Mug

I think it was the first year I was in college, when I was still living at home, when I woke up one Friday to find my parental home devoid of family members. Since this happened more often, I didn’t think much of it. Several days went by, and it started to dawn on me that I hadn’t seen any family members. It became clear to me when I was hanging out with my cousin Mark (Grifter on this site) and he said; “Oh, didn’t you know? They went to Euro-Disney.” A day or two later they returned. I remember it quite well as I was ironing some clothes when they all walked in, happy to be back. Everyone went on their merry way, everyone except my kid brother, probably no more than five years old at the time, who walked up to me, gave me a present and said “Happy birthday, Dennis.” My sister started to panic, my mother started to cry, and my stepfather laughed his ass off and asked me if he could buy my love (while drawing his wallet.) Gee, I wonder why I’m suffering from abandonment issues. :)

The present I got from my brother was a mug, a really cool one, too. I used it for years until the hot tea I drank from it caused the porcelain to crack and eventually it started leaking. It was a great mug, but it needed replacement, which my brother once again supplied me. Now that mug is cracking, too, so I think I need another mug. Robin, are you on it? :)