Chatty Cathy

Okay, this will really show my age. How many of you had a Chatty Cathy doll when you were a little girl? I loved my Chatty Cathy! I dragged that poor doll everywhere, changed her clothes all the time, and curled her hair constantly. My favorite curlers were the little prickly ones my mom used to give us perms (which it seemed like she did once a week). But alas, Cathy's voice box wasn't made to last forever, and the sound finally gave out. So eventually I got tired of friends trying to pull that little round ring and make her talk, and then make fun of her. So one day I pulled the cord all the way out, and snipped it off with scissors. I was pretty proud of my ingenuity, and took her to show my mom. Mom was never one to worry about sentimentality, and she simply said, "Umph, so if you weren't able to talk, it would be okay to cut out your tongue?" I cried for two days over the mutilation of my poor Cathy - I hadn't thought of it that way till Mom (ever so gently) suggested that. I think I probably got rid of the doll shortly after that so my guilt wasn't there to face everyday.