A Little Moonlight--Discussion Thread

Serena's horrible mum doesn't like Serena's suggestion that she's taking too much luggage...'after all I've done for you.' Grrrrr. I am a big fan of the fifth commandment but in this case might it not have been better served by Serena emigrating to New Zealand and sending mother a loving and affectionate letter every fortnight?

Our hero has got 4 sisters and 3 brothers and we get to find out all their names. When I was on the phone with Betty Debbie earlier I was struck (as she was) that RDDs are ALWAYS the eldest child. I found a handy (and, no doubt, highly accurate (wink)) chart on why an RDD must be an eldest:

First	Middle	Last	Only
Natural Leader	Flexible	Risk-taker	Close to parents
High Achiever	Easy-going	Outgoing	Self-control
Organized	Social	Creative	Leader
On-time	Peacemakers	Self-centered	Mature
Know-it-all	Independent	Financially irresponsible	Dependable
Bossy	Secretive	Competitive	Demanding
Responsible	May feel life is unfair	Bored easily	Unforgiving
Adult-pleaser	Strong negotiator	Likes to be pampered	Private
Obeys the rules	Generous	Sense of humor	Sensitive

Bossy? Check. Know-it-all? Check. Responsible? Check. Maybe they don't hand out socking Bentleys to younger children.

With 4 sisters our hero had 'perfected the art of saying the right thing at the right time'. Much though I love my brothers, I can't remember a time when they fussed themselves overmuch at cultivating the emotional equilibrium of the womenfolk in the house.

Serena was studying the Dutch phrase book in bed, she had got as far as 'toast, buttered or dry' when she fell asleep. When I travel to a non-English-speaking foreign country (happens ALL the time, I tell you...) I make sure to know how to order water ('mit gas oder ohne gas') which is very important to me as I'm not much of a juice or pop girl. I also think it is a must for a woman to know how to say no in as many languages as possible. What are your go-to phrases?

Our hero's mum is ordinary - she would look as nice in a pinny. I am a great lover of pinnies. I have several of them, some of which are so darling. But you can bet dollars to donuts that I'll be in the copious cotton/poly number with the high neck and the big pockets. Ugly as sin but handy as all get out.

Serena's flatlet wasn't a flat - it was a bedsitter gone upmarket. When The Lovers van Voorhees lived in married student housing we referred to our domicile as an apartment. If only I had known the word 'flatlet' back then, I could have been more precise. (P.S. This is the part where I post a picture of an 'ugly flatlet' but, no joke, the only thing my google search kept bringing me to was Michael Flatley. Word.)Michael Flatley. Not a flatlet.