Pavonine

Pavonine-- means peacock like.  Sorta like this mask.  Which I adored.  Anyway-- good picture, good word-- way to start the blog!

Anyway-- so I promised you traveling home stories, and I've got some kid at home stories, and it's gonna be outta sequence, because, well, I've got gumbo for brains today.  Just do.

But first…

Have a Slitten-- I don't know why, but this bit of graphic design is both disturbing and delightful, and if I ever saw one in real life, I'd scream, faint and die.  So, you know.  Enjoy.

Okay-- traveling home--

First off, ZAM and I have shared a cab from the hotel to the airport like what?  Three times now?  I just want to say, I could  not ask for a more delightful traveling companion.  The fact that she travels with two full sized purple suitcases just adds to the ZAM mystique, and I wish we could have the whole plane ride back instead of just the cab ride.

Second off-- Ally Blue, Sarah Frantz and I all ended up on the same plane together.  Since I never get to talk to Ally, and I adore Sarah (and she's my editor in chief at Riptide, y'all-- so if you find an editor in chief that you love, that's a special thing.  I have three, and I'm like, "Most blessed writer EVER!) so even though we were tired and a little drifty, I felt very safe on that plane :-)  And since one of the things we talked about was airport art, I took a picture of Sac Metro's very uninspiring airport art down by the baggage claim.  Yup folks.  It's a veritable tower of unclaimed luggage.  As art.  That's my city, y'all.





Third off-- also on that plane.  Well, I'm pretty sure I talked to a Corbin Fisher model.  I could be wrong. But there was a stunning young man wearing cargo shorts getting on at O'Hare, and we were going to Atlanta.  I was like, "Your destination must be in the south," and he was like, "Jacksonville, Ma'am."  He was sweet, self-possessed, and did I mention the stunning?  And the whole time, I was thinking, "Where have I seen this kid before…?"

And then when I saw him get off in Atlanta, it hit me.

Oh.

Oh!

Oh….

So it got me thinking, "What is the etiquette for this?"  I know some of the bigger named adult performers get recognized all the time.  Ty Roderick, Jake Bass, Connor-- they're sort of unmistakeable, and I would imagine they get gushed on in public (okay-- get your mind out of the gutter-- mine went there already)  all the time.  But this guy-- he'd only shot a couple of scenes, and hadn't really banked on his body yet.  So, what?  "Hey, do I know you?  Wait-- are you seven inches long and circumcised?  Oh!  You must be Drake!  You look really good having sex with other guys-- when are you coming again?"

Or maybe just, "Did you used to work for Corbin Fisher?"  Probably that last one-- because only people interested in gay porn would know what Corbin Fisher was, and those folks wouldn't cast any judgments, I hope.

But there needs to be Miss Manners post about this, because I'd be interested in seeing how to go about it.  I mean, yanno… there are some other, aherm, faces, I'd recognize…

Fourth off-- (okay… the counting was a bad idea, but I'm sort of stuck with it now…)-- the kids made out like bandits this trip.  Okay-- part of that was you guys.  People had VERY family friendly swag this year.  Mt. Snow's rainbow rings and Lisa Henry's kangaroo key chains were very much appreciated, as were Amber Kell's dragons and Toni Griffin's… uhm… sheep?  (They were squeezy!)  Rowan Speedwell's charms were very much beloved as well.  And then, the box of people gifts arrived-- the Mayhew jelly, the charming Mrs. Squirrel, the yoga frog, and the Alpaca Bag (And Squish got the pun too!) were all big hits.

And mom stopped at the airport in Chicago and bought a couple of hooded sweatshirts that said Chicago on them-- and the kids ADORED those and wore nothing else.  So, you know, win!  Thanks everyone for helping to make my homecoming better-- in all sincerity, your generosity humbled me :-)

Fifth off-- Mate made a tactical error and decided to try to carve Halloween pumpkins while I was gone.  They were only half carved when I got home.  And then one was hollow and one was carved.  (ZB's pumpkin-- done like The Eye of Sauron by his request, because ZB is awesome.)  And then they were BOTH moldy rotting dead food on my kitchen floor, attracting fruit flies and causing family discord.

Uhm, I'll buy two more pumpkins next week.  Because that sort of thing can't be done early-- sorry, Mate, but it was a good try.

Sixth off?  The Halloween costumes have been completed, and none too soon because my kids are going to Jackson with my parents again this weekend for the great RV Halloween trick or treat event.  I'm picking them up from school, then getting Mate, and we're driving up to see all of the costumes and my parents and everything.  We might even bring the obnoxious little dog.

So ZB is going to be a Creeper from Minecraft-- we made the costume-- or rather Mate made the costume and I gave suggestions-- and this one was a direct hit and a score on Mate's part.  It's the picture up top, and like I said, my idea, his execution.  Go team!  Squish is going to be a Spiderman Cat.  No, I don't get it either.  But she was adamant, and it took two stores.  I'm sure she'll look charming.  I'll post pictures!  But when we were in the Party City, looking for her costume, I saw this wall of masks.  I love these.  LOVE THEM. And I decided I want ALL THE MASKS.  So now you know.

And on that note?  I must away!  But I am as happy as the cat in the dog bed to be home.

Happy weekend everybody!