I stand outside my loci. It’s a two story colonial with a mix of Victorian. It is white, the kind of white when you walk by you say “that is a very white house” it has dark blue trim around the roofing, windows, and porch. It has a decent one acre front yard with grass and flower beds around the porch. A white picket fence that looks like it was just white washed by Tom Sawyer himself separates the yard from the sidewalk on which I stand. A cement walkway leads up to the Victorian wraparound style porch. I make my journey to this place and notice that the door is red and to the left of that door is a woman on a rocking chair, knitting.
“Hello my dear. Welcome back. They have been expecting you.
“And you would be?”
“Mnemosyne, I am the mother of the muses.”
“Whose has been expecting me?”
“We all have.”
“What are you knitting?”
“Socks this will be my 3rd one so far. My girls’ feet get cold since they don’t like wearing shoes so I’m knitting them socks. You best be heading in.”
I grasp the handle of the red door not sure what to expect in this very white house. I enter. The room I enter into is the kitchen various aromas fill my nose. There are three men in the kitchen.
“Hello”
“I hi there we’ve been expecting you.”
“Who are you and what are you doing?”
“Well I am Rueben and these are my two brothers Simeon and Levi. We are cooking dinner for tonight.”
“Dinner?”
“Yes some elk sausage mixed with pickled garlic and cottage cheese, and some peat-smoked salmon for appetizers served with an assortment of crackers. It tastes quite good on crackers and also its Erato’s favorite.”
“Erato?”
“She lives here as well.”
“Well best be getting back to dinner. See you soon.”
I wander into a corridor to find an opening into a room to the left and a closed door to the right. I decide the closed door first. It seems to be a study: a stereotypical study. A fine wooden desk with a computer that sits upon, two upright brown leather chairs, a globe that opens containing 6 bottles of white wine, bookcases filled to the brim with different books and a set of doors that open out onto the porch where a telescope sits next to a beautiful girl.
“Hello”
“Hi, I’m Urania just waiting until its dark so I can study the constellations.”
“Fun,”
“Hello Clio”
I turn to see another woman holding a book titled Death in the City of Light: The Serial Killer of Nazi-Occupied Paris. She sits on one of the brown leather chairs.
“It is starting to sound like a mad house out there. I was hoping for some peace and quiet to read my new book about the Holocaust, but no. I hope you don’t mind sharing your study.”
“No I don’t sister dear.”
I turn to leave but before I do, “could you do me a favor and email Sophie asking her to find the Paul Newman film Somebody up there Likes Me.”
“Sure,” I email Sophie and also research what the Paul Newman film is about because apparently we will be watching it after dinner. I then take my leave and pass into the room across the hall where I met with an interesting scene. Two females are arguing over a megaphone and director’s chair. The rest of the room was normal enough a wraparound blue suede coach and a fireplace. The room was rather barren but perhaps suited for the two girls needs. I could make out snippets from their argument.
“No we are doing Antony and Cleopatra. It is my turn to be the director and choose the before dinner entertainment.”
“No it is my turn and we are doing The Revengers' Comedies.”
Before I was able to say anything a hand grasped my shoulder.
“Don’t bother Thalia and Melpomene have been like this for 20 minutes or so. They will soon realize that the best way to answer the question is to ask my brothers Dan and Naphtali who were in the last play.”
“What was the last play they did?”
“I Hate Hamlet”
“Judah, could you fetch your brothers Dan and Naphtali for us. Thank you.”
“I can only guess where they will be. Come on then you can meet some of my other brothers because they will probably be there as well.”
We left heading through a different door at the opposite end of the room. We entered into a hallway. At the end of the hallway a bathroom and to the left was a door leading to the backyard. Judah suggested that I visit the backyard at one point while I was visiting. A few paces before the bathroom there are stairs tucked behind the wall. We wandered up the stairs to another corridor with doors randomly spaced throughout. Only one door was opened and words were sensuously echoing down the hall towards us. I shivered as did Judah.
“Erato has that effect on people.”
We stopped outside her door listening as she was reciting a poem
In silence I grieve
That thy heart could forget,
Thy spirit deceive.
If I should meet thee
After long years,
How should I greet thee?
With silence and tears.
As she finished a sigh whispered like a chorus around her bedroom. There were six guys and one female in this room. Her room was pink, red, and white like a Valentine’s shop exploded inside this room; however, her room also had a hint of black mixed in making it sensual. This sensual feeling was exaggerated by the harness and ropes hanging in the corner and the one female that was in the room was dressed in a skin-toned cat suit.
“Hello Judah.”
“Hello Erato I am in need of my two brothers Dan and Naphtali.”
“What!”
“You are needed downstairs to settle a fight.”
Two of the guys stood and walked out of the bedroom. The remaining guys scooted closer together in front of the bed that Erato was playfully nestling in.
“The remaining are a few of my other brothers: Gad, Asher, and Issachar. The other three are probably in the backyard. You should head out there now. The play will be starting soon, then dinner, then the Paul Newman film.”
Judah squeezed himself in among his brothers. I could hear Erato giggles carrying down the stairs as I headed to the backyard. I made a quick bathroom break then entered into the backyard. The backyard was gorgeous. You could see part of the porch peeking into the backyard with bushes surrounding it, trying to hide it from are view. There was a cobble, smoothed over patio that I was standing on. Weeping Willows were scattered around the yard and a pond with a surrounding Zen garden. I heard music coming from around one of the trees. I rushed over to see who was playing such an enchanting sound. There were three females along with males behind this tree. One of the sisters was playing a harp, another sister was twirling around with 3 hula hoops and a snorkel in her mouth, and the last sister was reciting Beowulf. The three males sat with their backs against the tree watching the three women.
“Hi,”
“Hello there,” they all said even the dancing hula hooping girl with the snorkel in her mouth.
The girl who was playing the harp introduced herself as Euterpe along with everyone else: The girl who was hula hoop dancing was Terpsichore; the girl who was reciting Beowulf was Calliope, and the three males were introduced as Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin, the last three sons of Jacob.
A load voice echoed throughout the house into the backyard.
“Jacob is home, the play is about to begin, and dinner will soon be ready.”
“Best be heading in then,” Dinah said.
We all began heading back to the house. The three men were carrying the harp as us girls were chit-chatting about the-this and that. As we neared the door an odd looking device with blue liquid was attached next to it.
“Good timing. Looks like it will be raining soon.” Calliope said.
“I’m so glad Jacob installed the barometer. It has saved us from some down pours.”
We entered into the same in which Thalia and Melpomene had been fighting in earlier. The room still had the wraparound style couch and fireplace; however, the room was filled with smoke from the dry ice machine sitting on fireplace mantle. The gaggle of sisters and brothers were sitting side by side on the couch along with Mnemosyne and, I can only assume, Jacob. The abridged version of Anthony and Cleopatra began and soon ended. We ventured into the kitchen for some tasty dinner. Here I met the last sister, Polyhymnia. She recited some hymns before sitting down to eat. The appetizer of peat-smoked salmon on Ritz crackers was the best. After dinner we moved back into the room with the wraparound coach to see a TV and DVD player had been added. We all took a seat and ended the evening with the Paul Newman film “Somebody up there Likes Me.”
Erato was reciting the last line of:
When We Two Parted
by George Gordon, Lord Byron
(Nick and the start of a s'more) 4th of July with the guys and the neighbor
