Happy Halloween! I checked out the parade in the Village, and here are a few of the highlights:

-The first people to walk down the street weren't dressed up but were doing their job: sweeping up poo from the police horses
-A cross-dressing man in a pink bathrobe and a curly red wig posed with an Asian tourist for a photo and gave her a prolonged kiss on the cheek, much to the delight of onlookers and the discomfort of the lipstick-smeared visitor
-The police were more concerned with taking digital pictures than monitoring the huge crowd, and drag queens watched the parade from atop a fire truck

Luckily, tonight was warm and I even carried my coat instead of wearing it. If only all my childhood Halloweens were as mild, all the adults would have known what I dressed as each year. My cheerleader, fairy princess and cat costumes were inevitably obscured by layers upon layers fo coats, leggings, scarves and hats. Perhaps next year I'll take a cue from the parade and wear a pink bathrobe. Now that's a costume my mom would approve of.

The other night Eric was struggling to decide whether or not to skip school the next day.

"Would you still love me if I skipped school?" he asked.

"I'd still love you no matter what."

"Even if I put cockroaches in your bed?"

"I'd be really pissed, but eventually I'd forgive you, if you baked me lots of cookies."

pause

"What if they were cockroach cookies?"

Good thing cockroaches are in such short supply in this city.