April's Real Blog

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Laura birthing baby cows!

After the horse-drama, Auntie Bev asked me 2 check the henhouse 4 eggs. There were only 2 eggs. I told Bev, "I don't think the chickenz R in the mood." And Bev was all, "Oh well. It's enuf 2 make a cake. Laura will B home soon. She'z had a heavy day." When I was like, "A heavy day?" Aunt Bev was all, "She and Dr. Simmons have been out on callz, so they've beenhandling sum big animalz--which takes patience and a lot of strength!" L8r, Laura told me she'd assisted Dr. Simmons w/a cow that was having a calf. She told me the lil baby calf weighed over 40 lbs. I was all, "Well, @ least U weren't assisting w/a pregnant elephant!" She was, like, "Yeah, I guess. But 40 pounds!" And I sed, "Yeah, that's kinda like 18 kg, eh?" And Laura was, like, "Oh, yeah, I 4got we're Canadian!"

And no, Mike, Laura did not make rounds wearing a tiny babydoll t-shirt an' cutoff shorts. She had these big ol' oversized overalls an' sum beat-up work shoes. Y do U ask?

Mike, Anthony, I dunno. That sitcom doesn't seem that funny. It seemz more like, what was it they tell U not 2 do in creative writing? Oh, rite, the whole "wish fulfillment" thing.

Apes

23 Comments:

  • At 9:30 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    April,

    Little sis. What can I say? You have exceeded yourself with this one. To most readers of your Blog entry, it would appear that you are telling the story how Auntie Bev set up an almost incomprehensible pun on the word “heavy.” However, to the more discerning reader, you are clearly telling the story of a young woman, called to the veterinary sciences, despite the travails she has to undertake, like having to make rounds in oversized overalls and beat-up work shoes (disguising her somewhat manly figure) which require patience and great strength and the ability to judge newborn animal weight on sight (in the more cosmopolitan measure of pounds). A woman, whose manly chin, grows resolute and knows the only reason she is able to succeed in life, is that summer of forbidden love she had so many years ago, when an older male cousin taught her the ways of the world. A two-egged, cake woman. One of the eggs standing for her rugged individuality. The other egg standing for her deep love for her first man, who has long passed from her daily life, but not from her thoughts. And cake standing for how the two of them were mixed together to create something bigger and sweeter and covered with more frosting than themselves. This is first rate story-telling April. I would look for a publisher.

    As for your comments on the draft script for "Foobin' Around With Mr. C", I think Anthony and I know already that it would fulfill our wishes for the show to be accepted, but thanks for pointing that out. You may not find the particular segment I quoted yesterday that funny, but you are not the target audience. It would be someone who actually watches television, like Wilf Sobinski. I am sure my father-in-law would love it.

    Love,
    Michael Patterson

     
  • At 9:31 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    April,

    Don’t any animals on this farm like you? I like you because you are the nicest girl in Milborough. Why wouldn’t the chickens know that and give you more eggs? I don’t think I understood your story about your cousin. When my mom has a heavy day, she usually sits in her bedroom with the lights out, and tells people not to bother her.

    Love,
    Shannon Lake

     
  • At 9:40 AM, Blogger howard said…

    April,

    2 eggs to make a cake? That must have been a nasty thing. I never use less than 4.

    April, it was not until today that I truly realized what a bad summer you are having. You are close to Winnipeg, which is a decent-size city, so there is no reason you should have to rely on food from the farm crops and animals alone. When you told your sad story about the 2 eggs, my first thought was, “Go to the grocery and get 2 more, and while you are at it, get something else to eat aside from cake.” But then I remembered your auntie and uncle are grain farmers and with eggs and harvested grain, you have the ingredients for cake. Obviously you are eating only what the farm can make. How many days have you had only cake to eat, April? You poor girl. I am making up a food package right now and sending it to you. Be sure to share with your relatives. They must be sick of cake, if they have to eat it all year long.

    Howard K.

     
  • At 10:04 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    April,

    Boozhoo (Hello).

