As I tossed and turned in the wee hours this morning I realized it was because I was hot. Living in Florida we are still experiencing summer like temps. Anyway, I threw off the covers and in my half sleep realized I had also thrown off the sheet. Eegads! Quick!…. My brain immediately screamed “pull the sheet up at least over half of your body, woman!” Why? Well, isn’t it obvious? Monsters.
Can it only be me who has a thing about monsters under the bed? Everyone knows about the ones in the closet – plenty of folks know about closet monsters. What I want to know is how many of you know about the under the bed ones. I have often asked myself if my (monsters under the bed) fear stems from a simple childhood incident. Can I blame it on that? On one of my siblings? Or was it really television’s fault.
Who’s to say. To be generous (but insincere) I will say it was a combination of the two. (I know who to blame!) As a child, I loved watching the B rated science fiction movies on Saturday afternoons . Ah, my baby clarklike mind already embracing that which is not of this world. LOL
“What was the incident”, you ask? A little back history first. I’m the baby of the family. The 4th in line (that’s the end of the line) in the hierarchy of children. My siblings are 8, 10 and 12 years older than myself. The “incident” involved one of my brothers, the one 8 years older than myself. Just young enough to imagine the scariest thing to do to a 3 year old but not quite old enough to realize the implications of doing it.
Scene: Nighttime, house quiet, location of parents unknown. It’s time for baby me to go to bed. Since this happened in the house where I spent my first 5 years of life, I’m guessing I was around 3 or so. Being a typical 1950’s ranch style home, the bedrooms were down a hallway off the kitchen. Baby Girlie’s bedroom was at the end of the hallway, the last one on the left. (OMG! That should have been a clue! Even though the movie had yet to be a twinkle in anyone’s eye! LOL)
My little body had been in bed for less than 20 minutes or so, beginning to drift into never never land when unbenownst to my formidable and very impressionable young mind, my youngest brother was literally slithering his way into my bedroom (Yes. Really. On the floor. If you’ve seen the original The Grinch Who Stole Christmas then you know. He ( the Grinch) was superlative in his slithering throughout the houses in Whoeville……) until he reached the side of my bed and proceeded to scare the living bejezzus out of me. Given that I may have only just fallen asleep….well you can understand the horror, the terror I felt.
Was this the origin of bedsheets as protection from monsters? ( under the bed and/or closet variety). All I know is, to this day, there is some part of me that cannot lie too long in bed without some sort of “safety blanket”. Who knew a simple square of cotton could be so powerful? No wonder Superman wore a cape.
***Next up: Casper The Ghost – Murder or Staged Suicide? (more GirlieOnTheEdge memories)
GirlieOnTheEdge's Blog 
I still have nightmares about black labs. When I was really little we stayed with a family that had one, and it would jump up against the door if anyone came near it — its eyes glowing red! It scared me so bad. For years I was terrified that a black dog was going to come through my second story bedroom window, whenever the wind rattled it hard. Even today… there are flash backs from time to time…
Is it any wonder all my dogs have been white with red or blonde?
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Wow. Any large dog that throws itself against a door…yeah, a bit unnerving. lol
While I get the scary black dog thing I would have to make them be of the wolf family or (forgive me) a mutant German Shepard. Having raised/lived with 4 black labs to date I can’t imagine them as anything but cuddly and cute:) But that is subjective.
Having said that, I recall an incident in which we were dog sitting. Riley, a huge black lab was once part of the family but due to a “custody battle” went with my SO’s ex. We had 2 black labs ourselves, a female and a male. They all pretty much got along. Except for one night. I heard the most awful and viscious sounds coming from the kitchen, ran out and found Alex and Riley really getting into it. Must admit. Scary.
The color of your dogs may not intimidate you however, I bet if a stranger came to your home and your dogs sensed “danger” they would become scary black labs to someone else:)
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Parents location unknown??? You know were never really left alone – don’t remember the incident but doesn’t surprise me. And of course there was THE DOLL later in life:)
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In the sense that they should have prevented the child on child cruel and unusual torture. LOL
Hey! Nothing like spilling the beans. THE DOLL was to be forthcoming in a post:) Talk about cruel and unusual torture. LOL Hm…it could be another child’s Christmas gift:) Perhaps the girl child Alexandra?:)
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NO, NO – THE DOLL must never be given to anyone!!!
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And have you never harbored a single thought to revenge, retribution? A measure of Old Testament justice?
On a side note, you wouldn’t have any postable photos of you at that age? I’ll bet you were the cutest thing ever. Maybe I’ve seen some but don’t recall.
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Eye for an Eye! I suppose my “retribution” materialized as a teenager trying
her best to bug the crap our of her brother:) But damn if he didn’t drive me
crazy even with that! I must say I did learn some very good tricks/methods by
which to annoy others. LOL
You are kind sir….I am sure there must be some floating around…..
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