April Fools Day

Neither Bill or I are really into April Fools jokes any more, but Tim certainly wants part of the action. In the brief time I had with him this morning before he went to school, he tried several 'April Fools'jokes - but he was so obvious about them that even he realized I wasn't being fooled.

However, it got me to thinking about some of the jokes that have been pulled on me in the past (when I was a child), and some of them were real lulus - and took a lot of thought on the part of the person who crafted them.

My earliest memory was from elementary school when my mother calmly announced that all she was putting in my lunch box was a large, raw turnip. I take food pretty seriously and I was VERY upset until she April fooled me.

When I was twelve and we were living in England, my Dad woke me up with the news that my dreaded headmistress from school (a real terror) was on the phone to talk to me. I picked up the phone with a pounding heart and absolute dread, but there was nobody there. They tried it on my brother (he was scared of his headmistress too), but he refused to go to the phone. He said she could get at him at school, but not at home! I got even with my father later when I sweetly asked him if he'd like a cup of coffee and then put salt instead of sugar into it!

However, I have to admit that the best joke ever played on me was done by my uncle Jim, who happened to be visiting us that April. I was a teenager then, and belonged to the Columbia record club (yeah - we had records back then, CD's had not been invented yet). That April 1st I received a letter from them informing me that they had picked a select few of their members who would be eligible to receive EVERY SINGLE RELEASE for the next year ABSOLUTELY FREE. My obligation would merely be to listen to each record as it arrived and send them a critique on it.

Needless to say, I was out of my mind with delight about this. The letter further stated that they couldn't offer this opportunity to very many people, and if I didn't return the enclosed acceptance card, they would give the offer to somebody else. But there was no card with the letter!

I went absolutely bonkers. I was on the verge of calling the company to tell them they forgot to put the acceptance card in my letter, and to please, please, please not take me off their list. At this point my mother casually asked me who had signed the letter. "The president of the company" I answered impatiently. "And what's his name?" my mother pressed on. I glanced back at the signature. "A. Prellful" I answered. And then it suddenly hit me.

"A. Prellful" = April Fool

I was absolutely devasted and very upset at the time, but looking back on it, it was probably the best joke ever played on me. Although, the time my aunt gave me a book written by John Lennon with the signature 'John' inside comes a close second. Being a little older and a little more suspicious, I asked her if it was actually signed by John LENNON. She laughed and admitted that it wasn't, but that it HAD been signed by someone named John. In my family, we don't save everything for April Fools day. Any day is fair game!