The Secret Pepper Society: Light My Fire

Apr 3, 2011

Light My Fire

Feel free to play the music while reading this post. It adds to the ambiance.

A year or so ago Iris/Virus gave me a vintage Jim Morrison shirt to sell on e-bay. Shortly after she gave it to me it disappeared into the bowels of someone's closet.

Three days ago The Teenager walks past with the words, "Try To Set The Night On Fire" emblazoned along the back of her shirt. I was a little taken aback.

"Where did you find that shirt?" I asked.

"Isn't it cool? I love this shirt. Set the night on fire!" she whoops.

Two days ago she walks past with the shirt on again.

"Set the night on fire!" she laughs.

Today she takes her bath and comes out in the shirt. Again.

"You need to lose that shirt." I groan.

"What? I LOVE this shirt!" In other words no way was she losing the shirt.

And i saw it very clearly at that moment. My lovely teenager who functions on the social level of a 5 or 6 year old was displaying signs of...gulp...teenage rebellion!

I had to smile. If my mom was alive she would be laughing herself silly. She hated the Doors...The Beatles...The Rolling Stones...Frank Zappa...

My 92 year old dad who endured my teenage rebellious hippie days has a saying when special moments like this occur with any of my five children.

"I've waited a long time for this day," he smirks.

Popi, this moment is for you. You may not want to listen to the song, however. Just a little FYI.

6 comments:

Heather said...: I love that song.

Still believe I was born about 10 years too late to truly appreciate the music of those days.I managed but not in the way that I would have fully appreciated it had been a teenager ... my parents endured or rather tolerated The Doors and AC DC and Led Zeppelin,the Scorpions and so on and so forth ..

As a grandma now,I watch my full of spunk and attitude grangdaughter,giving my daughter a run for her money and I too smirk because I do believe I muttered a time or two,back in her day,"I wish 10 of you on you,when you have children." Do believe I have entered the age of payback.

Wear the t-shirt proudly Teenager..I love it.; April 3, 2011 at 10:30 AM
Anonymous said...: I love that song. Katie surprises me sometimes with her strong opinions about things.; April 3, 2011 at 2:13 PM
Elizabeth said...: Oh, my god. I am laughing. I would normally never click on a Doors song as I never really liked him, but you were absolutely right that the song, playing while I read was PERFECT. I do believe your blog reached the pinnacle of performance art, actually!; April 3, 2011 at 2:40 PM
SECRET PEPPER PERSON: said...: Performance art? I love it. Jim would be proud. He used to perform right here at a local hippie coffee house named Beaux Arts and attended Clearwater Community College.; April 3, 2011 at 3:23 PM
Ele at abitofpinkheaven said...: This is Wonderful!; April 3, 2011 at 7:34 PM
Diane said...: Laughing as I read this!! Go teenager go!; April 4, 2011 at 7:37 AM

The Artist

The Artist can be seen in the yearly dance calendars, Breaking Bounds, by photographer Lois Greenfiled throughout the years.The artistically gifted second daughter who graduated from a very expensive art college in Philadelphia is one of those annoying people who can do all things artsy. Dance. Sing. Make jewelry. Photography. A genetic descendant of St. Francis of Assisi, this "sister moon" is called "the dog whisperer" behind her back by the SPP's posse. She is currently involved in animal rescue and is usually tooling around the south in her VW transporting unfortunate animals to their new homes. As a child she ate Barbie doll toes. I spent years thinking the hamster did it until The Genius set me straight.

The Teenager

The teenager became part of the family in 1994. She was born with hypoplasia of the cerebellum. As a result she has cerebral palsy. She was diagnosed with developmental delays early on and in later years has developed glaucoma and epilepsy. She was not supposed to be able to walk, talk or use her upper extremeties well. No one shared this information with her. She began walking wihout assistance at age 6. She began writing at the age of 13. After 10 years in book one of Hooked on Phonics she now reads well. She enjoys music, dancing, soccer, and her dvd collection. She loves light bulbs, cracks in windows and windshield wipers. The teenager comes up with the most interesting statements. They are rarely politically correct.

