Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble

Have you ever looked into the backseat of your car to see tiny tendrils of smoke wafting up from your child's empty booster seat? Or have you ever wondered what it would be like to hear a horrible grinding/bubbling sound emanating from your truck?

I don't have to wonder.

Bryan worked from home yesterday afternoon and graciously offered to keep an eye on the boys while I drove the three minutes to the library to pick-up some items I had on hold. Sounds like a quick trip, right?

After driving into the slightly sloped parking lot I noticed that a car in front of me was trying to back-out of their parking spot. I engaged the brake and slowed to a stop. This was the moment that the horrible grinding/bubbling sound took place. It lasted between ten and fifteen seconds. I wondered if the speaker in the trunk had decided to turn itself on and play all the stations at once. Nope, I checked, the radio was definitely not on.

After waiting for the car in front of me to finish what they were doing, I pulled ahead to an empty space. Just before getting out of the car I glanced over my shoulder at the opposite corner of the car, wondering what had caused the noise. That's when I saw the smoke. It was coming up through Peter's booster seat and the floor in front of Peter's seat.

I was really glad Peter wasn't in the car.

I got out. Fast. I tried Bryan's phone. No answer. Sometimes his phone gets left on silent, I figured that's what had happened. I tried again. No answer.

Well, best not to be next to the car in case it exploded, so I quickly walked into the library and got my books. I didn't hear any blasts while I was inside, so I figured my car was still intact.

It was.

I checked again for smoke. I couldn't smell anything, but could still see it, although it was fainter. I tried Bryan two more times to no avail. I walked around the car a few times and couldn't see flames. I stood for a moment thinking about who else I could call. My thought process went like this: Who else is home? Or has a phone? Or would have any idea what might be going on with the car? Who would Bryan call?

That's when it hit me: I should call my father-in-law. Bryan always calls him when he has wacky car questions and this felt very wacky. So, after checking with my mother-in-law that it was okay to call his work cell (I didn't want to interrupt his day), I dialed.

He thought it was odd too. Smoke, but no smell. A bubbling sound, but no puddle under the car. He wondered if it was the brake, but suggested that I carefully drive it the short way home to listen for the sound again. (My front brakes would cover a malfunctioning back brake, if I drove slowly.) He asked me to call when I got home, just to make sure I didn't explode. (My words, not his.)

I made it home, no more crazy sound.

Bryan had his phone in his hand when I walked in, turning the sound up. I told him what had happened and he walked out to the garage to investigate, two curious little boys at his heels. I kept them inside the house and we watched from the doorway.

Bryan opened the garage, walked around the car investigating, then opened the rear passenger door and gingerly pulled Peter's booster seat out, expecting to find scorch marks. Nothing. I was beginning to doubt what I had seen when I mentioned to Bryan that I hadn't checked the trunk yet. He popped the trunk and pulled it open.

Cue aforementioned tendrils.

I gasped slightly when Bryan stepped back from the trunk and said, "Whoa. I know what it was." And, suddenly, I knew too.

You see we like being prepared for emergencies. We have a plastic milk crate full of supplies like a flashlight, a first aid kit, bottled water, jumper cables, and chains. This crate is kind of heavy.

Oh, and did I mention we keep a fire extinguisher in the back on the car?

Or rather, we did.

Behold, my trunk:

Note: The interior of the trunk is black and the stroller is dark gray with black accents. At least, they usually are.

Here's what we think happened. The fire extinguisher fell over in the trunk and the piece of plastic holding the pin in place broke, thus allowing the pin to fall out. My braking on a downward-slope caused the emergency supply crate to slide, which pushed the now de-pinned extinguisher into the wall of the trunk. That grinding/bubbling sound (which now seems like a perfect description) was the fire extinguisher emptying all of it's contents onto my double stroller and the rest of the trunk.

The culprit.

Bryan has offered to clean it. I believe I will let him.