Simon has a stuffed bat.....
 
It is a really pretty bat.  It has shiny satin wings.  It is larger than
Simon.  I got it on clearance.  For the dogs.
 
There has been some back and forth between he and Torrie (one of the
Aussies) about whom this bat actually belongs to- apparently, it's true
that persistance pays off in the long run.  She takes the bat and puts it
on the bed- he takes the bat and puts it in one of the dog crates (the
"Bat Cave").  This went on for several months, before Torrie generously
decided she no longer wanted the bat.  All was well in Simon's world.
 
Enter Tradgedy (dum dum dum...)
 
Someone stole the bat.  I went to clean up toys and the bat was gone.
Not in the Bat Cave, or any of the adjacent bat caves.  Not under the
bed, not under the sofa.  Not under the computer desk, or in the closet.
Nowhere to be found.
 
The next morning when they were all let out, Simon eagerly went to the
toybox to put his bat back where it belonged, only to find it kidnapped.
He spent hours staring up at me- beseeching me to find his bat.  I
offered him other stuffed flying assundry- not having it.  Two days
of misery followed.  Who knew one could get so depressed over a bat-
although it IS a pretty bat (green and black, and purple shiny wings)?
 
Enter Salvation... The bat was returned, unharmed.  Maybe he was on a
road trip?  Maybe someone else saw the appeal of the wings?  I don't
know, maybe I'll never know.  What I DO know, is that poor little Simon
is once again happy, the bat is back in the Bat Cave where he belongs
(with a GPS Tracking System on board) and all is well.  Sigh.
[Posted in FML issue 5193]