Dave hated that he and his Mom had to move in with relatives, especially after discovering Uncle Ernie was a tickler. Almost every day, usually at bedtime, Ernie would sneak up on Dave and tickle him, making him laugh so hard he'd wet his pants. Ernie thought it was great fun. Dave had the opposite opinion.

One night, Dave tried to avoid Uncle Ernie by hiding in the closet. But he soon felt a large scaly hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw a hideous chartreuse and bisque face with red eyes, and a beak-like mouth with long yellow teeth. "Who are you?" Dave asked. "I'm your monster in the closet. Every little boy has one. But why aren't you scared of me?" the ogre plaintively asked. Dave replied that he was more scared of Uncle Ernie. "I'll fix that! Send him in here!" said the monster.

Outside the closet, Uncle Ernie confronted Dave. "There's a monster in my closet," Dave whined. "There's no such thing. I'll show you," Ernie said with great bravado. After Ernie entered the closet, Dave slammed shut the door. From inside, Dave heard increasingly higher-pitched screams, followed by gales of childish laughter. Then the door flew open, and out ran a crying baby boy who quickly exited the room.

"Scared him out of 30 years growth, then tickled him until he wet his pants," the monster grinned. "Now am I the most scary thing in this house?" it added. "I'll let you know once I see Mom and Aunt Martha's reactions to Uncle Ernie's change," Dave cringed.


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