sitting in the brisk chill of the evening blusters, they ordered quesadillas and sour cream on the patio.

Bed, Bath, & Beyond came next. Joe was enthralled with the kitchen gadgets and tested out many of them while Linnea looked over the cupcake utensils.

“Joe, you’ll just have to come up here with your buddies one evening,” Mom said.

“Totally. This place is so cool.”

Joe punched a silicone strainer inside and out.

After Mercy’s gifts were collected, Joe picked out for himself a giant body pillow. Out on the parking lot, he landed it on the top of his head and began twirling in circles.

“Look, Mom, I’m a helicopter!”

“Joe, put that away.”

“Come on, Linnea, let’s put the cart back,” said Joe.

Linnea hopped on the back and Joe, with the decline of the parking lot to his advantage, tossed himself forward on the handlebar, balancing his legs up in the air like a mermaid. The momentum pushed them toward the door, although they managed to park the vehicle without knocking over any displays. They both ran back to the van, Joe’s arms flailing behind him in the cold wind.

“Joe, what did you have to drink tonight?” Mom asked, laughing at him.

“Lemonade.”

Next was Pier 1.

“Yay! I love Girls’ Night Out,” said Joe. “Mommy!” He said loudly, giving her a hug as they walked toward the door. “It’s so much fun to embarrass you!”

He grinned and followed them around, sniffing soaps and candles and encouraging Linnea to buy a one-dollar back-scratcher, which she carried with her around the whole store until they left.

The evening ended with a box of Heath Dilly Bars and a hot fudge sundae for Joe. Back to the kitty cats, twinkling autumn lights, screen doors open to the cool night, and Joe curled up on the couch with “Harry Potter”.