The Boy

The boy became a part of the family in 2000. He has a rare genetic disorder called Osteogenesis Imperfecta type 3. He has severe dyslexia and ADHD. The boy was not expected to survive per his geneticist and pulmonologist. No one shared this information with the boy. The boy is Evel Knievel in a Humpty Dumpty body. He loves monster trucks, cars of all kinds especially vintage and critters. The boy could not understand why I was upset with him when I discovered a live snake in his top bunk becasue it was " not poisonous." Don't ever say to the Secret Pepper Person that boys are easier than girls. I will hurt you.

The Baby

The baby became a member of the family in 2007. She was rescued by a paramedic who found her dead in the amniotic sac in a hallway. For those of you who find this offensive please get a life. The baby should be in a vegetative state from the estimated 10 minutes of cerebral anoxia. No one informed her of that. The baby is the happiest child I have ever known and is seriously nosey. She has cerebral palsy and seizures but neither interfere with her quality of life. She signs and has just begun to talk. Even when she is 30 she will be referred to as the "baby" as she is the omega child. The baby loves french fries,music, remote control cars and soft blankets. She hates peaches.

The Dog

The most recent addition to the posse came to us from Great Pyrenes Rescue. Vanna White had lived in several homes before ours and the day we met her she was leaving for yet another adoptive placement. The adoption fell through after 2 weeks as, "there was still too much puppy in her." What they really meant to say is that she likes to pee on furniture. Vanna is a herd protector by nature who is strong enough to take on a bear but becomes emotionally attached to her herd animals. This is a perfect fit for our family. She is very protective of the baby and sleeps by her crib. She has a disctinct "boy bark" which alerts me to the fact that the boy is outside doing stunts not wearing his helmet. Yes, Vanna is that intelligent. Vanna loves other dogs, digging, long walks, chicken and peeing on the sofa. She hates the rain.

The Cat

The cat showed up in our backyard about 14 years ago. No one knows where he came from or how old he was. Every time you approached him he would drop to the ground and roll, thus the name, "Roller." Once we determined that Roller wasn't rabid we decided to make him a permanent member of the family. He grudgingly obliged. Roller had some "adjustment issues" and our kind and gentle Hindu vet informed me he thought Roller needed some help "finding his place in the family" and put Roller on Elavil. In other words, the cat was seriously psycho. Roller's issues have mellowed over the years but if there are 14 people in my living room he will stalk the one person who hates cats. He is an accomplished hunter and likes to leave bloodied fruit rats on the door mat or if he's mad at me on my bed. After the last rat on the bed the cat door was nailed shut. Roller likes freedom, two story houses, rats and chocolate Ensure Plus. He hates the dog, the kids and the 4th of July.

Iris aka Virus

Iris has been with the family for almost 7 years and is the teenagers' respite worker/personal care assistant. Iris looks like a Bavarian milkmaid who should be clad in a dirndldress or lederhose. A cross between Heidi Klum and Gretel complete with culry blonde hair and rosy complexion. Iris, however, has an alter ego lovingly referred to as Virus. Virus likes the color black, sparkly clothes and metal bands. She met her husband, "the beard" at Livestock. 09 and he proposed at Livestock 12.They were married and went to a Great White concert after the ceremony. They have two model beautiful children which dispels the myth that pretty people have ugly children. Virus loves Ozzie Osborne, Motley Crue, Kiss, and Queensryche and has a Queensryche tattoo under the lederhose. If you look up Iris/Virus in Roget's Thesaurus you will find synonyms such as, "loyal, faithful, honest, kind, and long-suffering." Iris has a mental list of places she can never go to again because of the teenagers behavior. Virus doesn't care. Iris would like to have dinner with Ozzie Osborne before she dies but feels she needs an interpreter. I suggested the teenager. She hates REM and people who wear pajamas in public. Iris is the only person I would trust my children with and not be concerend about the outcome. For Iris or the children.

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-The Loss Of Nameless Things
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