Mannequin Hands

When I was in 5th grade I went to my friend Peggy's house after school. When we walked in I noticed the mantle had a pair of life-sized mannequin hands on either end. One was black and one was white.

"Those are my mother's hands, she's a hand model for mannequins." She said.

There were hands in various positions all over the house. They were ultra feminine with elongated fingers and tapered fingernails. Spooky!

Speaking of spooky my favorite part of Halloween was walking into people's foyers and experiencing the smells. The three elderly sisters on the corner had white hair and they had a very hot and stuffy house. They gave us non-parelles. What's a parelle?

My pal Pat and I walked everywhere and we got so much candy that we each filled our pillowcases full. Then we'd go to her house and inspect the candy at her kitchen table, under bright lights, hunting for needle holes and hidden razor blades. Her father was a police man. So she new of all the dangers.

I had to give away all of my candy except for a few candies. That was the rule; no candy, no comic books, no TV.

No being a kid.