Box of Chocolates
The one-year anniversary has come and gone. As with birthdays and Christmas, I feel as though there should have been something more, something I missed. It seems as though there should have been some grand, transforming epiphany that changed my life forever. Instead I find myself in the midst of today, one year and one day after. A day much like yesterday, as a matter of fact. Life is funny that way.
I was checking my hits, and had a kind of strange reference from a Yahoo search engine for key words “Cat in”. I’m assuming that whoever ran the search was thinking in terms of “Cat in the Hat”, though why they didn’t just type in “Cat in the Hat” is beyond me. Too many letters perhaps. I ended up as #1112 on the search list for an entry I did entitled “Grey Cat in my Lap”. What intrigued me was number 1113 on the list though, “Cat in Garbage Disposal”.
Come on. You’d have clicked on it too. Admit it.
After I read Cat in Disposal I immediately thought it had to be a hoax. I set out to debunk it. A few web searches later, I’d turned up dozens of sites that repeated this story verbatim. I was more motivated than ever to get to the bottom of this, because a local town is listed as the place this happened. A search on the purported author’s name led me to yet more copies of the story, including this one: Catch of the Day Lands Cat in Garbage Disposal, by Patti Schroeder. Not only is this story true, but Patti Schroeder teaches English at my undergraduate school.
Serendipity. Perhaps it isn’t the epiphany I expected, but it’s still perfect for driving home the message that life goes on. And it reminds me as well that there is humor to be found in the strangest places. To paraphrase Forrest Gump, life is like a cat in a garbage disposal. You do your damnedest to save the cat, and then you take a step back, take a look at events, and laugh at what you’ve been through. And maybe that’s what I did wrong yesterday. I forgot to take a look back and laugh for the joy of being alive. Thanks Patti. You too, Rudy.
Wow!
What a story! ๐ I am so pleased to hear you, and the cat are fine ๐
What a hillarious story!
Curiosity almost DID do that cat in….
and to think…we got to that story because you checked your hits… Great story!
~QE
What a crazy story. The writer is really good, reminded me of your style really, how odd that she teaches in a school close by! I just couldn’t help thinking I could easily imagine the cat being one of yours ;).
Thanks for posting the link, needed the laugh!
Thank you for reminding us that we all need to laugh and delight in the gift of life.
Malted milk balls??? Are you nuts?? I’d trade you some twizzlers for the Junior Mints that you are trading Yetzira..
On the calcium front, I laughed until I nearly had an accident over the tomato plants using canes and walkers!
*shakes head perplexedly*
What kind of a masochist would have a cat???
I’d read about Rudy ages ago, but had forgotten about it entirely until now. Thanks for posting the link.
I thought of you today; our grocery store had Canterbury Bells (cut) in the florist dept. Not as large as the ones you have, but smaller versions that look nearly identical. I almost recognized them more from the unopened blooms than from the flowers themselves. I wanted to buy them but we had a few other stops to make and it was too hot to leave them in the car. They were very pretty.
Julie
That was so very funny!!
Thanks for the laugh.
the message always finds a way through. you’ve always been one to have her ears open.
wonderful story.