[We're playing the animal game.]

Me: Show me… an otter.

[He pantomimes being an otter swimming on it's back and spitting water.]

Me: Show me… a vulture.

[He sticks his arms out and pantomimes swooping around like a bird.]

Me: Show me… a bear.

[He puffs up and makes growling noises. I think he may also have pantomimed digging through a trash can, but I'm not sure.]

Me: Show me… a lemur.

The Chicken: [He dances.] I like to move it, move it! I like to move it, move it! I like to… move it!

This morning marked the first time Pajama Pants started a conversation with me at The Chicken's bus stop.

I know I've talked about Pajama Pants at least once before. I can't remember if I talked about her often enough to give her a proper nickname. This year she's "Pajama Pants," named because half the time I see her she's wearing "loafing around the bedroom" clothes.

Anyway, usually she's unapproachably bitchy, like "cross the street to avoid her" bitchy. Lately she's been… kind of nice. I'm not completely sure what to make of that. Is she trying to lull me into complacency before she murders me? Possibly.

Several times, both this year and last, I've tried to be friendly and cheery and all that. Today is the first day she went out of her way to greet me first. It would have felt really good to be treated civilly, except for what she had to say. She wanted to bitch about one of the other parents.

Pajama Pants told some story, twice, about how this other parent called her to complain about PP's daughter's behavior on the school bus. So PP went to the school, where they told her a completely different story and blah blah fucking blah.

Yeah. Nice to be included in her reindeer games, but she can keep the drama.

At the bus stop a little while ago, Carrie (now in the second grade) was wearing a red, fur-tinged cloak. Maybe Halloween came early this year. My first thought was to sing Sam The Sham and the Pharaohs' "Little Red Riding Hood."

Little Red Riding Hood
You sure are lookin' good
You're everything that a big bad wolf could want…
Owwooo!

Yeah, then I reminded myself she's a second grader and I immediately felt creepy just for thinking it. So I moved on to a backup thought: "She looks like an extra from The Village".

I had a woman flirt with me on the way home from The Chicken's bus stop this morning. I have no idea if I've met this woman before.

I was crossing the street on the way back to our house when a woman driving by slowed, rolled down her window and called out, "If I hit you, I get to keep you, right?" Her voice was not familiar, but then she could have been someone I've not talked with in a while.

I looked over at her, but the sun was at just the right angle that I couldn't see a thing in her car. I have the vague impression that she has dark hair, but beyond that I couldn't say.

I said, "Yeah, I suppose. You want me to get back in the street?"

She laughed and started rolling again as she continued on her way.

I have no idea if I just ran into an old pal or if I just had a complete stranger flirt with me. Because it makes me feel pretty good about myself, I'm going with door #2.