Thank you very much to the readers who have given me input with my last story however, I owe you all an apology for failing to include important information which resulted in an ending that frustrated you, the reader. The exclusion was due more to me the writer, than to Wally, my father. The exclusion was this, once we connected with Carleton, I totally forgot my quest to find out who Wally was. In fact, that inquiry just fell to the wayside after that day. That is why today, I’m still discovering who Wally was for he was a complicated man.
On a different note, I was reviewing some of my previous stories and came across my promise to tell more skunk adventures.
Story One
Two likeable Asian fellows came by our drive in fruit stand and during our conversation I noticed a distinct scent of skunk. I mentioned it, for Wally and Auntie Kay were too polite to say it, and this is the story the two men told. They had stopped at a road side pull over to look at the sights of this wonderful country known as Canada. While enjoying the view they saw what they perceived as a lost black and white kitten down the embankment. One of the fellows went down to rescue it. Just as he reached down to pick it up, a terrible odor enveloped his nose. He recoiled in shock and fled back the way he came. Upon reaching the top of the slope, other people standing nearby exclaimed,”oh, skunk!” and they quickly left in their cars. The smell was overpowering! The fellow knew he had to act quickly so he ripped off his shirt and his pants and threw them away. That helped to stem some of the smell. Fortunately, the skunk’s spray only got him in the chest so his eyes were spared from the direct blast. He donned a change of clothes, for he needed to drive to find a place to wash up. The first place they came to was a cold creek flowing near the highway. He stripped off everything and with a bar of soap frantically scrubbed every inch of his body, but the smell still lingered. Eventually someone told him about tomato juice and how it would help eliminate the smell. That worked for him. They had to turn in their rented car for a replacement for the odor clung to the interior. The only thing remaining from the whole unpleasant but educational event was the man’s shoes which still had a lingering smell, but he said they were too expensive to shed.
Story Two
I was walking through the the knee high grass in the apple orchard one hot afternoon, when I looked 3 tree rows ahead of me and saw the grass moving. It wasn’t the wind, it was definitely a critter. I stopped and studied the area. Whatever it was, was approaching me. There was a low spot in the grass ahead of me so I waited for the critter to appear. It wasn’t long before a black nose attached to a black and white body appeared. SKUNK! I turned and ran back the way I came, but as I was turning I noticed the skunk was turning around too. I don’t know if it was turning to run or turning to spray. I didn’t stay long enough to find out.