It was a quiet evening with supper baking and simmering. Since I didn't know how many I was cooking for I opted for the Swedish Meatballs with pasta sauce and noodles, a crowd favorite with all the picky eaters. The guests arrive and soon a question is posed. Have you seen the charm bracelet? Everyone responds: "Not I."
Ahhh - time to change the hats from chef to sleuth. What is the time line from where the bracelet was last seen? Who had it? Who has seen it? Who can describe it? Better yet, who can tell the same story more than once and get the details the same every time? Now, while all the little bandits are questioned individually the sleuth becomes more confused.
Was it lost at the playground? Why did you give it away? Do you understand that if you give it away, you can't accuse the other party of theft? How did it get to the house? Whose room was it last seen in?
After about two hours (and yes, this is completely insane when you consider that supper is cooking on the stove and that the adults have actually put it to the back burner to solve the mystery), we have a time line.
Bracelet was worn to school.
It was taken off and given to other child in playground.
That child took brought it to the van and into house and put it on her bookshelf.
Lost track of bracelet.
Some one else moved it but two banditos remember it being in the other room.
Very involved in the impersonation of Sherlock Holmes at this point, with a sliver of both NCIS and CSI, the adults abandon cooking and turn off the stove. Dinner is done, but instead of serving the children, the hunt continues. We search the storage bins in the bedrooms. Twice. Three times. We look in drawers, under beds, under pillows, in beds, in laundry baskets, in coat sleeves, pockets and purses. We look high and we look low. By this time, we know it is not where it was last seen. No bracelet.
Giving up in complete disgust over the lack of a stable story, lack of information, and complete failure as sleuths (which is the part that stings really), dinner is served. Movie is watched, ice cream is eaten, banditos are put to bed not necessarily in that order. Finally, the sleepy guests head for home.
A bit tired myself, I start the list of things to do for tomorrow. I need an invitation for the party next week still. I remembered one being in the bedroom upstairs. Once again, I am looking for something that was not easy to find. In the balcony of the dollhouse, there is the invitation card I was after and beside it? Yes, the bracelet is sitting there in plain view.
I am not sure that bracelet has the right charms on it. Maybe it needs a St. Anthony on it. However, it is found and maybe my credentials as a sleuth may not be revoked just yet.
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