Today’s guest post comes from Edith.

The other day I was having a laid back day at home, alone except for the dog and cat. At lunchtime I was just a little hungry, so I made some popcorn with my new Whirley-Pop® stovetop popcorn pan that I had recently acquired from Aldi. Three minutes on the stove and I could enjoy perfect popcorn, lightly salted, with a sprinkle of brewer’s yeast for nutrition. Easy. Turn off the stove burner and munch away.

Delicious!

The hot drink I had made earlier was now cold so I reheated it in the microwave, which is above the stove. I keep a plastic “splatter cover” in the microwave to use when reheating food on plates—to keep the heating food from spattering all over the microwave. Since I didn’t need it for this, I set it on the counter directly to the left of the burner I had used for making popcorn.

Then it was upstairs with my drink to check email and the Trail. As usual, I got distracted by the internet and was at the computer for a good while, blissfully unaware of my surroundings. Then I heard the smoke alarm going off! Good grief! What on earth???

Whenever the smoke alarm goes off, the dog freaks out and demands to go outside away from that terrible noise (she will then lie down by the back gate, as far away from that horrible sound as she can get, and refuse to come back indoors for hours). So as I rushed madly downstairs to see what was causing the smoke alarm to go off, the dog was rushing down even more madly, desperate to get out of this house. The cat, meanwhile, was rushing madly upstairs to get away from the noise and from those two idiotic creatures (the dog and I) who were making as much noise as a herd of elephants and acting as rationally as a couple of chickens with their heads cut off.

As I ran past the kitchen, I noticed flames…and a terrible smell. After letting the dog out, I grabbed a broom to use to shut off the alarm. Naturally the hook system from which the broom was hanging chose that moment to be stubborn and not easily give up possession of the broom. After a little tussle, I separated them—hooks crashing to the floor—pounded on the off button with the broom handle—oh, blissful silence—and within seconds was in the kitchen to confront the fire.

The plastic cover I had placed on the counter was burning. Obviously, I had not turned off the burner…not to mention, the plastic cover was a little too close to that burner. First thing to do was put the fire out. So after turning off the burner, I immediately picked up the plastic object where the flames hadn’t reached yet and brought it over to the sink to douse with water. Big mistake. I obviously didn’t realize that even if I didn’t actually touch the flames, that it was still extremely hot.

Burning hot, in fact. Owie!

Cool water running over my hands. Then plastic cover dumped on the back porch. Windows opened. Fan in the attic window blowing out so fresh air will come in. Everything’s all better…but, wait, what are those blisters on my fingers? And why do they feel like they are on fire?

When have you made a disaster out of something simple?

Today’s guest post is by Edith.

Some of my favorite books are the Frog and Toad books written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel: Frog and Toad are Friends, Frog and Toad Together, Frog and Toad All Year, and Days with Frog and Toad. If you have never read these, or have never read them to a child, you are missing out on one of the most delightful friendships in the literary world.

Here is an excerpt from from one of my favorite stories: “Spring” in Frog and Toad are Friends.

Frog ran up the path to Toad’s house. He knocked on the front door. There was no answer. “Toad, Toad,” shouted Frog, “wake up. It is spring!”

“Blah,” said a voice from inside the house.

“Toad! Toad!” cried Frog. “The sun is shining! The snow is melting! Wake up!”

“I am not here,” said the voice.

Frog walked into the house. It was dark. All the shutters were closed. “Toad, where are you?” called Frog.

“Go away,” said the voice from a corner of the room. Toad was lying in bed. He had pulled all the covers over his head. Frog pushed Toad out of bed. He pushed him out of the house and onto the front porch. Toad blinked in the bright sun. “Help!” said Toad. “I cannot see anything.”

“Don’t be silly,” said Frog. “What you see is the clear warm light of April. And it means that we can begin a whole new year together, Toad. Think of it,” said Frog. “We will skip through the meadows and run through the woods and swim in the river. In the evenings we will sit right here on the front porch and count the stars.”

“You can count them, Frog,” said Toad. “I will be too tired. I am going back to bed.”

Toad does go back to bed and is very adamant that Frog should not wake him until “half past May.” Frog, however, does not want to be lonely that long and cleverly figures out a way to convince Toad to get up that day. The story ends with this sentence:

“Then he and Frog ran outside to see how the world was looking in the spring.”

I relate to Toad. I love how he says. “Blah” in this story because although I may not say “Blah” very much, I sure feel like saying it. But Frog hauls Toad out of bed to find joy in the springtime and in that I find an example of a true friend who will not let his friend wallow in bed in a dark room when spring is bursting to life outdoors. I like how Frog and Toad just enjoy doing ordinary things together and revel in simple pleasures and how they think of ways to make the other happy.

What are some of your favorite literary friendships?

Today’s guest post is by Edith.

Earlier today I was waiting for a city bus at a bus stop in downtown Minneapolis after making a nice haul at the 25￠-a-book-sale. A few years ago, people would just wait for their buses in silence, but now there are a few people who, naturally, yack on their cell phones while they wait. I don’t try to listen to their conversations, because most of them are boring. I mean, how many times when I’m shopping at Target do I want to hear, “Yeah, I’m at Target right now, picking up paper towels” or at a bus stop, “I’m waiting for the #5 bus”? But today, I’m pretty sure I overheard the logistics of a crime-in-progress.

A ordinary-looking woman crossed the street to get to the bus stop. She had a suitcase and was talking on her cell phone. I heard the fairly normal cell phone line, “I just made the copies at the library and now I’m at the bus stop and I think I’ll make it there on time.” Yawn. Then I heard, “You’ll have to meet me at HCMC at 4:00 and I’ll pass off the suitcase and the money.” My ears pricked up. Whoa! What sort of shady deal was this?

Unfortunately, right at that moment, my bus pulled up and I got on. The woman must have been waiting for a different bus because she did not board the bus I was on. But I’m still wondering, “Why does she have to “pass off” both a suitcase and money at HCMC? Was she talking with a friend or was this some sort of undercover “business” dealing?

What suspicious activity do you think was being planned in that conversation I overheard?