The following definition hails from dictionary.com -"something that causes an important event to happen"
Enter the Catalyst:
Our story begins on a dark and stormy night. The weather had subsided to a minor rainy drizzle as the family arrived home from a long and harrowing thanksgiving visit. The small ones had skipped their naps, and many people were milling about the house they had visited, resulting in an entire container of Vicks Vaporub having been emptied onto the two year old's feet. The weary parental units were unloading the various baby happiness maintaining devices they had brought along, and as Mother was removing the screaming infant from her carseat in the house, they heard a much feared CRASH! Mother dared not look outside to see if her greatest fears had been realized, but it was true. Father had dumped Mother's entire tatting basket in the dark and muddy driveway. (gasp!) Holding back her tears, and the terror that she intended to rain down upon father, she dutifully tended to the small ones as Father chased numerous balls of Lizbeth thread, skeins of HDT, shuttles, bottles of beads, and every other bit of tatting paraphanelia that had inadvertently been strewn about.
He felt bad, poor fellow.
Mother tucked the little ones in bed before surveying the damage. Amazingly, all was not lost. In his fear of wrath-to-come, Father had quickly and nimbly collected the treasured goods resulting in only minor dampness and a general disorder of the tatting basket's contents. He would live to see another day! A great sense of relief came over both.
Three days later,
Mother was reaching into her re-sorted basket, when her hand touched something cold and wet. Hmmm. What could this be? Upon closer inspection she had found a soaking wet, and thoroughly squashed ball of Lizbeth size 20 thread in Western Sunset. Where did this come from? Wondering how she could have overlooked this precious comodity's absence in her initial inventory of the scattered stash, she raised the poor forlorn ball of thread in Father's direction to inquire as to the circumstances of it's appearance. Looking conspiciously unaware at first, Father broke like a cracker having seen the look in mother's eye. Yes, he had found it at the end of the driveway, soggy and run-over, squished almost beyond recognition. The thread was dried and re-wound on the misshapen ball, and Father again escaped unscathed as Mother pardoned the pitiful attempt at returning the thread unnoticed.
And what was the important event that followed the catalyst?
Enter "The Monstrosity".
I've included a picture with the almost-three-year-old for scale.
The finest Craft organizer box that Jo-ann has to offer, the Monstrosity now houses my tools and beads, and the pull out sorting sections hold most......ok some..... of my thread stash. Sorted by type and color thank you very much.
The open top diaper basket has been retired in favor of this latching case.
It is estimated that Father's lifespan has increased by several years following the purchase of this piece of organizational equipment.
.JPG)