    I read your writings about your ninose (aunt), your nimisenh (cousin), your baakaakwe (chicken) and your nimisenh (cousin’s) bizhiki (cow). I have seen a bizhikiins (calf) born before. In the Northwest, we usually don’t ask a veterinarian to assist, unless the bizhiki (cow) is having a difficult birth. I hope your nimisenh (cousin) told you that part of the story too. Since you plan to become a veterinarian someday, it would be more interesting than the bizhikiins (calf’s) weight, I would think. I am sure your nimisenh (cousin) knew what she was doing estimating the bizhikiins (calf’s) weight. The Canadian Livestock Industry usually measures the livestock in pounds (thousands of pounds actually), but I guess your nimisenh (cousin) forgot to translate for you, to avoid confusion. After all, veterinarians don’t have to do weight estimates the same way as the Canadian Livestock Industry.

    I spoke with your sister during our usual 10 pm telephone conversation. I avoided a conversation about Labour Day. Until your sister knows details about her new job, there is no use in planning my visit. My sweet girl was so nice and did not bring it up. She was very excited that her friend Anthony has recovered from his burnt eyelash injuries and she talked about how much Anthony reminded him of how her noos (father) would look with burnt eyelashes. I think when I get to meet her friend Anthony, he will be easy to recognize. I will look for someone who looks like your noos (father).

    Gi'-ga-wa-ba-min' na-gutch! (See you later!)
    Constable Paul Wright

     
  • At 10:54 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    TO: All Creative Writers
    FROM: Prof. Melanie Forsythe
    RE: Educational Opportunity

    My wonderful son Gerald tells me that there are many budding writers who post to this blog. I knew immediately that I must reach you all to tell you about a fantastic educational opportunity for writers right here in Milborough! Since Prof. Marilyn Simone has taken a leave of absence from her duties at the Milborough College of Arts, Sciences, and Tractor-Pulling--a locally prestigious institution of higher learning--I have been asked by the college to teach the fall semester's creative writing course.

    Intermediate Creative Writing 102: "From Mundane to Magnificent"

    This course will teach the average writer to draw from themes in his or her own life and make them fascinating to a wider audience. The course will focus on drawing from two "everyday" topics: raising children, high fashion, and self-improvement. However, stories about other topics will be tolerated.

    I hope to see some young people registering for this course. It is going to be taught at night, so even high school students can join if they so choose. I have already spoken to the R.P. Boire school and this course will count for credit toward your graduation requirements.

    I have taken a leave of absence from my usual job as a personal shopper at the Luxurion Department Store in order to teach this course. Registration opens this evening at the following web address:

    melanielounge.forumer.com

    Hope to see you there!

    Prof. Melanie Forsythe

     
  • At 11:16 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    omg. my mom is signing up 4 that class. if she writes abt me i will just die.

    last nite wuz so weird. no came over 2 hang w/ me. 1st we did r homework an' then we went in the hot tub. we were hanging out there when howie came out of the house in his chef's outfit. he wuz making dinner. he sed "u have a visitor, should i send her out here?" an' i wuz all like "ok" an' he gave me a weird look an' went back inside. then a minute later, guess who comes in2 the backyard in her swimsuit? shannon lake! omg. totally weird. it wuz a bikini, peeps. 1 of those that is just made out of three little triangles of fabric an' sum string.

    well shannon walks over an' is like "hi...i...herd...u...were...having...a...hot...tub...party. can...i...b...invited?" well of course no is like "sure, jump right in! that is, if it's ok w/ u, becky." an' of course i couldn't say no, so shannon hopped rite in. then she kind of snuggled up on the other side of no like i was doing an' wuz like "this...is...fun." an' no wuz like "yeah, the more, the merrier!"

    so shannon gets in the pool an' i'm all wondering y she wore a sexy suit cuz no can't c it but then she is like "no...do...u...want...2...c...my...new...swim...suit?" an' he wuz all like, "sure, i guess, y, duz it have a weird texture or appliques or sumthing?" an' shannon sed "it...is...a...surprise" an' grabbed his hands an' started rubbing them all over her body!! no wuz like totally mbarrassed an' he yanked his hands away an' wuz like "that is a very grownup swim suit shannon" an' shannon wuz like "yes...i...m...a...hottie...in...it. just...ask...becky." an' of course i had 2 say she looked good cuz i couldn't say nething mean abt shannon in frunt of no, he mite think i wuz prejudiced against special needs kids.

    well we're hanging out an' just talking after that cuz we were totally not gonna make out in frunt of shannon. well we're talking abt how lame mme. petitbateau is an' how i totally don't get the subjunctive tense an' suddenly, no starts 2 get this funny look on his face an' kinda squirm a little. i thot that wuz weird, but i wuzn't gonna draw attention 2 it, 4 all i knew, it wuz sum kind of blind thing an' i totally didn't want 2 look dum in frunt of shannon, who has a advantage over me on b-ing all up on that special ed stuff.

