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My Profile
Retro-retrospection - 2008-10-06
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11:54 a.m. - 2003-06-30
I'd like to announce that Wolf's party was a SMASH! Yeah, as usual most of my fretting was a waste. Though I think some fretting is necessary to make a good party. By anticipating all the potential disasters I can make sure we're covered and no one snafu will bring the party to a screeching halt. Besides, Wolf had a really good time and that's the most important thing. I was unclear in that previous post. I WASN'T able to book the jumpy thing and that’s why I was so freaky about the kids having enough to do. Turned out the swing set alone would have almost been enough. Because our yard slopes and is rather crowded with trees, we had to set up the swing set in a sort of level place and then make adjustments. Mike and Alex made several cuts into the hillside to get the frame level, but the slide is pitched rather steeply to avoid having the kids land in an apple tree. The angle ensures the kids come flying off the end like rocket sleds. This was a hit with the guests. No poky baby slide, Wolf's slide is zippy enough to please even the most jaded junior thrill seeker. As each guest arrived he was presented with a pair of cool sunglasses, a squirt gun, and a warbling whistle. I love these whistles. They are the ones you fill with water and when you blow the sound is a surprisingly life like bird call. The munchkin Joe Cool's in their ditty-bop shades had a grand time making a racket and squirting everyone. Wolf’s best buddy, Zack, has wicked aim and was definitely the marksman of the bunch. Zack was the first to arrive too and when he got out of the car, both he and Wolf shrieked and ran at each other like teenage girls. “IIAAEEEE! WOLF!” “IIAAEEEE! ZACK!” They clutched each other jumping up and down, giggling and exclaiming like they hadn’t seen the other in YEARS, not just the four days since school let out. When the crowd started to get bored with the swings and squirt guns, I broke out the water balloons. More hilarity and the parents were good sports when they got wet. To keep the kids distracted while Mike futzed with the piñata, I handed out cans of Silly String. That was the biggest hit of all. Even the grown-ups couldn’t resist Silly String and joined the battle. The yard is festooned with tangles of colored string. It looks like some gigantic hippy spiders went berserk and covered the place with tie-dyed web. Lisa and Laura were there of course. Their kids are the closest thing to cousins Wolf has. I mean he DOES have real cousins, but none near his age. Lisa and Laura’s kids are a part of Wolf’s extended family and “cousin” is the most accurate description of the boys’ relationship. They fight, tease, and play together with the familiar ease of those who are anchored to each other by blood rather than the easy come/easy go transience of childhood friendships. Family they are and family they always will be. I gave Lisa and Laura their first tour of the new house. Why it took so long before they came over is a mystery, but I’m glad it worked out that way. Finally, finally, finally the house is near finished and they were able to see it as it will be instead of nodding and trying to project the end result while I said things like, “Okay THIS room is going to be this color” and “The dishwasher is going HERE.” Laura said the nicest thing! After the tour she said, “LA, you didn’t buy a house, you bought a home.” I hugged her and agreed. When everything is moved in, despite the fresh paint and the newly varnished floors, it’ll look like we’ve lived there for years. Part of it is the house’s age, almost a 100 years have mellowed it nicely. Another factor is the warm paint colors I’ve chosen and the select few walls where I left the wallpaper intact. The funny 40’s toile print in the foyer has grown on us, as has the microscopic green check on the stairwell and upstairs hall walls. Also too, Mike and I aren’t newlyweds, we have 22 years of bumpf to put in our new house. It won’t have that barren echo-y ‘first house’ feeling that so many starter homes do. Those beginning years when the couple has way more space than stuff to fill it. Nor will there be that dichotomous “her” stuff and “his” stuff feel to the place. I always think of “When Harry Met Sally” and the argument between Carrie Fisher and Bruno Kirby over his stupid wagon wheel coffee table. After 2 decades all we have is “our” stuff. And neither of us has a fetish for furniture made of cast off farm implements. Though the rooms are still bare, we had a great party to christen the new place. A successful start to what I hope will be many, many more happy event filled years to come. Today’s Pick: “Our House” by Madness* *You know, ‘Our house in the middle of our street. Our house was our castle and our keep...’ Lyrics provided just in case it didn’t get stuck in your head from the title alone. ~LA (Insert evil laugh here.)
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