In the Corner

It has been noted by several people that, when given the choice, I always choose a corner seat in a room. Someone asked me, "Why do you do that?" I replied, "It's probably because I spent most of my time in the corner as a kid."

Then I remember doing some pretty...uh...adventuresome things growing up.

Things like:

1. Setting my rag doll on fire and throwing it into my mother's upright baby grand piano.

2. Calling my father an S.O.B. at age 3 and having no clue what it meant. Mom said I must have heard the words S.O.B from one of the construction workers outside.

3. Blowing up a paint can and singeing my eyebrows.

4. Lighting a candle under the covers (I couldn't find a flashlight) so I could read when I was really supposed to be sleeping, which accidently set the sheets on fire.

5. Putting snakes in the bathtub.

6. Sneaking a pair of hamsters into the house which ended up being 30 hamsters. I had them well-hidden for a while.

...and the list goes on. Now you all know why I choose a corner chair. It's the safest place for me to be.

Usually In Trouble

When I was three, I remember a Steinway baby grand piano in the living room my mother used to play. It was a beautiful piano. This is where the trouble started.

Mom's first mistake was leaving me beside her, on the floor, with nothing to do. I toddled off and found my favorite, cuddly rag doll with the yellow yarn hair. I also found a box of wooden matches. The next thing I knew, I was in big trouble. Busy three year old girls, yellow-yarn-hair rag dolls, wooden matches, and baby grand pianos don't mix. I lit the doll's hair on fire, felt the heat, and managed to toss the hot, flaming-haired doll into the upright baby grand. I remember this well. My butt still hurts from the spanking I got.

It was the first of many spankings. I was usually in trouble due to my curious, adventuresome spirit. OR because I was in  the wrong place at the wrong time. OR because I got caught.