    neway, that went on 4 abt 3 minutes or so, it wuz v. weird, i kept trying 2 talk abt french class but no wuz all distracted. shannon had this weird look on her face, kind of like a smile she wuz trying 2 hide. i sed 2 her, "shannon, it's not nice 2 smile cuz i'm having trub in french class" an' she sed "o...sorry...becky...i...didn't...mean...it." whatevs, she wuz still smiling, so i thot 2 myself 'she totally means it.'

    well then no wuz suddenly like "i have 2 go 2 the bathroom!" an' jumped out of the hot tub real fast an' ran in2 the cabana. shannon kinda smirked at me an' wuz like "u...think...u...can...steal...him...frum...me...but...u...can't. i...will...b...his...girlfriend...and...you...will...b...history." i wuz all like "wtf? shannon, buzz off!" so she gets out of the pool an' leaves.

    well no finally comes out of the cabana an' i tell him shannon had 2 go home, that her mom called. a little revenge. then no sez "becky, u know i really like u, but i don't think it is very appropriate for u 2 b, um, caressing me under the water intimately like that when we have company. especially a impressionable girl like shannon." an' i wuz like "wtf? i wuzn't touching u underwater!" then i thot abt shannon an' i wuz like "that little sneak!" an' no wuz like "i m sure she did not know what she wuz doing."

    whatevs. she knew. that ho is going down!

    becks

     
  • At 11:32 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    April and friends,

    This morning I needed a break so I told my kids it was "free reading time," that they needed to improve their skills by reading real books the way they would do at home. I am a genius, I finally figured out a way to get a little break from my incredibly hard schedule and get some computer time.

    My phone call with Paul was much better last night, we talked about some things other than Susan Dokis for once, so that was good. Paul actually asked me about Anthony which is progress, it's time we talked about my friends too and besides it would be a good thing if Paul had Anthony as a role model, Dad is always saying that Anthony is the most wonderful young man he knows. I told that to Paul and he said that was nice for Anthony but it did not sound as nice to him and probably to Gerald either, they are dating Dad's daughters and will probably marry them so Dad should be trying to make friends with them and look for their good points, it is almost like Dad is saying he would prefer it if I married Anthony. I said "Dad has known Anthony a lot longer then he has known you, of course he prefers Anthony, he hardly knows you, you never come visit down here except for one time." Paul got a little upset and he was like "He might know me better if he had ever come to visit Mtigwaki," but Paul understood when I explained that Dad has a very busy dental practice of three days a week and also he used to have to help Mom with the train display at Lilliputs and also he has a serious allergy to what he calls 'the sticks.'" Paul said, "Oh, if he has an allergy, I can understand that might be serious. Mtigwaki is the Land of Trees, there are a lot of sticks there." So as you can see, last night we were able to overcome a misunderstanding, Candace says this is an important relationship skill to have. I know she would be proud of me if she had time to email me or call me anymore.

    Well, I have to go, the principal just showed up and wants to talk to me about the free reading program I thought up, probably he wants to nominate me for a creative teaching award.

    Liz

     
  • At 12:58 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    April and especially Liz,

    I look forward to hearing the details of your award, Liz. You're just such an amazing person. I remember our English teacher used to have us read so she could go "heat up her coffee" in the faculty lounge, then she'd mumble and fall asleep and we'd sabotage our desks by taking the screws out. Fun days. Ah, to be fifteen forever!

    I hardly recognize Francoise anymore! She doesn't cough all the time and her hair has gotten so thick and her nails are growing again and she's lost that yellowish tone. Hooray for summer sun! I can't believe I'll be getting out of the hospital tomorrow and back into my role of "World's Best Single Dad" (your mom gave me a t-shirt that says that).

    Your mom stopped by during one of Nurse Lovelace's treatments and was sort of shocked and after Nurse L threw a sheet over me she explained that she was just inflating the kidney pillow that they had to put under me ever since Liz's tripping incident that caused acute testicular torsion. You can learn more about it here:

    http://www.scrotalsafetycommission.com/

    I'm hoping that once I'm out and about I'll be able to see more of my very good friend Liz. Gord has just about got the gas station put back together (some of his associates showed up and made me sign away any proceeds from the police brutality lawsuit, they're advancing me money against my settlement at a low, low rate of 23.5%) and I'm looking forward to the smell of fresh cinnamon buns.

