Sunday, October 28, 2007

"I've seen how you sparkle...

...when fall nips the air." If Ever I Would Leave You, as performed by Richard Harris in Camelot.

I walked into my room after getting back from studying at the library to be greeted by the musical sound of screaming as my mother and sister rushed me out of my room while trying to block my view of...something.

I whined.

"Guys, c'mon, I want to change clothes. I'm still in my church clothes!"

I went and told my dad how unfair everything was, and he agreed with me, then I tried again.

This time, I backed into the room and grabbed some jeans without looking at anything. They were seated comfortably on my bed, petting the cat.

"Why are you walking backwards," said my sister, with wide, innocent eyes. Ha.

"Oh, no reason," I said. "What are you guys doing? Cleaning my room?"

"Quite the contrary," says my darling sister. I left to change in the bathroom since my room was full of mother and sister. When I came back I said, "Ok, what'd we break?" Then I saw it.

"I didn't break anything!" Mom said, a hurt and offended look on her face. "I brought you a present!" I walked over to it.

"What is it?" I asked.

"It's a Bougie Hantee, of course," mom said. "Obviously."

"Obviously," I repeated, transfixed. "What does it do?"

"What all bougie hantees do, silly," my dear sister said. "It glows."

"Oh, of course," I said. Awkward silence on my part, fond gaze on the part of my mother and sister. "Where did you get it?" I probed, trying to make sense of this item that was comfortably nestled on my dresser between a rack of earrings and a shopping list.

"The Bougie Hantee," my mom said with dignity, "is from Hallmark."

"Ok..." I said, still a little bit lost as to why it had been chosen, among all the possible things to be acquired at Hallmark, for me, especially, by my mother.

"It was free," she added. "A year ago. Or maybe two. I was going to send it to you at school, but I kept forgetting."

"Oh."

It was a fake candle with a face on the flame. Orange.
My mom and sister presently left, talking about Witherspoon or Robert E. Lee.

I was left with my new possession. We eyed each other. I subtly edged over to my computer and put on some gentle music to ease the social tension that had built up in my room. I noticed how messy it was.

"So..." I said, and began to clean. Then I got the idea of blogging about this curious little object. So here you are, complete with picture of the Bougie Hantee. It's hard to see the little face, but it's there, take my word for it.

Besides becoming the proud owner of the Bougie Hantee, which, by the way, really does grow on you--be careful lest you too are sucked into the growing cult following of Bougie Hantees (Hantee? Hanties? Hanteeses?)--I was the charming hostess of a pumpkin-carving party last Friday. We spent two hours carving pumpkins, and another two hours watching the BEST MOVIE EVER, Meet the Robinsons. Seriously, if you haven't seen it--DO. It's like a dream sequence for a ten-year-old. Complete with T-Rex and singing frogs.

We actually did a really good job with the pumpkins. Mine was carved like a tree, and Fred's was leafy vine things--which also turned out really well--and TiFi carved a sunset over mountains, and Big Bear carved a joker or harlequin. Also well done. Here's the pumpkins:



I love autumn.

1 comment:

Danae Kelly said...

Remember the pumpkin we carved last year?