The Loot

You would think that we were about to set sail for the high seas with precious treasure the way HS slid the Lanai door open with a loud whoosh! and made a B-line straight for his booty from Halloween pillage. Gone was the wise old Merlin and in his place stood in front of me the wide open crazy glassed over eyes of a person overcome with craze. "Mom. I'm going to get my homework done and then...(he flung his arms out wide and leaned in towards me with even crazier eyes)...I'm going to count this loot!"

So, as I stood by sipping my afternoon cup of Joe, where was my darlin' son? Was he running around participating in the latest Nerf neighborhood war? Was he snuggled up with a good book on the sofa? Maybe he was creating a new Lego land in his lair upstairs. Nope. None of those. He stood like a sentinel guarding the crown jewels and then would methodically begin stacking as if he was in Dicken's day working for a not yet enlightened Mr. Scrooge. He carefully penned each name of the candy and notated the number he was handed. To say I was shocked that my usually very energetic son did nothing but sit, stare at candy, and write after circling my diningroom table like a vuture checking on prey, is in understatement. He worked for at least an hour. Then, just when I I thought he through, he grinned and said, "Now, I've got to see how many pieces I have in total." Carefully, he began adding in his head and then proudly announced:

"237 pieces, just waiting to be eaten!" So there you have it. Just in case you were biting at the bit wondering how much candy gets to be enjoyed around here, that's his final answer. Darn. Now he knows exactly how many packets of Skittles and Snickers he would be missing if I snitch during the day!