    Mike, your changes are wonderful. I think we've got a hit on our hands!

    Anthony

    P.S. I'm going to miss Nurse L's therapy. She says she does do in home calls but I can't afford them, my cash flow being a little messed up. But I'll be on disability for a while and I'm sure Gord will let me work from home so that will improve shortly, enough so I can take my very good friend Liz out for a family-friendly movie and Applebees.

     
  • At 1:43 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Anthony,

    I forgot to say before, "Foobin' with Mr. C" sounds like a very funny sitcom, I hope it is as good as my favorite show, "Family Matters" used to be, I am sure it will be since you and Mike are writing it. Have you thought about having an Urkel sort of character for comic relief, maybe he could even be Native so you can spread my love of Native culture to people here in the Big Smoke. I could help you write that part, I learned a lot about the Ojeb...Ogib...Ojo...Natives when I was up there, I am practically an expert now.

    It turns out I won't be getting an award, the principal did not like my free reading idea at all. He says each of these students has a goal they have to reach by the end of the summer or they get held back, if they don't meet that goal because our class went too slow it's my fault and then I will get a bad recommendation and not be able to get another teaching job, he doesn't know why he has to keep telling me this. I tried to explain to him about Native teaching methods and how he is racist and how I am a Patterson anyway so I don't need a recommendation, I will always be able to get whatever teaching job I want, that's why he has to keep explaining it, because he's wrong. He said he was going to write a note about this meeting and put it in my permanent file, he says it will follow me to every job I ever apply for, I hope that is true, I am so tired of having to explain this stuff to people, this way it will be in black and white for them to read whenever they forget. I think this is the first thing the principal has done right that I can remember since I got here, it's about time.

    Liz

     
  • At 2:10 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    April,

    I am sorry to hear that your cousin had such a "heavy day." I am having a lot of those lately. There have been a lot of town meetings that I have had to attend in preparation for starting school. Some of the mothers have started a "Remedial Action Committee" with the goal of pressuring the Mtigwaki educational system to meet certain standards and goals. Many of these meetings have been spent designing the special Ojibwe language immersion curriculum that the mothers are demanding be put in place. They are extremely concerned about how the school district will help the older students who are now two years behind in their Ojibwe language studies because, as Mr. Crane put it in his response to the "Mtigwaki Emergency Educational Correction Council," there was no Native teacher available during those years.

    I should mention that Mr. Crane is also having a hard time these days. When the mothers found out how easy it was to find a replacement for Miss Patterson who was qualified in Native Studies, an investigation into the hiring practices was launched. The MEECC is accusing Mr. Crane of hiring Miss Patterson without ever trying to find a qualified teacher with a Native Studies degree. I am sure this is all nonsense. After all, what would his motivation be? The MEECC is suggesting a prurient motive. Apparently, he told Phil Goulais that he didn't know if he could live without Liz. I'm not sure of the details. I guess that right before Chief Goulais left to lead the Nipissing First Nation, he told some of the village elders what Mr. Crane had said.

    That, plus the lag in Native Culture education in the Mtigwaki schools, led to this uproar. Some are saying these mothers are just radical troublemakers, but mostly they are the men in the village. They say Miss Patterson was the greatest teacher who ever lived. The mothers argue that men in the village are not very involved in the education or care of children, except for teaching them to walk trap lines, so they would not have any knowledge of Miss Patterson's true teaching abilities.

    'Round and 'round it goes. No one is sure how it will all end up. These nightly action committee meetings go on for hours, with lots of angry fighting. Then I go home and have my nightly phone call with Paul. He is so understanding and thoughtful. He always has excellent suggestions for how to deal with stress. And, after I told him that I was having trouble waking up in the mornings after all these late-night meetings, he started to call me in the mornings to be my wakeup call. He is so sweet. I told him the other day, "You can knock me up any time you want to." And then Paul said, "I thought you studied Native culture, not British culture." I laughed so hard. Paul is so funny!

