Lately Wade has been taking Lucas on afternoon walks so that I can work. Yesterday they walked to the mailbox, the coffee shop, the park and the library. This morning Lucas started telling me about the MAIL and how it is outside. At first I was confused. I was like ‘Yo, kid, why do you worry about the mail? You don’t got no bills.’ Then my analytical brain realised that he was remembering the evening afore and telling me about it.

He does like twelve cute things a day — I can barely remember it all. Sometimes I call Wade at work and report all the good, the bad and the ugly. The other day we were laying in bed early one morning. Wade had left for work and Lucas and I were cuddling and talking and he told me a “story” about a big banana, bigger than a house. At first I was like ‘I’m sorry, mon cheri, I don’t understand’ then I realised that he was telling me a story to entertain me much as the wizard entertains him.

On the bad note, the other morning Lucas discovered his markers in an easy access location i.e. NOT WHERE THEY BELONG (hey, baby, please put them away in the future) and he scribbled all over his sketch pad, the floor, himself and the furniture!!!!! I was doing dishes in the kitchen and my mother-sense tingled because he was too quiet. I searched for him only to discover him under a chair, crouched over a notebook, scribbling away with marks all over heck. Needless to say, I shrieked ‘Lucas, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?’. Most everything came off, but the chair will never be the same. This is why I am not buying the sofa I really want because now I can be blase about stuff like that. ‘O, you dropped your blend on the dog? O well.’ I called Wade right away and reported. He was chagrined and I bet the markers will get put away in the future. OR. ELSE.

–
Half-way done!

• Lucas drops a BIG rock on his toe (he’s ok but with a missing toenail and a nasty hematoma)
• The computer dies. Again. For the third time this year (fortunately we back up, back up, back up and our computer guru, MC, has all our files on his computer)
• A component of the electric windows stops working on the German car
• The clothes washer stop running, which we fix
• Then the drum breaks
• Someone steals Wade’s briefcase from his work truck
• With the house keys inside
• And the car keys
• And two manuscripts and his idea book
• And a magazine with our address on it
• We have to get the house and two cars completely re-keyed
• The German car stops running (we get it fixed)
• But the stereo has given up the ghost
• The window on the Japanese truck stops working on the way up to LA (later it starts working again, but not til we’re in LA)
• Someone vandalizes (in a completely juvenile & impermanent way) the Japanese truck
• Two nights later they do it again

This series of unfortunate events has us wondering if we can get a break. In the grand scheme of life, none of the occurences is particularly earth-shattering. But it’s like digging out from underneath a landslide that keeps dumping down loads of loamy earth. You start to wonder when will this end? Plus we have all the finish work on the bathroom and life to keep on top of. Fortunately we have a good system down for keeping life at CasaWeX flowing, but it would be nice to get a break in the action.