Comes In Three Flavors, Part 2

Daddy Steve: Duncan is my third 'flavor' and, as you will see, his personality is quite different from Sasha and Frederick.  He's also what I call my 'second-chance' boy.  I first spotted him on eBay, wearing an old pair of pajamas.

He was not particularly unusual, and certainly not in pristine condition.  Yet...there was something about him that appealed to me.  I put in a sensible bid, but eventually lost the auction.  I wasn't terribly disappointed.  However, he must have made an impression on me because I saved his auction photos.

About six months later, he appeared on Sasha Doll UK.  This time he was sporting a much nicer outift (a combo from A Passion for Sasha and Dollydoodles).

I was suprised to see him again, but I didn't give in right away.  When his price was reduced, however, I knew he was meant to be mine.  Duncan is a waif; he's not beat up, but he has definitely lived a life and has the various dings and scratches that go with it.

Although his hair is not falling out, he has suffered what I call 'malicious hair loss.'  He's had a few chunks of hair cut very short, rather like a scrub brush.

It's really not all that noticeable, as his brothers have reassured him time and again.

Sasha: Honestly, you can't even see it.

Frederick: Seriously.  I would never in a million years have noticed it if you hadn't told me.

Duncan: >sigh<  You don't have to spare my feelings.

Although Sasha & Gregor dolls are capable of conveying a wide range of emotions, to me Duncan always tends to look a bit glum.

He's a very sweet boy, but he does tend to be a bit of a 'dismal Jimmy.'  Perhaps it's just due to the life he's led.

Giancarlo: I think it's going to be a nice day.

Duncan: Hmmm, I don't know.  Looks like it could rain.  Maybe even snow.  I hope a tree doesn't blow down and fall on our house.

Giancarlo:  >sigh<

Emile: Le garçon, 'e 'as no joie de vivre!

Sebastian: Definitely a gloomy Gus.

Ann Marie: He's like Eeyore in Winnie-The-Pooh books.

Holly Belle: Well, of course not everyone can have an ebullient personality like me!

It's true that we can only be who we are, and in some ways there is an advantage to not being a sunny optimist.  Because he never really expects things to go right, Duncan is pretty unflappable when they do go awry...

Blake: Whoops!  Don't worry, we'll clean this up.

Robin: And we'll get you a new cone.  No worries at all.

Duncan: That's okay.  I expect these things to happen to me.

Comes In Three Flavors, Part 1

Daddy Steve:  By now our readers are well acquainted with Sasha, my childhood doll and faithful companion for more than 45 years.  Sasha is goodness personified: sweet, innocent, and caring.

Sasha has two brothers who very closely resemble him: Duncan, a brunette and Frederick, a redhead.  I believe all three date from around the same time, probably the later part of 1968 (50 years ago now!).  They have very similar styles of eye painting and they're noticeably smaller than my other kids, even those from earlier in the same year.

My 3 Flavors: Duncan, Sasha, Frederick

Even though these three boys share similar looks, they definitely have their own distinct personalities.  While Sasha can be a little bashful, his brother Frederick is very social and outgoing.  He loves to talk, and will talk to anyone.  He'll talk and talk and talk....

Frederick & Daphne: >natter-natter-natter-natter-natter<

Mikko: Gosh he talks a lot!

Ezra: Well, Daphne isn't exactly quiet herself.

Mikko: Oh yeah, that bird loves to chirp!

Tyler: Daddy Steve says they were both vaccinated with a phonograph needle.

Ezra: What's a phonograph?

I got Frederick from his original person.  She was a big fan of Sasha dolls.  However, by the time she got him she was 13, so Frederick was never really played with, only displayed.  

All of that time spent with a teenager had its effect, making him a rather dramatic boy.  Everything in his life tends to play out on an epic scale. Fellow redhead Patrick, who is much more reserved, finds him incomprehensible.

Frederick: It's so involved being me!

Patrick: You're very illogical.

Like a teenager, Frederick likes to talk on the phone.

Kaveh: Good grief!  Are you still on the phone?!?

Frederick: I'm talking to Ragnor.  Before that I was talking to Finn, and before that I was talking to Rory.

If you notice that your family plan cell phone bill is unusually high, I'm afraid we might be to blame.

Although he can be a handful at times, Frederick is basically a goodhearted boy.  He's a kind lad who is always willing to lend a sympathetic ear.

Holly Belle: Oh my, what an awful day!

Frederick: Do sit down and tell me all about it!

Take Your Gregor To Work Day

Daddy John:  Pete Dakota wanted to see where I work, so asked if he could join me in the office today.  Although I told him it wasn't very interesting and he might get bored, he persisted.  He had a shirt and tie picked out, but I'm afraid I disappointed him when I said I don't wear a tie.  In fact, because it's Friday, we are allowed to wear jeans in the office.

He replied with a subdued "Mmmf," and we settled on a nice button-down shirt and jeans for him.

First things first.  We arrived at my office building and hung up our jackets at my cubicle...

Pete wandered around to get the lay of the land.  One nice thing about having a bit of seniority: I get a window in my cube!

Pete Dakota: How high up are we?

Daddy John: We're on the 9th floor.

Pete: Wow.

Daddy John: You know what they say: 'The higher the floor, the closer you are to heaven.'

Pete: Huh?

Daddy John: Never mind, buddy.

Pete: You sure have a lot of papers on your desk.

Pete: Three computer screens?  Boy, Stephen Orange would love a set-up like this!  He could do all sorts of research on his fish.

(Stephen Orange wants to be a marine biologist when he grows up)

Pete: You have a very nice cubicle, Daddy John.

Daddy John: Thanks, buddy.

Pete: That's a messy drawer.

Daddy John: Hey!  Get out of there!

I had to run to a brief meeting, so Pete kept himself busy by sketching out some future painting project ideas.  I heard much mumbling & grumbling coming from his direction.

Finally, 4:00pm.  Quittin' time!

Pete: Bye, cubicle!  Is it Happy Hour now?

Gotz School

Anthony: All right, class, it's time for mathematics.  Today we are going to talk about inequalities.  Please observe: five is less than seven, but five is greater than three.  Rolf, what is three to nine?

Rolf: Umm, umm...ooh, it is so hard!

Anthony: Think about it this way, Rolf.  Imagine the symbol is like a crocodile's open mouth.  Now, a crocodile is always going to want to eat the biggest thing, so the 'mouth' will always be 'open' to eat the larger number, you see?

Rolf: Crocodile?!  Where?!?

Paul: Climbing up your leg.

Rolf: AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

Rolf: Oh!  You scared me!

Paul: I'm sorry, Rolfie.

Rolf: >sniff, sniff< ... Well, it's okay...

Anthony: All right, all right, everyone.  Let's all settle down now.  Gino, can you tell us the answer?

Gino: I think first we must talk about the crocodile and why he is being so greedy.  Does he not care that other crocodiles may go hungry because he wishes to eat all the numbers himself?

Anthony: >Sigh<  This is going to be a long year.