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The Dreaded Mumble

My father has always accused me and one of my sisters (to protect her identity, I won't say which one) of mumbling. I think that both of us used to respond to this criticism with a "Daa-aad! I don't mumble!" but over the course of time I have come to accept the fact that I really can be a mumbler. I am trying to overcome this deficit, not least because I get irritated when I'm asked to repeat myself. (Maybe I just don't like speaking out loud in general.)

At any rate, I seem to have passed the mumbler gene along to my oldest daughter. Lately she is mostly incomprehensible. Last night I asked her how school had been and the answer was: "We mumble mumble gym mumble marble mumble mumble and then mumble mumble celebrate mumble mumble mumble with a mumble party."

"Huh?" I said, and got an exasperated "Mommy!" in reply. At least that came out loud and clear.



Recently read:

The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue. This was an odd book, both in subject matter (changelines, faeries) and in writing style. I liked the story but something about the way the guy wrote bored me intensely.

Pretty Little Mistakes by Heather McElhatton. Remember the Choose Your Own Adventure books? How I loved them when I was ten! This is a Choose Your Own Adventure book for grownups and I was all prepared to love it as well. However, although the writing is great, I got a bit bored with it after only a few adventures. And it's incredibly long so in order to go through all the adventures you have to reread pieces of it, and remember which choices you've already made, and then go back to page 54 and choose the second choice instead and...I got kind of tired just thinking about the work it would take to actually read every page and I quit. I guess I'm officially not ten anymore. If the author ever writes a more traditional book I'm there, because she is very funny. (This line made me laugh out loud: "Why was life so hard? It struck you as an excellent question." Okay, not so funny out of context. I seem to have written an awful lot about this book which I didn't even finish.

Abundance, a novel of Marie Antoinette by Sena Jeter Naslund. Am now infessed (tm Rhett) with Marie Antoinette.

Comments

Anonymous said…
I reallt think that both you and your mumbling sister got the gene from your dad! He tends to mumble also, especially on the phone!

Mom
6:27 PM
Anonymous said…
I really don't know what you both are talking about. I mumble mumble excellent mumble talking.

As in the words of Willy Wonka (aka Johnny Depp): Mumbler!!
12:27 PM
aimee said…
Yes, my other mumbling sister realizes, finally, that she has a problem too because she always has to repeat herself to her children. She, too, is working on it. I think one or both of her kids are going to be mumblers as well. And yes, she realizes that she got it from Dad.
12:29 PM
aimee said…
Do you think I tricked anyone? :)
12:30 PM
H Noble said…
Not for a second Aimee! ;)
Holly
3:57 PM
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