Male Antics
WHACK! WHACK! WHACK!
“What…”
A grinning face beside my bed plastered the pillow with a fly swatter.
“Puck. Why?”
“It’s a joke.”
My son had decided that 5:48AM was a better wake-up call. He did give it about an hour before he pulled my Chinese gong out to the front porch and rang it loudly at all the children walking to the bus stop.
“I got into the chocolate again while you were sleeping, Mom.”
“Puck!”
“But don’t worry. I just got it from my chocolate and not yours, because I knew you would tell the difference.”
I felt better already.
Bær opened the door to the bathroom, staring at the toilet. In black Sharpie: nothing less than an enormous smiley face under the lid.
“Wh… why…”
This is what happens when Puck wakes up too early.
“I didn’t know that was a permanent marker!”
He sat at the breakfast table with an ear thermometer…
“I’m going to make this into a laser and sell it in stores,” he explained to me. “And it can slash things, like a light saver.”
“Puck, put the ear thermometer away,” Bær ordered him, walking out of the kitchen…
“You’ll be sorry when I make you rich!” Puck called after him.
“I’m sure I will be.”
“I’m serious. I’m going to make this into a laser. And I’m serious.” Puck relaxed back into his seat. “Ah. Sweet memories of life… Later in my life, I’m going to make a box that has a whole party in it. Heh heh.”
Later I heard him chasing after the cat with the ear thermometer…
“Come here Crackers! I want to detect your ear!”
Rain. This is November. Green lime cheetah leaves, sunset leaves, washed glossy.
Carrie was the only one at The Big House when we arrived. Puck went back to visit the buns.
“Sun! Earnest did the cutest thing! He stood up on my back while I was petting Ketseh!”
The afternoon rolled on. Carrie made tapioca-cheddar pops and pea soup for dinner. Puck was wary, but then he asked for a second bowl.
“I put a special ingredient in there, Puck,” Carrie told him, and blew him an exaggerated kiss.
“It’s not that, Sun,” he retorted. “It’s bacon.”
But because of my head cold – I didn’t want to risk napping during church history – Puck and I played hooky from church. This meant Garfield for Puck over those two bowls of pea soup while Carrie and Linnea dolled themselves up for the Tivoli [Linnea in her star pants] while I talked Francis-school, Mom’s lunch meetings with friends, etc. with Dad and Mom over the Hallowe’en candy bowl.
Puck held Crackers in his lap on the couch. It was almost 7:30 – bedtime – and he was reading a balloon animal book to her. He pointed to a mouse.
“And that’s your favorite dinner!” he said to her in a soft sing-song voice.
Then we left to see Bær at work; he had locked his keys in the car.