I went on Facebook first thing this morning, and was astonished to see this joyous announcement from my friend and former student Rita (Torcaso) Gentile: <<It’s a Boy!>>
Right below it was a long lineup of very enthusiastic congratulations from various friends. . . to which I added my own note, which went something like this: O my gosh! I thought this blessed event was way off in the future! I’m happy for you and Ben and Uncle Joe! (Rita’s brother Joe is a former voice student of mine. And when I entered the choir room today at the start of Carthage Choir rehearsal, I stopped just long enough to whisper to him “how are you doin’, Uncle Joe” – to which he responded with a rather quizzical look.)
It was not until I was driving home and talking to Kathy on my cell phone that I learned about the mistake I had made- that “It’s a boy!” didn’t mean “I gave birth to a boy!” It just meant “I am carrying a boy – and it’s time to paint the baby’s bedroom blue.”
It’s good that I didn’t show up at the Kenosha Hospital’s maternity ward with a bouquet and a monogramed baby blanket because I would have had to give it to a complete stranger – and then show up several months from now when Rita finally gives birth to her baby boy.
DUH!
pictured above: a rather egregious typographical error I spotted at the Border’s Bookstore in Eau Claire. Somehow, I am not astonished to see a “Douhgnuts” sign at my neighborhood 7-11. But I am astonished to see such an error at a place like Border’s.