Foul smells afoot

We have a decrepit but loyal trailer that has tolerated many visions for its use. First, it was to be the music studio. It would have worked if only our 6 foot tall recording artist, his drum set, guitars, recording equipment, mike stands, and fellow musicians could have actually fit into it. Then, it was to be my craft haven. I would write and make fantastically unique art pieces inside the mildewing walls of a once glorious Silver Streak. Now, it holds tubs of miscellaneous. Mostly, music and art supplies. I went on an expedition to the trailer today in search of pipe cleaners and felt for Ossian’s centipede project. I hadn’t entered the space for a couple of months and was somewhat overwhelmed by the stench of dead animal. Rodent, I thought, while combing through towers of blue and purple plastic tubs bearing misleading adhesive labels that read “craft supplies” when they should have said “old notebooks from junior high that no one will ever read again but that we can’t seem to stomach throwing out”. The pungent foul smell was noteworthy and I glanced around for a bloated carcass. Seeing nothing, I continued to pick through boxes, looking for treasures. Ah ha..I located the felt. A nice stack in 5 colors emerged and I set it aside. The stench was overpowering again and I scanned the room once more in search of the decomposing culprit. Nothing. Hmmm. I turned to leave and as I stepped toward the rusty door, my foot gripped ever so slightly before making an unexpected slurping sound as it was released from the ground. I looked down to find that I was standing on the fairly fresh but definitely decaying and malodorous spread-eagle skin of a dead goat. Mystery solved. Blase must have decided to dry the fresh goat skin on the floor of the trailer…. pinned down with my craft boxes? Lovely. I wondered where that goat skin had gone. He got if from the family of one of Ossian’s fellow preschoolers who farm goats. The sneaky smelly thing is bound for a djembe drum that’s skin ruptured years ago. Moral of this story must be, if something smells foul, make sure you aren’t standing on a moist goat skin.