Eureka!

I'm lounging outside soaking up sunshine under a cloudless sky savoring the 70 degree temps as I write this post. But, rather than tormenting any readers north of the 38th parallel, I'll get on to the real topic of the day: How to Lose Your Mind in 400 Square Feet.

As you may recall, I'm a fairly avid quilter, and my sewing notions were among the things that made the cut (pardon the pun) and were packed into our motorhome. One item on my Christmas to-do list was to sew a few practice blocks for a future quilt I'm planning to make for one of our nieces. I purchased a sample of a potential background fabric and wanted to give the someday recipient a chance to voice her opinion on the choice. Since I was packing a box of gifts to ship out to her house today, I decided I'd slip the blocks into the box and save a wee bit of postage.

With today as the shipping date, yesterday became the day to construct the blocks. I began to assemble my notions and couldn't find one essential tool: a 12-inch square plastic ruler. With a deadline looming, I became a woman possessed. I had to find my ruler!

Have you ever wondered how quickly you can turn a 400-square-foot home upside down?

It doesn't take long.

Within minutes I had unloaded every storage cavity of the inside of our rolling home. The elusive ruler was nowhere to be found. Paul returned from his workout to witness this topsy-turvy scene first hand. (It was a huge mess!) Fully aware that his spousal unit was nearing a breaking point, he quickly chipped in and scoured the basement compartments for the trusty tool. We both knew it wasn't there, but it was nice of him to help and oh so smart of him to stay out of my way. (Have I told you lately that I'm married to a very wise man?)

After an hour or so I regained some composure and declared an end to Round One in my search. As I put everything back in its proper place, I hatched a theory that might explain the missing tool. Perhaps I left it in Kansas City. After all, I had packed it in a bag one day for a family visit. But, even though I never actually took it out of the bag, maybe it jumped out on its own. A definite stretch, I know. But, by this time I wanted this mystery to be solved. I placed a call and left a message asking if the family members had seen the ruler. As the words were coming out of my mouth I knew I was reaching at straws. But, it was worth a shot.

With the mystery unsolved, I went back to the task of assembling the practice blocks. As I executed a workaround for the missing tool, I continued to ask myself where the dang thing could be. After all, we have such a little amount of stuff. It should be easy to manage it all. Right?

The blocks were completed just in time to head out to dinner with John and Sandy and new arrivals Steve and Cathy. Over dinner I shared the story of how I transformed our house into chaos and back in one afternoon and how it was all for naught. By this time, I didn't care a bit about the ruler. It was easily replaceable. My bigger concern was my mind. I was seriously afraid I was losing it.

Laying in bed last night, I closed my eyes and took a virtual tour of the moose. In my mind, I identified every storage space, crack and crevice in the place from top to bottom and front to back. I had checked, rechecked and triple checked them all.

Except one.

Just before drifting off to sleep, I remember thinking, "If there's a gap between the bottom and back of the closet, I suppose it could have slipped down behind the drawers underneath." With that, I sailed off into dreamland.

This morning, I'd yet to hear from the family member I'd phoned with my plea for help. So, I went back to trying to solve the mystery. Over coffee, I remembered my pre-sleep epiphany. I looked inside the closet where I normally store these things. There was a tiny gap at the bottom. It was definitely worth a look. I grabbed a flashlight, pulled out the drawer and peered behind. The clear plastic hideaway reflected the light.

Eureka!

Paul helped me pull out the drawer and extract the offender. The ruler's pal, a small cutting mat, had joined him in the last possible hidey hole in our house. Peace and tranquility returned to our household.

So, it turns out, I'm not losing my mind.

Not, today, anyway.