Sunday Feasts

Sunday, May 15, 2011
In which there is cold rain and hot food…

Cold rain. Just right for a Sunday morning.

On the road to pick up Puck for church, early. The flashing OPEN sign in the scuba shop at 7:30 in the morning. Watching a dark green mini van coast through a red light, obviously unintended.
At the Silverspoon’s, Puck ran back and forth between OLeif and Collette for hugs and to tell them that he loved them. Then he visited a wet black Sebastian sitting on his comforter in the music room.
“Goodbye dog,” he said. “I will miss you. I wish I could stay, but I can’t.”
OLeif and Theodore caught up on a few matters while Collette checked out Amy Poehler’s opinion of fresh farmer’s market avocados, and the details of Penelope Cruz’s pregnancy during the shooting of Pirates of the Caribbean IV in Parade magazine.
And out to the car with Puck and his sonic screwdriver. He turned it on, the buzzing blue-violet light towards the sky through the window.
“I have to make the sun quiet,” he said.
On the way to church, Puck thought out loud about his friends at Sunday School.
“I have to take care of my children,” he said seriously.
And when they arrived to a rather quietly small congregation not long later, he had further thoughts…
“In two weeks we have one minute left to go get my baby brother.”
And OLeif joined them in the last row, as usual, with his tea and cream.
Linnea walked in later in a white dress and blue and silver glass pendant.
Francis was in the sound booth for the first time, instructed by Oholibamah.
And Puck sang along gustily with OLeif and Collette during all of the hymns.

When they returned from church, news came in that The Fox Theater had caught on fire early that morning. Damage was reportedly minimal. No injuries. Uncle Balthasar, just returning from New York, was going straight to the scene. The cause was still unknown.
Linnea displayed the two small campaign buttons she had purchased while shopping at the mall for five hours with Gretyl and Susannah the previous day after the mother-daughter tea at church. One button read…
“Free Hugs”
…and the other…
“If I agreed with you, we’d both be wrong.”
(Dad thought that this one was pretty funny.)
A brochure for Memorial’s ‘The Chapel’ was sitting on the counter. They continued to bring in a smattering of unique performances, including Japanese drums, Iranian/Persian music and poetry in Farsi (already sold out), a Mongolian cellist, etc., and etc.
The kids munched on Neapolitan ice cream bars.
And a brief punching match in the kitchen between Dad and Francis, with Rose threatening the addition of her own sweet skills.

Supper.
The table was set with candles and bottles of blooming yellow roses and fuchsia primroses.
Enormous tender pork tenderloin. (Or as Francis called it, ‘mutton’.)
Creamy mashed potatoes.
Spinach-filo casserole. If it could be called that. Too elegant.
Chocolate truffle cheesecake.
All done Carrie-style.
And Joe attempted to pour glasses of water from Mom’s new heavy white ceramic Target pitcher, from high altitudes. Somewhat unsuccessfully.

While Mom napped, and Carrie napped with Earnest hopping around her, OLeif worked on a brief photo shoot for Dad’s business photo in the basement.
And Joe messed with Linnea and Puck via remote control from his iPhone, turning on random German rock music at varying volumes while they tried to use his laptop. Linnea was baffled.

In the afternoon, the rain fell.
“It looks like Bath, England,” said Dad, just as he, Mom, and Joe were preparing to leave for a concert at Florissant Valley Community College.
Lolli was featured as soloist.
But not before Joe spun Collette around in the wicker chair, tempting gravity. And Francis got busy thinking about further ‘fat jokes’.
“It’s been awhile since I’ve used any,” he said.
“Reviewing your repertoire?” Collette asked him.
“Yup. Gotta dust off the book.”
Then the usual council was held in the living room.
“I did not realize how fat that cat had gotten,” said OLeif. “I saw it come into the garage and I thought it was a badger.”
“Even Dad says we should put it on a diet,” Rose laughed.
Carrie, whose latest interest was anime by Roman artist, Simone Legno, displayed a line of ‘cactus buddies’ and angry diamonds on Amazon, which already coated her Mac wallpaper. Though Joe had protested that it wasn’t art.
A quick review of literary/famous doubles… They decided that Joe was Reed Timmer. And Francis was Dad.
Then Rose explained how she had almost been mugged after Bible study.
“So I drank my soda defiantly at them,” she announced.
And topics of Rose’s upcoming 21st birthday.
“I refuse to have a party,” Rose said stubbornly.
“I am definitely having one of your friends jump out of a cake,” Carrie replied.
“What day of the week does my birthday land on?” Rose asked.
“Sunday.”
“So you can’t do anything so unholy,” she replied.
She went on to discuss how Carrie had never met a ‘professional foreigner’.
Then Carrie captured Puck, and some mention of candy was made.
“Are you special to me?” she asked him.
“Yes. Because God made me,” he replied.
“We’re not talking theology,” she teased. “We’re talking aesthetics. I need you to model for my cherub statue fountain. So don’t get any bigger.”
“I keep eating!” Puck declared.
“Yes, but I need you to stay small so you can be a fountain for me.”
“God decided to turn me into a human, not a statue,” Puck protested.
“No, not a statue, silly. A fountain. Here pose for me. One hand up by your face. Now, stand on one leg. I think you should hold your sonic screwdriver in the other hand. There. Should the water come shooting out of your ears or your belly button?”
Puck went with the ears.
“Now, let me take a picture and send it to my architect.”
Then it was Minecraft for OLeif, Francis, Linnea, and Puck, while Carrie turned on samples of Hayao Miyazaki’s compositions as played on music box, and Rose got busy ready The Secret Life of Lobsters.

By four o’clock, Francis was returned to church to work the sound for the youth worship Sunday rehearsal.

A drop by Dierberg’s for raw tomato and garlic cheese for Collette.
Another drop by the Silverspoon’s to return Izzy’s camera equipment where Adam-Age and a buddy were just arriving to, it would seem, participate in the workings of a possible game night/slumber party. OLeif grabbed a coffee which was accidentally knocked down the sink. And Puck eagerly ran inside to see his uncle.
Store: strawberries, corn on the cob, cantaloupe, carrots, 36 eggs in a single carton, wintergreen Tic-Tacs.

Back home after poached eggs, Puck was tucked in giggling for the night with ‘Pa’ and ‘Shay-Bali’.
“You know I love you, Puck.”
“You know I love you too, Daddy.”

“Marry me, Harry, you handsome ginger devil!”

– Kristen Wiig, RE: Prince Harry of Wales