The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

Life!

October 3, 2008

A little thing can cause a really big stink!

Inside Out column

By Bev Davis

My first encounter with a baby skunk has kept me smiling — and pondering — all week.

I had put food out for my two outdoor kitties, gathered my keys and all the stuff I carry to work and was heading out the back door when I saw the small uninvited guest.

My cats were nowhere to be seen. The intruder was gobbling down their 9 Lives Chicken and Gravy to beat the band. I’ve seen skunks at a distance, but never up close and personal. This little guy — or gal — didn’t even have his or her white stripe yet. There were only a few light spots on its shiny little back.

Standing behind a glass door, I decided to experiment a little. I rattled the door to see what the skunk would do.

Instead of spraying in the direction of the door, he turned facing me, stood forward on his front feet, raised his short back legs and fired into empty air. From my protected vantage point, there wasn’t any detectable odor, so I didn’t know how much fire power baby skunks had. I continued to rattle the door facing him, making more noise. He continued to aim in the opposite direction.

As cute as it was, the baby skunk was making me late for work. As small as it was, it had me immobilized. I didn’t dare venture out and risk getting skunked. So I waited patiently until it finished eating, ambled off the porch and disappeared into the woods.

When I returned home that evening, I caught a whiff of a strong ammonia-like odor before I rounded the corner of the house. Greeted warmly by my chubby cats, I suddenly backed away from dear little Chopper and Pitypat. They had been skunked! Bless their hearts. Baby skunks must have more fire power than I thought.

It’s been nearly a week, and my poor cats still don’t understand why I’m avoiding them like the plague. I shove their food out every morning and quickly slam the door. I rush past them in the evenings, shove out some dry cat food and quickly close the door, ignoring the obvious question marks on their pitiful little faces.

It’s been a good life lesson. A little thing can cause a really big stink.

A morsel of gossip, a careless word or an offhanded remark with a negative spin on it spews out into empty air — or so we think.

Believe me, those remarks will travel, and eventually, somebody will get skunked.

Even one little stinker can leave a foul odor that lingers a really long time.

I hope it won’t be too much longer for Chopper and Pity. I miss them.

— E-mail: bdavis@register-herald.com

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Life!