monet_on_bartlett_the_party_begins blumengarten "if a writer, why not write on whatever comes in sight." ~a.a. milne dieselboy returned with his staff, three girl friends of his in black cat costumes. they opened a garage door in the greenhouse and drove a flatbed wooden cart with marshmallow wheels pulled by a saint bernard inside, loaded with all manner of party implements, including a 4oo watt pioneer stereo, two cases of gerolsteiner bottled water, a crate of meyer lemons, several nori seaweed rolls and a few loaves of rustica. rillian was alone because the crowl went to get his costume. he noticed there were bees flying around the wheels that were imbedded with grass and sticks and pebbles. he wasn't worried about getting stung because he was nothing but bone. "why do you have marshmallow wheels?" rillian asked dieselboy. "at least they never go flat and we make the ants happy." dieselboy said. he was dressed as a clown without make-up. he cut a lemon in half and sucked out the juice. then he placed it against his teeth so he had a big yellow smile. "what about the bees?" rillian thought but he did not say it. it took the staff only a few minutes to set up and when the cuckoo clock reached three and the bird emitted its breathy announcement of the hour, the crowl arrived in his cayris costume. "dude!" rillian said. "nice." "thanks," the crowl said. "it must be nice to be a skeleton at halloween. you are always ready." "i'm never ready for anything," rillian thought. he also thought what it must be like to be a real man and wished with all his heart he could someday be one. everyone was drinking water. when rillian drank, the water ran over his bones and made a small puddle on the floor. "i like to do the things that real men do," rillian said, laughing. the saint bernard, who was now unhitched came over and licked it up. he hung out beside the skeleton man in case it happened again. dieselboy made a mix cd with over 2oo songs. rillian liked the new strokes. he shook his bony ass. the three black cats rubbed against him. "have some food," dieselboy said when there was an awkward pause. "it's vegan." "i don't have a stomach," rillian responded. "i'm just a suggestion of a man, you know what i mean?" 031102 what's it to you? who go blather from