It's...It's a Rake, Isn't It?

I have to explain.

Now--the thing about this is, when we were kids, my dad thought it a real hoot at Christmas to gift-wrap for each of us three kids...a rake. We lived on a large ranchette in the country with lots of trees, plants, gardens and animals...

so rakes were very useful things, granted.

However, to a kid at Christmas when the number of gifts you could expect to get were quite limited anyway...the rake joke thing got old quick. But not for dad, O Ho Ho, every damned Christmas you could count on getting a new rake.

So this morning, my birthday, I woke up to a nice gift, all wrapped.

My first reaction, of course, was 'Oh, a rake...' 
My husband saw the strange, strangled look I gave it, then I burst out laughing.  Cue husband and daughter staring in concern at me like they thought I was having some kind of episode.

And I had to explain the rake thing.

It turned out NOT to be a rake but a very nice and beautiful dragonfly garden ornament made of steel. Much better than a rake.

But now that I've told them that story, I shudder to think what Christmas may hold...