Guess what was the first thing he said when he got in the door?

Still have the elbow scar. Thanks, dad.

My grandparents lived near Disneyland, too, so as a small child we made regular trips. Now, most children are kinda frightened (or at least shy) near the costumed characters. Not me. I loved the damn things. As soon as I saw one, I would be off like an uncontrollable hyperactive rocket with a contrail of freaked-out adults. Most trips were ended not with my being tired, but by the exhaustion of my entourage.

When I was about 3, I caught sight of something shiny and ran away from my dad in the mall. He saw me go, and followed at about 100 ft off. He meant to give me a bit of a scare about being alone and lost, but…. when he finally caught up to me after I walked from end to end the fascinating and exciting wonderland on all three floors, he, in his attempt to teach me a lesson, asked “Now, [Falyne], what would you have done if I *hadn’t* been following you to make sure you were safe?”

Me, completely unperturbed: “I would’ve called a cab to get home.”

Yeeeeeeeeeeeah, as if a.) there were cabs in North County San Diego or b.) any would’ve given a ride to a 3 year old. I’d learned from TV, though, that there were things called cabs that you call if you want a ride somewhere, and I’d been taught my home address. And I was perfectly confident in my ability to take care of myself without a parent, thankyewverymuch.

Gave my parents bloody nightmares.

I then proceeded to a childhood of setting things on fire, although my mother insisted I do so in the fireplace or on the patio in an aluminum pie pan.

I also went sledding on ice once (our street was VERY steep) and convinced my mom it was “safer” than snow because I could “steer better” (OMG it was SO MUCH FUN).

I feel out of bed so often I had cushions next to it.

I crawled in to a swimming pool and sank to the bottom while almost no-one was looking. I was saved by a wheelchair bound handicapped man who saw it happened, then dragged himself up the stairs and into the pool to save me.

I had a bunkbed in the same time period, and would every so often roll out of the top bunk (under the protective bar, I was and am quite thin) and fall to the floor while sleeping. I was never hurt on these. In fact, I never woke up. My mother would hear the crash, come in, pick me up, and put me back. (I think the first couple of times she woke me up, but after that, and the car wreck, she just realized that I was a very deep sleeper.)

The time I was climbing into the bed and went over backwards with the ladder - that time I got hurt. I cut open the exact same spot I had in the baseball game.

I continued to sleep.

My cousin got out, and took off screaming toward the highway (fortunately, one of the onlookers caught her).

I continued to sleep.

The ambulance arrives, and the EMTs think I’m in shock, not believing my mother when she said I was sleeping.

Snoresville.

We are loaded into the ambulance, and go lights-and-sirens all the way to the hospital (mostly on my account, as no one else was particularly hurt).

ZZZZZZZ

I finally woke up at the hospital, my only injury being a superficial scratch on my leg from mid-calf to mid-thigh (not so long on a 4 year old). I’m told that I was rather annoyed that I missed the ambulance ride.