Rose has gone code crazy. On my suggestion, Uncle Michael gave her a code book for Christmas. She loves it. We've spent the last several days reading the book together and trying out books codes (We quickly learned that if the book does not have the word "love" in it, you cannot write "I love you.") and coded phrases. I see some overlap between metaphors and codes, but a code implies it's a secret. The only ones I thought really fit were for unmentionables from a previous generation:

It's snowing down south
xyzpdq
the barn doors are open

I guess these aren't really codes because everyone knows them, but they are meant to relay embarrassing information somewhat secretly. Rose loved these. Then I thought of a few that I really shouldn't have taught her and David. (Oh yeah, all these conversations happened with me and David in the bathtub.):

the lights are on but there's nobody home
one taco short of a combination plate

And a few more from the modern era that are more slang than code:

the 411
lol

She added RSVP and is raring for more.

I suddenly realized how much code I use. David and I were in the store, and he said to the barista, "I can't wait until Endor." I said to David, "Hey, that's calendar code!" David has a Star Wars calendar. Endor is December, but only people very familiar with the calendar would know that.

John and I, of course, have been using movie quotes and short hand codes are whole life. "I'll meet you at that place where we went that time" is a quote from Broadcast News about this very subject but it's also, for us, the now sadly departed International News Stand at Harvard Square.

At 2:30 this morning, I said to John, "I picked the wrong day to give up drinking." Which made him laugh, and he even though I got the quote from Airplane wrong, he knew exactly what I meant.

What did I mean? Earlier I had decided to not take Tylenol p.m. like I had the last two nights because even though I had a fever and needed a good night's sleep I was worried about getting dependent on it. But one of the many benefits of Tylenol p.m. is it helps you get back to sleep if you've been woken in the middle of the night like by your son throwing up. Like had just happened to us. So, there we were lying awake. Why not make a joke, in code?