Subversive Art

Scene: The Library Children's Catalog Terminal

A: (clicking on Yet Another Arthur the Aardvark DVD) "I want to get this one."

J: "Hey, bud; I just spoke with the librarians, (A navigates to another DVD in his search results) and they told me that there's a limit to the number of holds (A clicks on the "PLACE HOLD" button again) you can place. It's thirty. And you're about to hit it."

A silently makes another hold request.

Terminal: "Unable to process your hold request: You have reached the limit of items you can have on hold."

J: "See, A; it says you can't make any more holds."

A: "I want all the library shelves to be EMPTY! Mwha-ha-ha-ha HA!"




Scene: The Library in the 700-stacks.

J: "Hey, A; here's a Really Big Book on Michelangelo. Wanna get it?"

A: "Sure. Hey, look! How come there's pictures of people's penises?!"

J: "Back then there wasn't such a big taboo on penises." (starts the Long Walk toward the circulation desk.)

A: "And butts!"

J: "Yeah, well -" (glancing around at other patrons in the stacks)

A: "Penises and butts!"

J: "Um, A..." (trying not to laugh too much)

A: Penises! And Butts!"

J: "A, you can't shout taboo words in the Library."

Quck Update

The Pirate Ban is over. One of the clerks at the local supermarket helped us celebrate with Piratical Music.

A still enjoys playing Monopoly (tournament rules), but likes his new game, "Loot," which is sort of like "bridge meets The Golden Age of Piracy." A's strategy is to save all his cards (I think so he can see the trumping "captain pirate cards").

It's spring break, and M decided that we'd be better served if A stopped napping. So this has been an interesting week.

We went hiking at the local arboretum. A recent big-cat scare insured that all four boys on the hike grabbed sticks for a re-enactment of "Peter and the Cougar." Or was that the chapter from A.A. Milne, "In Which Tigger is Unbounced" ? I'm pretty sure all the wildlife in a three mile radius fled.

We saw "Dora the Explorer" for the first time the other night. A wants to be... (wait for it)... Swiper, the tricky fox who steals everything. Thanks, Dora.


Oh. Right. The Dinosaur Phase has officially started (since sometime last week). There would have been a blog posting about it, but we're too busy learning the difference between the Cretaceous, Mesozoic, Triassic, and Jurassic. A wants to be... (wait for it)... Tyrannosaurus Rex, and routinely walks around with his hands held as claws next to his chest while asking, "You want to see my scary teeth?" Already he's cornered face painters at two separate events and demanded they paint most of his face as huge dino-teeth and then holds up his hands to get a claw treatment. I can't decide if they're happy to not be painting Yet Another Rainbow Butterfly on some kid's face, or if A's Secret I-Am-A-Blond-Blue-Eyed-Four-Year-Old-You-Are-Getting-Sleepy Powers are still working.

The Circle of Algebra...

Scene: Dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's.

A (poking at his hamburger): "J, I don't want to go to school."

J (a little surprised): "Why not?"

A (mater-of-factly): "I already know everything."

G.J. (laying a trap with the stealth of a lioness on the Serengeti): "Oh, do you know how to do algebra?"

A (like a springbok caught in headlights): "What's algebra?"

G.J (pouncing): "Ah-ha!"

G.H (pointing): "See! See!"

(A nearly launches from his chair in surprise)

J (laughing): "They got you, bud...."

Please Don't Let Me Be One of Those Parents...

Scene: The park. A is running of with H to a far corner from the sandbox area, where the parents are.

J (yelling across the park): "A, come back; we want you to stay near us."

A (yelling back): "No. H says I have to go around the pool."

J (realizing he's yelling across the park): "H is not your father. Let's not yell this discussion across the park."

A: "Let's!" (turns to run after H...)