Letters to Jack & Audrey: Sugar Coated Amnesia

Jack,

Are you wondering what I mean by "Sugar Coated Amnesia"?

There are SOOOO many meanings for this that I almost don't know where to start, but they ALL relate to Halloween.

Sugar Coated Amnesia is what you have the day after Halloween when you look back and have the faintest recollection that the morning of Halloween may have had some screaming for Twick O Tweet NOW!! and I want CANDY!!! I put on my monster! I go Twick O Tweet at Gwants Farm!!! - - - but that was such a long time ago (yesterday) and the memory is a fuzzy hazy cloud. I think I might have dreamed it.... I don't think it was all that unpleasant afterall!

Also, I have a vague recollection that I thought it would be fun to come to work dressed in an 80's Prom dress along with my co-workers.

I seemed to have forgotten that there would be PICTURES! Lots and LOTS of pictures!

Pictures that will be dregged up EVERY Halloween at this here company - oftentimes without explanation and DEFINITELY without the comfort of EVERYONE ELSE also being in costume at the time.

How could anyone regret this?!?

Also, ALSO?!?.... I brought in PICTURES of myself from the 80's! Talk about a double dose of humiliation, but my Sugar Coated Amnesia selectively kept me from seriously contemplating it and so, here I am!
Oooooh, yeah! Work that big stiff bow in your hair, Girl! Tease those curly bangs and wear that shiny metallic lipstick! Those shoulder pads and big belt are really doing it for you!

Who's a Boy George Wannabe? Who is? You are! That's right!Check out my styling taste in clothes! This wouldn't be so sad if you couldn't see on my face how absolutely SURE I am that I LOOK GOOD!Here I am channeling Van Halen right into my hair...

Check out my DATE! He wanted to be James Dean sooooo bad that he calculated almost every picture... I wonder who he wound up with.... I'm sure everyone was so jealous of me!! :) (Don't be fooled by my cavalier attitude now... I was SOOOOO into this guy!)

Here I am sporting the body scrunchy dress covered in sequins! Check out those sleeves! I'm SO friggin stylish!

And, last but not least - the teen drama shot. See how dramatic I am about showing off my corsage? Hard not to be cocky when you look so darn good, right?!? But I digress....

And not a moment too soon. I think you were getting a little queasy by now....

You know those control struggles that you and I have been having recently? Well, all I did was take one LOOK at this school picture that I got yesterday,

and my Sugar Coated Amnesia whispered in my ear that your halo had simply been wearing a cloak of invisibility (uh-oh... my Dungeons and Dragons inner nerd just snuck up and bit me in the ass! Did you see that?!?)

But I see that halo now, sweet Angel! You can do NO WRONG!

We started the evening out by Trick or Treating at the Shanks and you and Calum got to wander to the neighbor's front doors to experience your VERY FIRST actual trick or treating with people NOT FAMILY!

I even dressed up, too! I had tried on my 80's prom dress for you and you had called me Mommy-rella, so I therefore had to become a princess to go trick or treating with you. It was a hardship, but somebody had to do it! :)

From the Shanks, we headed to the Wassels! By this time you had at least three treats in your belly and therefore - fuses were short...I think I might recall a challenging moment or two... but maybe I'm remembering wrong... :)After trick or treating at a couple of houses around there, we headed home to get some REAL food in your belly...(french fries count, don't they?...)

After "dinner", Daddy was home and we headed to Grandma and Grandpa Rose's house to trick or treat.As soon as we entered their condo, you went in search of Grandpa and Koo-ey (which is your name for Kool Aid since they always have that and you ALWAYS WANT IT).You could have pure processed sugar running through your veins and you would still need your Koo-ey!

Grandma and Grandpa bestowed on you a generous goody bag filled with candy which you excitedly took and then - in the spirit of any kid on Halloween - was ready to go! Off! To! Find! More! Candy!Our last house of the night was your Uncle Scott and Aunt Mary's house. We approached the door to say Twick O Tweet and they had a motion sensor in one of their pumpkins that triggered a scream when someone approached.The impression that scream made on you was huge because you couldn't stop talking about it for the rest of the night.

"You hee-ah dat?" (You here that?)

"Yes - we heard it, Jack! It was a scream, wasn't it?"

"Bat scweem" (Bat scream... you are convinced it was a bat screaming ever since you saw light up bats at Grant's Farm and are now sure that bats and wolves are what Halloween are all about)

"Was that a bat screaming, Buddy? I think it was coming from the Pumpkin..."

"BAT SCWEEM!"

"Okay!"

(small pause.....) "You hee-ah dat?"

"Yes. We heard it..." (and so on. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. For the rest of the night...)

The impression it made on you was.... (scarring? terrorizing? traumatized?) ....long lasting.But nothing a little sugar can't fix and make you forget!