    Susan

     
  • At 3:50 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Anthony and Liz,

    There are two names that belong together. It is good to get the support of my family for the writing on "Foobin' with Mr. C". Liz, I was especially touched by your comparison of this script to Family Matters. There was a show with some great writing. I have fond memories of the Urkel-bot, when Urkel got magical powers, and when Urkel used the teleporter he invented. And how could I forget when Urkel was transformed into Stefan Urqelle? I remember the show started off with 3 children, but by the time they got to the end of the series, the youngest daughter completely disappeared and no one said anything about it. Hum! That seemed unrealistic to me, but Mom says the whole idea of a youngest daughter disappearing really resonated with her.

    Liz, I like your idea of having a native comic on the show. I remember one called me bagwanawizihe once. I always planned to look it up, but I am sure it means “great writer”. I think the character could be called, “Bagwan” for short. Then I can do all kinds of puns on anything having to do with “Bag one”. There are a lot of humourous possibilities there. Your experiences in wherever that place was you lived, will be very helpful to get the needed authenticity. Thanks for the idea.

    Love,
    Michael Patterson

     
  • At 5:10 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Boohzoo Michael!

    I think it is important for the Native character to go by a spirit name, that is the Ojibway tradition, it is very important so that people will know about this part of Native culture. Take it from me, the only white person to ever get a spirit name from the Mtigwaki First Nation, I am the expert. I think the spirit name needs to be something beautiful and yet humorous, like "Roaring Bear" for a very weak geeky person or "Little April Flower" for a fat and unattractive woman, that is the sort of thing I think would be very funny. I should know, I am one of the only white people to ever have a really good understanding of Native humor, cultural idiots are always saying it's just like making fun of someone but there is so much more to it than that, it makes you feel accepted the more you are made fun of. I get that, which is why I have a spirit name, I am in tune with the Native ways.

    I am also thinking that the Native character could always be trying to do things in the Native way and that it would show the conflict between the Natives and the white people as being impossible to overcome but also funny because they will never understand each other. Like the Natives will always be taking off from their duties to walk traplines and will do business with just a handshake, and the white people won't get it, they will think it is lazy instead of what it really is, a superior way to live. That will be very funny, trust me, I am the only white girl to ever totally convert to the Native ways, that is why I am having such a hard time getting used to the rigid and inflexible schedule that the white school is making me do now.

    I think maybe the Native character should be a small and naughty but wise child like Jesse Mukwa, he is so funny, they should base a cute comic strip around him or something, but a TV show could be just as good I think, as long as you got a cute actor who looks Native. You probably can't get a real native child to do it, their trapline and mishomis duties are too demanding, so you will probably just have to put sunless tanner and black hair dye on a white child or something. I'm sure that will work just fine though.

    "White Goose"

     
  • At 6:16 PM, Blogger April Patterson said…

    "Little April Flower" for a fat and unattractive woman

    heyyyyyy! u know that's what ger callz me, liz! what r u trying 2 say!?!?!

    apes

     
  • At 6:20 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Liz,

    As usual, you are a fountain of great ideas.

    Mike, I'm a little concerned though, that because "Foobin' Around With Mr. C" is about Mr. C, not some native kid, and if he's too cute it could turn into "Diff'rent Strokes." Nobody can remember the old white guy who was the father, even though he was rich and important, but everyone remembers Gary Coleman and Dana Plato's amazing transformation from girl to womanhood. Cute, mischievious kids always steal the show, just ask Dirk Benedict for his opinion as to why there aren't any in the new version of the highly successful "Battlestar Galactica."

    Liz, since you're so wise in First Nations ways, I had a dream last night about you riding a red and white galloping horse. Then you began to lick the side of a jumbo jet. Then you danced with a big wriggling snake-fish. I wonder if this means you'll be getting a new job soon?

    Anthony

     
  • At 6:22 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Michael, you could not be more wrong about that awful summer when you took advantage of me in the sickest, wrongest way. Thanks to you I've needed years of therapy to help me get past that unclean feeling you left me with. Please back off, before I clue in my dad. Remember, Danny Cruikshank has a .45 and a shovel, and he's not afraid to use them!

    Laura

     
  • At 8:32 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Laura,

    Cousin. I took advantage of you? I remember during my trip to your farm, I was troubled by my relationship with my girlfriend. Auntie Bev put me to work swathing the big field to help me focus my youthful emotions on being in love. It did not work.

