Blown away

I love it that Halloween has spread itself out to encompass most of the month. It was always sad to me that you spent so much time on a costume as a kid or for your kid for a one-time use. And in Indiana, so often, the costume was covered up by a winter coat and you had to dodge ice and snow on the way to snag a tiny chocolate bar.

I have long complained about having to visit the miserly George Croft, who my parents made us visit because he and my dad were friendly political enemies. In lieu of candy, he would cackle as he gave us Republican candidate literature, buttons and fans and tell us to give them to Dad. Sometimes he'd throw in a penny for a trouble. A penny! Seriously. Man, I hated that guy.

Fast-forward to Halloween parties well in advance of the 31st, mall events and parties everywhere. I got to go to the Indianapolis ZooBoo with Annie, Elayna and Nathan last week and it was super fun. The only inch of the place I didn't go was the snake house - ick - but they covered the grounds. I recorded 13,000+ steps that day, and I'd do it all over again. 

I did a bad job of getting Annie into the frame, but you can almost see her with Elyana AKA Wednesday Adams. And yes, Amy Tokash, we spent time with BIRDS!!!! Nathan was a hunter in his ghillie suit. 

Jeff and I went to a costume party last weekend and couldn't remember the last time we'd done that. 

We used to dress up a bit with Ali when we took her trick-or-treating but a full-out costume party? It's been a while. So we put some effort into it. I had to consult Ali a bit on my makeup and trusted her that the green would come off. (It did, but it took a while.)

Jeff went as Purdue's Football Reputation. The party was hosted by a woman on Jeff's state softball team, and they all couldn't have been more creative or more fun. 

They've been hosting that party for years, and it shows. The other costumes were extreme, and the house was spectacularly decorated inside and out. It was in Irvington, which is famous for its Halloween events. Super fun.

I slept super late the next day and woke to a text from our friend Jeph, who was joining us for the annual Pumpkin Smash for the Broad Ripple Kiwanis Club. Just after he arrived, the Captain asked me why there was a leaf blower on our sidewalk. I looked out and sure enough, there was a leaf blower there.

Our leaf blower was safe on its shelf in the garage. I had purposefully left it there the  prior day when I decided to rake the front yard. I was too lazy to drive to the gym but needed to do something energetic, and we'd just had granular fertilizer applied to the lawn. I needed to get the leaves off it before I watered, so raking seemed appropriate albeit super early as there are approximately 895 billion leaves yet to fall from the oak tree and the magnolia is holding on to its leaves like a old George Croft and his money.

I had encountered a few neighbors while I toiled, and while my back occasionally barked at me and I might have been slow to pack the leaves into the bags, I didn't think I'd presented a pitiful sight. But my first thought was that one of my awesome neighbors had played Secret Santa to help me out by automating the leaf chore. I even sent an email to our street residents asking who my benefactor was. No one fessed up.

Jeph  heard my speculation. He was sitting next to me as I typed out my email and heard me recount a few funny responses. 

At one point, he said he would just put the leaf blower in his car after the Pumpkin Smash. 

"Hmmm," I thought. "I don't think it was meant as a forever loan and really sure they didn't mean for me to loan it out to my friends." 

Because we were walking to the nearby event, I sent a note back to the neighbors, advising whoever had loaned it to us that it would be there for them to pick it up. 

Again, Jeph said he'd just take it home later.  And again, I wondered to myself, "Why is he planning to steal my neighbor's leaf blower?"

We go to the event and return. The leaf blower is still on my table, and Jeph is still talking about taking it home. I finally say, "You can't just take it; someone will come get it."

"But it's mine," he said.

"No it's not," I said. "Someone will be back for it."

"No they won't," he said. "It's mine."

We argued for awhile before he tells me that Annmarie - president of the Broad Ripple Kiwanis Club, Chief Pumpkin Smasher, my former housemate and our very good friend - had left it for him. It really was his and had been all along. My neighbors apparently didn't take pity on me (or just didn't care.)

Ann had borrowed the tool from Jeph in September and had wanted to return it before she went on a trip. My house is on the way to the Pumpkin Smash, so she'd dropped it there and sped off to finish last-minute details at the smash, apparently thinking I'd remember the transaction and put the pieces together.

I think we laughed about that tool for a solid five minutes after we figured out what had happened.

In my defense, my neighbors are awesome and have offered to help us out many times over the years with a long ladder when Ali got stuck in a tree, with trimmers and even an air compressor when I had a flat tire. Kenny still puts my (and others')  trash can can back after it's emptied every Friday morning.

Last night - on a school night! - was dinner with Peter and Dee Ryan and two other couples we hadn't met but were a riot. It was a great night of terrific food, wine and laughter. 

Friday is the annual Ronald McDonald House gala where I hope we'll make a bunch of money for the place. If you're not coming, you can try to snag silent auction items like Peter's private wine tasting, tickets to a bunch of fun Christmas-themed events, or a Bottleworks weekend and a ton of other stuff. Taylor Swift tickets, Caitlin  Clark and Cubs jerseys. Fun stuff. Check it out here if you're inclined. Or later today see the House CEO and Chief Cheer Officer on Indy Now.

We'll have the neighborhood Halloween party on our street Saturday. I still have some green makeup so we might reprise our roles as witch and football team.

Maybe after all that I'll rest up. The trees will eventually loosen their grip. I'll get Jeph to come back over. With his leaf blower. 🍁🍃🍂