Sunday, November 11, 2012

Is Mouse Trap one of life's biggest disappointments?


I don't know what it was about Mouse Trap... I clearly remember as a child looking through my mum's catalogue just before Xmas. You turned straight to the toy section at the back, of course, back then! I'd stop on Mouse Trap. I thought the box looked so thrilling. I was desperate for Mouse Trap! I never ended up getting it - I don't remember why - whether I ended up asking for something I preferred, whether I decided it was too expensive to ask for or whether I asked for it and my parents (sensibly!) vetoed it?

A number of years ago, Marcel asked for it. I didn't want my child to go without Mouse Trap ( ;-) !) so I gave him it for Xmas. I tried to build it on Xmas day. It was a nightmare! None of the traps really aligned so none of them worked properly. Every time you touched one bit another would jump out of its space. It was a bloody nightmare and stressful as hell! I hated it to a point I could hardly imagine. And the kids didn't enjoy it either. It simply frustrated them.

Somehow I got it in the divorce settlement! Lucky me! (I must have been bad in a previous life.) I'd used it once so it was simply thrown under the stairs. I had long forgotten it until Sunday when Léon found it. Cue nightmare. He thought it looked like the most fun any seven year old could ever have. After half an hour of reading pages of instructions and finally tearfully delegating its building to Marcel (my nerves couldn't take it after a week up with vomiting kids!), it still didn't work and now with two mice missing, the three wee ones couldn't even play simultaneously. Amaia then jammed the toilet section with the coloured cheese chunks! Léon, a fairly easy-going child, didn't even realize it was awful so happily played with it Saturday and Sunday before Amaia took it apart again. 

It is currently in its box in the dining room but I have to say throwing it out for the bin men on Friday is incredibly tempting!



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