    Then you came to me, full of trepidation that boys considered your square jaw and your straight body too manly to ever attract a man. I told you I thought you were one of the most beautiful girls I had ever seen. When Uncle Danny found us in the barn, playing veterinarian, he asked why I was naked with a bridle around my neck. You told him I was giving birth to a calf, and you were the vet. Uncle Danny was furious. He said, “First of all, boys don’t give birth. Second of all, a veterinarian would be paying attention to the other end of the cow’s body, not holding the cow’s head with a bridle. Third of all, why is he naked?” Your response that cows are naked, so if I am playing the part of a cow, I should be naked too, did not get the congratulatory response for authenticity I expected. Even when I pointed out the 40-pound sack of flour we were using for the calf, he was unimpressed. I remember him saying, “A calf in its first week averages 100 pounds.”

    Then Uncle Danny got his .45 and a shovel, and I thought that would be the end of me. Uncle Danny had me digging. I dug all night long and listened to Uncle Danny saying the whole time, “Put your back into it. That’s not deep enough. Don’t you have any more muscle than that? You are definitely your father’s son. He can barely lift a bale of hay.” Fortunately for me, Auntie Bev came home from her veterinary rounds just in time to stop Uncle Danny before he went too far. I didn’t like it when Auntie Bev explained to Uncle Danny I was too ignorant to know how to do anything with you. Then she told this story about how my mom would put sex information books in book cabinets, hoping I would find them while I was exploring the books, and learn what I needed to know on my own. I remember thinking that I should have been snooping in mom’s books more often. I also remember Uncle Danny getting mad at you for taking advantage of me, since I was so stupid and ignorant, and how you knew more than I did from being around a farm than I would ever know. Then I remember you getting upset and telling Uncle Danny and Auntie Bev I was the first guy your age to tell you that you were beautiful. I remember being really happy I was supposed to get on the plane the next day, and how I wanted nothing more than to get away from crazy girls and people in Winnipeg in general.

    I am quite elated to find that you have gotten the years of therapy you must have needed since that time. Fear not though. I have seen pictures of you taken by April last summer. You still have that thick brow, and lantern jaw, and well-muscled figure that make you one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen, aside from my own Deanna with her boyish haircut, of course.

    Love,
    Michael Patterson

     
  • At 8:47 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Anthony and Elizabeth,

    I have a feeling I am going to have to get used to writing those names together. Elizabeth, your suggestion about giving the character a spirit name is excellent. I like “Roaring Bear”, but mom says to stay away from “Little April Flower” unless we plan for her to be a youngest daughter who disappears mysteriously halfway through the season without explanation. Otherwise the character will become an annoying creature, who most people can’t wait for her to fall in animal feces, or be head-bunted by a horse.

    I must admit Anthony is correct about the age of the character. Nobody wants another Diff'rent Strokes. Just writing “Watchoo talkin’ ‘bout, Mr. C?” sends chills down my spine. I am thinking a sassy native woman would be a good fit. Sassy women are popular. Except our character wouldn’t actually be sassy. She would be native humoury. She would use native humour to poke fun at Mr. C’s enemies and make the audience feel accepted at the same time. You two are definitely a team for coming up with great ideas. You should try teaming up on other things too.

    Love,
    Michael Patterson

     
  • At 8:59 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Michael, I really do not wish to relive what happened that summer, but I think you left out some rather important details. First of all, the fact that when I was going through that crisis over thinking I looked masculine, it was you who suggested we "play veterinarian" and that you would play the role of the cow. Also, it was you who insisted that since cows are nude, you had to be nude, too. You told me that the way I handled an imaginary bovine would allow you to evaluate whether I was feminine or not.

    When my folks accused me of taking advantage of you, since you were "as innorant as can be", as Dad put it, that just made it all so much worse. They just wouldn't believe otherwise. Hello, therapy!

    So please, let's not rehash this further.

    Laura

     
  • At 8:59 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    April,

    Mike, Anthony, I dunno. That sitcom doesn't seem that funny.

    I'm a little astonished that you think your brother's writing isn't funny. He's amazingly talented and gifted. You haven't even read the whole pilot.

    There's this hilarious scene where the cinnamon bun machine goes haywire and makes buns to fast and Mr. C and his girlfriend have to start eating them to keep up! Then there's a brilliant scene where Mr. C's old high-school buddy, who was a clown, dies while at a birthday party and they bury him in a coffin with a little second story at one end for his enormous shoes (nobody puts a visual gag on paper like your brother!). It ends with Mr. C going to a costume party at his girlfriend's fetish studio and his "man from space" outfit is mistaken for mummification bondage (BTW, Mike, how do you know so much about the gay bondage scene?) and he wins an award. You could take each of those scenes and build a whole episode around it, but your brother works all THREE ideas into a single episode.

