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| Calvin & Hobbes |
In
the age of modern technology texting is the best way for family to stay in
touch throughout the day. My parents and siblings are geographically
inconvenient for Sunday dinners. So we do the next best thing – occasional phone
calls and regular texts that tend to include inside jokes and recurring
amusements. Fortunately, we all have off kilter senses of humor and have no
problems beating what others would consider a dead horse – or in the case this
week – an unfortunate rodent named Ralph that overdosed on peanut butter after
invading my dad’s cereal box.
But
the real delight came with our daylong exchanges about which members of the
fictional Pappazino family were invited to my niece’s bridal shower. The
Pappazino’s were born from the misheard mumblings of a drunken man looking for
the “pop machine” somewhere around 1987. My sister and her best friend thought
he asked where to find the Pappazino family. And amid gales of laughter the
Pappazinos entered our lives. We populated a family tree; created back-stories
and relationships; exchanged letters and gifts; and perplexed those who weren’t
in the know.
Sometimes
a few years would go by without any word from the Pappazino family. But now,
with a new generation to entertain, we’ve resurrected them. There have been
Pappazino divorces, unfortunate deaths by alligator, estrangements, illnesses,
exotic travels and invitations lost by pony express. But I am delighted to say
the fun continues. What better way to laugh together long distance, chuckle at
the absurdity for a brief moment on a Tuesday afternoon, and maintain the
wonderfully silly connections with loved ones that make life grand.
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| Goodbye Captain Tuttle |
Here’s
a toast to Linda Pappazino! Wonder what she’ll get my niece for a wedding gift?
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