Aunt Erma's Cope Book by Erma Bombeck

I remember when I was younger (ok, when I was in my 30's, and still living with my mother) Mom used to laugh and laugh whenver she read an Erma Bombeck book, or saw Erma on a talk show. I remember thinking 'what the hell is she laughing about? Is her extreme corniness a latent DNA trait that will show up when I'm an old coot?'

The other day I was at the flea market and saw 'Aunt Erma's Cope Book' and I just had to find out if time had warped me sufficiently to enjoy Erma Bombeck. According to the back cover, 'Cope Book' spent 7 months onthe New York Times Best Seller List. Maybe it's my sense of humor that's off, I thought.

I think it was passages like this that vaulted Aunt Erma to best sellerdom:

The T-shirt craze had clearly gotten out of hand. In one day alone I encountered three propositions, four declarations, two obscene suggestions and a word so bad I stopped the car and threw a blanket over the girl's chest.

Mother was with me one day when I stopped for a traffic light and a healthy blond with jeans so tight herhipbones lookedlike towel hooks crossed in front of the car. Tucked inside was a T-shirt that read in large, bold letters SPACE FOR RENT. We didn't say anything for a full minute. then Mother observed, "You can say what you want, but she certainly is well read."

[Please note that Mr Upstream spent a full hour and a half typing that passage in, as he was laughing so hard he had spasms] Oh, the things that Mr Upstream does for you.

Final verdict: One needs to be post-menopausal and stuck in 1979 to enjoy Aunt Erma. That gap between her front teeth is still adorable though.

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