From the series, Life on Dog Hill.
Really, it was a poltergeist.
After an excruciating, week long investigation revealed that no one took the peach-mango yogurt from the downstairs refrigerator, it was deduced that it must have been a poltergeist. Or an alien… nah. Or an intruder who broke in without waking any of the five dogs or setting off the house alarm… nah.
It was a poltergeist.
While on the surface a missing yogurt may not seem like much, it carries huge significance. Let me explain.
My husband Tom bought his very own lockable dorm refrigerator since we have a difficult time keeping any form of food or drink in the kitchen refrigerator for more than five minutes after the groceries have been unloaded from the car (possibly related to our with 17-year old twin sons). So to lower his blood pressure and enhance his sense of happiness and well-being, he bought his own refrigerator where, at any time of the day, on any day of the week, he can have a glass of juice or enjoy a yogurt. The refrigerator sits in his downstairs office right behind his desk and comes with its own key which Tom carries in his wallet, along with his identification and the few dollars he pretends not to have when someone needs cash.
We learned that the above stated peach-mango yogurt was missing when we decided to share it for breakfast and he couldn’t find it.
“Did you eat it?” he asked me, surprised I would have done so without asking first.
“No, I didn’t eat it. Are you sure you didn’t eat it?”
“No, I’m sure I didn’t eat it. We were saving it — remember?”
Hmmm.
When the kids came home from school, the investigation began in earnest. Can you believe not one of the four sons living in this house knew anything about the peach-mango yogurt? Not one!
So I asked the dogs.
“Did any of you get into the downstairs refrigerator and take the peach-mango yogurt?”
Sandy said she could hardly stand up, much less traipse down a flight of stairs and back up for a yogurt.
Blizzard reminded me that she spends her days downstairs in the office with Tom, so no way she could have done it without being caught.
Chip peeked through his sleepy eyes and told me he only had one front leg so he couldn’t have managed opening the refrigerator and retrieving the yogurt — though I challenged him on that point.
Both Jake and Toby said they had never been in Tom’s office. They didn’t even know what an office was.
The mystery evoked lots of emotion from Tom who felt that his sanctuary had been violated — and rightly so.
Interestingly, the next day while putting away laundry I found a small key on top of the dresser in the twins’ room. While it was not THE key, it could have been mistaken for such. I was immediately reminded of the time when Serg ruined the door to the laundry when trying every key in the drawer to open it. We had to break the door down to unlock it!
Hmmm.
When the boys returned home from school on the second day, the investigation continued. But instead of focusing on the missing (and presumed eaten) yogurt, I focused on the key.
The twins denied ever having seen the key, much less having tried to use it to break into their dad’s sacred refrigerator. They had no idea how that key ended up on their dresser. In fact, they suggested their little brother Ryan had planted it as false evidence.
Ryan, of course, denied the allegation and we were back to square one.
Discussions continued through the week. Should we install cameras? Is the alarm system working properly? Which of the dogs could be telling a story?
Tom’s office is in the basement and basements are known to be good places for poltergeists. I’ve since read that poltergeists are mischievous and like to misplace things so I’m expecting to find the missing yogurt any day now stuffed behind the books on the bookcase, in the dirty clothes pile or outside in the flower beds.
The good news is that the mystery is solved. A poltergeist did it.
As for the kids and dogs, well the peach-mango yogurt wasn’t that good anyway. Take it from me…
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