We’re all adults here. I’m not sure why Dad and Mr. Skunk had to raise a big stink. Sure it happened fast. Everyone was caught off guard. But neither Dad nor Mr. Skunk handled it very well. He was headed out for a night of carousing. Mr. Skunk that is, not Dad. Dad was just coming back from picking up a pizza. When he drove into the driveway, Dad instinctively hit the button to open the garage door.
That’s when he spotted Mr. Skunk, trapped between the garage and the oncoming car, with no place to escape due to the high snowbanks. He stopped the car. Like a deer in the headlights, Mr. Skunk froze for a second that must have seemed far longer to both involved. Dad held his breath, worried what Mr. Skunk would do. Mr. Skunk no doubt pondered his escape options: go inside the garage, take the long way around the snowbank to the path, or stand his ground. This is when things escalated.
There was a beep of the horn! A spray! A few choice words by Dad! Mr. Skunk made his escape. But it was dark. Where in the shadows was he hiding? Was the skunk in our garage? Dad sat in his car scanning the shadows for signs of our stinky neighbor.
Just then the kitchen door opened. Mom came out with me following. She heard the beep! And noted the unusual pause of the car. She wanted to make sure Dad was alright. He yelled from the car, “GET ASA IN THE HOUSE!” By then I was already nose up smelling Mr. Skunk’s cologne, and wondering where he was hiding.
Dad and Mom held their breath, as I was ushered back into the house, unscathed. But was Mr. Skunk unscathed? Was he hiding trapped in the garage? Mom and Dad debated should they leave the door open for him to escape? Would leaving it open be mistaken as an invite to seek refuge from the snow in the garage? Should Dad go out to investigate? Should Mom? I offered to eat the now cold pizza. They declined. They left the garage door open, while they ate the pizza. Before letting me out that night and the following morning, Mom banged a pot hoping it would alert Mr. Skunk to our presence and he’d stay hiding if he was in there. Honestly, I’d stay hiding too, what with all the fuss they were making, combined with the embarrassment of making such a big stink.
This all unfolded on Friday evening. The lingering smell of Mr. Skunk’s cologne was a daily reminder of this unfortunate encounter between Dad and my stinky little neighbor. But there was no sign of him. That is until last night! While headed out for my last call, I immediately smelled his telltale scent. This time though it was not coming from our garage. It was strongest from beyond the fence in the wood line. Dad checked his trail cam. Mr. Skunk was unscathed! Which is more than I can say for Mom’s car, that Dad was driving that fateful night, and still slightly smells like Mr. Skunk’s cologne.
