I can't get a photo of her face on in this pig getup from my sister. But that clip on curlycue tail is to die for.
But the star of today is THIS little boy grinning away in this old photo from his 4th birthday:
My brother Wes, Halloween man himself, born a goblin this very day 40 years ago! That's right, FORTY. Kids born on Christmas get the gyp of a lifetime, but kids born on Halloween are ALWAYS guaranteed a party, one way or the other. I spent my childhood riding the Halloween-birthday coat-tails of my brother, only 3 years my senior and the Jim-Bob to my Elizabeth. Look at that little blond cutie, fist clenched in triumph for another year of one big party and a pillowcase of loot. Hard to believe he now has 3 kids of his own and just built himself a sizeable shed (more like a barn!), after his deck and deerstand (not necessarily in order of importance). All of my brothers are amazing (every girl thinks that I suppose), and they can all build stuff. But Wes deserves special recognition for doing it all without our Dad there to help, explain, guide and motivate--he's just figured it out himself. He has become the Man with a Plan. Must be all that candy all those years that fuels him and keeps him going. We used to ration out our candy. Of course you eat all the good stuff first, and then after 10 days or so, all you've got left is a pile of Special Darks, Dum Dums, and way too many Tootsie Rollls. At any rate, if he is 40, than I'm not far behind. Damn.
In other news, yesterday brought a fabulous visit from Gerardine O'Callaghan (Irish? Why yes) a colleague from 3 years ago here in Nice who is back in the green hills of bonny Ireland but was here visitng in Nice.
Ger and her friend Quentin (in the photo with us) tried valiently to teach Thomas and I how to dance in June of 2005 before our wedding. They did their best. If only we could have been as elegant as them.
And, in other exciting news, look what I re-found in the Frozen Foods Store (there is no equivalent of this that I know of in the States- a store of just freezers, everything is frozen? Does this exist in America?). BAGELS. Occasionally, in this one store (named "Picard", as in Captain Jean-Luc from Star Trek), you find bagels. They aren't bad, for a frozen bagel. It's no H&H, but it's better than rubbery Lenders. My favorite part is the subtitle to explain to the bewildered French customer what the hell they are "Petits Pains Americans" or "Little American breads". Cracks me up.
