Originally published as "The Day the Sky Rained Soap Suds" in Six Children's Stories (Academic Exchange Extra [University of Northern Colorado (Greeley, CO)], 2005). // An excerpt // Abner Normal squeezed the button on his can of Lysol spray, filling his living-room with strong-smelling mist. // "Take that!" he said. "Miserable germs!" He coughed on the clouds of mist, but he didn't care. // "I hate germs and I hate dirt!" he said. But killing germs didn't make him feel better. He gazed angrily out his living-room window. Scraps of paper littered the road. Dust covered sidewalks. For that matter, dust covered everything. And factory and car exhaust fogged the air. // "I can't stand it!" he exclaimed. "Why is this city so grimy?" // He yanked at his hair. Two handfuls fell to the floor. But Abner Normal didn't take any notice of his two new bald spots. He anxiously searched the sky. He watched a thick bank of dark clouds roll in from the west. They twisted and billowed. Soon they'd drench the city with rain polluted from dirty air. // "I'm going to clean up this miserable city once and for all!" he shouted. "I'll be a hero!" He jumped up and down. One foot knocked over his fishbowl. The rug soaked up the water, while Flipper, the goldfish, flopped about and gasped. Abner tossed Flipper into a coffee pot and then left his home.