    So don't judge until you see it on TV with the laugh-track burying the needle!

    Anthony

     
  • At 9:02 PM, Blogger April Patterson said…

    mom says to stay away from “Little April Flower” unless we plan for her to be a youngest daughter who disappears mysteriously halfway through the season without explanation. Otherwise the character will become an annoying creature, who most people can’t wait for her to fall in animal feces, or be head-bunted by a horse.

    heyyyyyyyyyyyy! :(

     
  • At 9:56 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    April,

    I am so excited. I went on a date! Of course, my mom and my brother Blair had to come with me, but it is the first date I have been on since the time I went out with Jeremy Jones. This date went much better than that one. I think it is because the boy is one of the boys in my special needs classes. I can’t believe how easy it was to get the date either. First I got mom to let me go to a pool party where I knew he would be, so he would know who I was. Then I called his house and asked him if he would go out with me and my brother and my mom. My mom had tickets to this classical music thing, which she has heard helps to mend the connections in your brain, so it’s supposed to be good for me. I have heard so much classical music, it is scary. Dad didn’t want to go, so I called him up and asked. He said he didn’t like the way the hostess of the pool party treated me, and he would be glad to go, to make it up to me.

    We picked him up at his house. My brother Blair was embarrassing me though. He wanted to see if he was really blind and he kept watching him to make sure he didn’t touch me. Sometimes I like that my brother Blair is so protective and sometimes I wish he would go away. I told my date I loved music, but not opera music and he said he didn’t like opera music either. I told him I had listened to a lot of classical music. He was glad to hear it. Then I told him all the classical pieces I know, and I hummed them to him. It was very romantic and it made the drive to the concert go faster.

    At the concert, Blair sat between us, but I reached my arm around Blair to touch my date, so he knew I was still there. After the concert I got to walk him to the door. I leaned in really close in case he wanted to kiss me. He reached into his pocket and handed me a breath mint. Then I knew he wanted to kiss me for sure. But then his mother opened the door and took him inside before he could do it.

    It was a great evening. I think I am in love and I know he loves me. There is another girl who likes him, but she has so many men, I know she doesn’t really like him. She just likes to collect people who like her. She would wreck him. She has a lot of money though. She might win. But I am going to try to make sure she doesn’t, just the way I help you when she does mean things to you in school. Wish me luck.

    Love,
    Shannon Lake

     
  • At 9:58 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Anthony,

    As much as I appreciate your admiration for the script for the pilot of "Foobin' Around With Mr. C", you need to put that little SPOILER thing at the top, so my little sis knows you are going to spill a lot of the show details. April actually loves my work. She tells me many times how much it surprises her. My little sis is also an excellent writer in her own right, but she hasn’t quite learned that there is more to constructive criticism than simply saying something doesn’t seem that funny.

    As for your question about how I know about mummification bondage, well all I can say is that everyone knows mummies are funny. I saw The Mummy and The Mummy Returns and they were some of the funniest movies I had ever seen. I was over at Josef Weeder’s apartment and saw them with him and Carleen one evening. My lovely Deanna was not with us. I think she said something about having to put children to bed. Anyway, after Carleen went to bed, Weed got out this neat tape, and showed me just how it felt to be a mummy. It was while I was wrapped up, Sheilagh Shaughnessy told me a way to wrap up a chapter in her book, when she falls into an old root cellar and gets wrapped up by spider webs. It was very thrilling. Of course when Carleen found me wrapped up like that the next morning, she was not very happy with Josef, and rapped him across the head a few times. Her rapping is my writing inspiration though. That’s why Mr. C does his award acceptance speech in rap.

    I am quite pleased you like the pilot script. I can’t wait for you to see how it is with addition of the sassy native woman. I think her catchphrase is going to be, “Don’t have a bizhiki, man.”

    Love,
    Michael Patterson

     
  • At 10:06 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Laura,

    Cousin. I hate to see us regress to a case of he said / masculine she said. However, as the years have passed by, one of us became a writer and another of us is pursuing a career as a veterinarian. You don’t need a therapist to interpret the truths from that. Just remember that as you go through life, with your only companions being animals that are sick or near death, there is one person in this world who thinks you are beautiful. That’s me.

    Love,
    Michael Patterson

     

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