Sunday, May 3, 2009

Kids can be so darn mean!

I don't know what it is about a funny sounding last name, that makes kids want to make fun of it. My last name is such a name. Let me tell you at times school was brutal! Most of the time the kids would use the word "stinker" when making fun. Stinker this, and stinker that. I guess kids will be kids, and after a while I got used to it.

That was until one horrifying Halloween. I remember I was in elementary school. Mom was a room mother, and had brought cupcakes for the class party. She also brought our costumes to change into. I had no idea what we were going to be, not a clue. Imagine, if you can, how I felt when Mom pulled out a homemade skunk costume for me to put on! Yep, you guessed it black tights, a black leotard with white cotton batting down the back and a tail made of black cloth, white cotton batting and wire. Oh yes, wire to make the tail curl up my back. It had to look realistic, right? It did not comfort me that Mom wore a skunk costume too, not that day it didn't.

Stinker! Skunk! Oh what would the kids say then? I was mortified! I wanted to run. I wanted to burrow! I wanted to hide! "How," I asked myself, "how could Mom do this to me?" A skunk! I don't want to be a skunk! I don't want to be a stinker! Ahhhhhhh! Sure, sure, laugh if you will. Go ahead. Even I can laugh about that dreadful Halloween now.

My last name is German (I suppose that is because I am German), and the English translation is simple and pretty. As Mom always said, "Anyone can be a Smith or Jones, but it takes someone special to be a stinker."

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I remember that outfit, I had to ware on like that a few years before you. Our last name is great how many people can have 11 letters in thier name?? and only 4 are vowels?? can you still spell it backwards?? I can when I need to, I write it down and read it off the paper. Isnt it great when we can think of all the wonderful thing mom did for us that would last with us the rest of our lives. She is a great person, and i bet she has pictures somewhere of you as a cat with white markings. I love you Boni.... your witchy sister.

Fram Actual said...

I had the distinction of playing Santa Claus in a third grade play. It was my only adventure in costume.

Have a good day, Boni ....

Katy said...

Have always loved dressing up - still do given half the chance :-)

My one and only time in a school play was as a soldier outside the gates of the Emerald City in the Wizard of Oz. It was an all-girls school and I was about 11, but whether the part actually required me to be as wooden as I was or not is hard to tell...

its_me_in_montana said...

Fram,

Hmmm, Santa in 3rd grade..you must have used lots of pillows.

Thanks for stopping by, as always it is a pleasure to hear from you.

its_me_in_montana said...

Hi Katy! Yes I too still like to dress up. I guess these days my favorites would be wax lips and a pair of Groucho Marx glasses with the nose and mustache attached!

My favorite from when I was a child was a clown costume, with a big clown face mask. It set a trend for how I normally like to be. I even used a picture of it on eHarmony for a while.

Thanks to you too for stopping by. Your Kaos is a beautiful friend, hair and all.

Peace, Boni