Tricks with Cats and Dogs
By Mere Rain
Colin made token protests when his mother informed him that he would be babysitting his cousin while Aunt Saundra and Uncle Hy went to a party.
“Why can’t you watch Ira?”
“He wants to trick-or-treat with his friends. But if you really want to go out—”
“No, Ma, it’s fine. I’m not going to deprive a kid of trick-or-treating. I can go out later, if I have the energy after a couple hours with sugared-up eight-year-olds.”
“Energy, ha!” His mother Lynda said. “Wait till you’re my age.”
“You’re only forty-five, Ma.” He patted her shoulder. “You’re just feeling worn out because of the ankle.”
His mother’s sprained ankle was the reason he was home for the weekend, instead of at college, where there would have been a more appealing party, with people he
