Opinion

Don't fall through the cracks

Thursday, October 5, 2006

Life is full of places we can't get to when we want to. It is also full of places we get into when we really aren't planning that way.

But today I am most concerned with the little spaces that mess up our lives.

I am referring to such spaces as the crack between the washer and the dryer, or between the cabinet and the floor.

I am getting very well acquainted with all of these places in our house today because we had an unwelcome visitor who met his or her demise on our premises somewhere. One or more little mouse has passed away, but his memory lingers on.

A hint of the trouble came two days ago when we felt there might be a rodent nesting somewhere out of sight. One day ago there was no doubt that the family haddecreased at least by one. Today we are frantically searching every crevice in the house to find the final resting-place and remove the body to a greener pasture.

So far we have had no luck. To counteract the disagreeable odor we have turned off the air conditioner and opened every window in the house. Hot winds are blowing freely through our rooms but it hasn't erased the problem.

It does make it more endurable however.

In the meantime I have been armed with a flashlight, a yardstick, a broom, dustpan and the narrow wand of the vacuum cleaner. I have found several things I would rather not mention, but I haven't found our visitor.

However I have formed strong opinions to tell builders, appliance and furniture makers and home decorators.

DO NOT LEAVE ANY OPENING LESS THAN TWO INCHES BETWEEN, BELOW OR ABOVE ANY SUBSTANTIAL PIECE OF FURNITURE OR APPLIANCE.

Working at a cabinet with a nearby appliance allows all sorts of little things to disappear in any crack that has been left open.

This is especially true if there are young helpers in the family, or clumsy people who are middle age plus. Since we have both of these in our household, we have our share of splashes, spills and wind-blown objects finding shelter in every crack. Perhaps the solution is to leave them alone until the crack fills up and then paint the accumulated debris as it reaches cabinet level. In spite of the volume of our messes I don't really think I will live long enough for that to happen, so I work any small, strong stick into the cracks to dig or push out whatever is hiding in there. That is where yardsticks come in handy. You can use them sideways, or turned on end for really narrow places.

A strong flashlight is a must to see the last reaches of the hollow, since that is where the really awful things seem to end up. A strong vacuum can pull up some articles but the sticky things stubbornly decide to just stay where they are.

In the past I might have moved the appliance to get a better look, but that doesn't work too well now with decreased strength in my arms and a husband who isn't supposed to strain or lift for a few more weeks. By then hopefully the problem will have taken care of itself.

Don't expect an invitation to visit us for a few more days. Our friendships might crack up if you did.