Okay, so I am NOT into any kind of cruelty to animals or humans. In fact, anyone who knows me knows that I may be too much of a wuss when it comes to animals. I take in all strays. So, the story that follows is intended to be a recap of what made me smile today — not an example of an kind of animal cruelty.
The picture is of Mao (on top of the box) and Arlo (back of head). As you can see Mao is a bit of a mischief maker, taking over Arlo’s box and defending her position on top of it. I show this picture not to explain the situation or to apologize for the mess, but as an introduction to Mao. Mao is the tortoise shell feline, one of the little girls that lives with us.
So, here’s the story of today, although I suppose the story started a few days ago. Some of the neighborhood kids were shooting baskets on the driveway. I had parked my old SUV at the far end of the drive, adjacent to the basketball goal. One of the kids passed the basketball to another and it got away from them, hit the side mirror on the driver’s side of the car, and popped the glue loose that held the mirror fixture in place.
After driving for a few days with the mirror needing a manual adjustment every time I slammed the car door shut, I decided that I would “fix it.” For those of you who may not be from the south, let me explain that in the south most of us can “fix” just about anything if we have super glue, bailing wire, duct tape, and Crisco. Those are the four staples of any home repair kit. When we “fix” stuff it does not mean that we repair it to its original condition. We “fix” it so it will work, more or less.
I suppose I could have used another of the four “fix-it” staples to repair my mirror, but I selected the super glue. I thought it would probably be the best to use and the easiest to conceal. Let’s fact it, duct tape and bailing wire would be a little too obvious.
Whewwww…. Now that I have introduced Mao and explained the decision to use the super glue, are you beginning to get a picture?
I super glued the mirror frame to the attachment to the car. Of course, I managed to get the glue all over my fingers. As I was working to keep my fingers from getting stuck, one to the other, I ran into the house to wash my hands. Now, let me just say that after having found myself in this circumstance on more than one occasion I should know that there is no washing away super glue. I poured nail polish remover over my finger tips and washed it off.
That’s when I heard my husband say, “Something is wrong with Mao. She isn’t moving.” He was looking out the window toward my handiwork — and at Mao, securely stuck by her right front paw to the mirror frame.
I suppose I should have taken a picture — for anyone who may have trouble visualizing — but, in my haste to get Mao unstuck ….
As my husband and I shared a cup of hot chocolate this afternoon, we kept a check on Mao (who is none the worse for wear) and had a good chuckle or two about yet another adventure with super glue and nail polish remover — not nearly so bad as the time I glued my whole hand to the air mattress and had to go to the store for polish remover while still attached to a deflated mattress. Don’t ask. Just don’t even ask.
Today I am thankful I got Mao unstuck. I would be thankful my mirror was “fixed” but when I poured the nail polish remover on Mao’s foot to get her loose, it also loosened the mirror. We are back to square one, but had a big laugh getting here.
