Tuesday, Jun. 10, 2008 - 10:05 p.m.
Mammals & Reptiles
********************
Three days in the evil city
and all i could think about
was going home
I had fun there
seeing my friends
but it sure felt like i was
in everybodys way
as they ran around
just for the sake of
running around..
saw some art
hot tea and art supplies
sweltered on the asphalt
annonomously like everybody else
and sought solice in distraction
because relief
was never gonna happen
Home again
I was glad to see my
vague rural scene
the many fraceful trees
and mercifull emptiness
and my happy kitten
who hade been
wonderfully cared for
and there were even some
gifts left for him on my desk:
a tiny plastic hatchet and rifle
from some pirate toy set
he will be better dressed
for pirate life this summer
than Jonny Depp himself
As he had been cooped up
in the place all by himself
i biked him to the lake
and let him run wild
and played catch the string with him
as we played around I noticed
what looked like
an abandoned bike helmet
on the meadow above the beach
when we went over to look closer
it was actually a huge snapping turtle
who had been there
all day in the broiling sun
ants swarmed all over
its huge knarled greasy shell
and spooky green grey leathery skin
I chased taser away because that turtle
could have easily bit him in half in one snap
that snapper was easily 20 times
heavier than him
five times his size
and 100 times older
So I asked some girls to keep Taser busy
with a string way off to one side
while I did dubious snapping turtle rescue
swiped a recycle box
from beside a nearby house
pushed one very angry
snapping turtle into it
pinned it down with a big stick
and dragged it down
the steel stairs to the lake
Japanese tourists took photos
of the whole show
i used phantomime
to warn them
to keep away
as a hot and cranky
snapping turtle
of that size
could easily
bite their whole hand off
camera and all the turtle obliged
by hissing and biting down on the big stick
it was obviousthat if it had
actually got at somebody
a big piece of them would be missing
when i released the rurtle into the water
it swam about and then slowly crawled up
on shore towards us all
as the cameras clicked
the japanese tourists ran to stand on logs to escape the wrath of this monster
why was a dehydrated snapping turtle
suddenly freed into its natural element
returning to shore?
June- was turtle egg laying season
maybe this was a female snapper
returning to the shore tolay her eggs
and had somehow got stuck
on the meadow above
her desire to lay eggs was far stronger
than her pleasure to escape from
the soft skinned giants into
the cool dark safety of the lake I let her do her thing as the cameras snapped
and went to see how taser was making out
there he was, being loved by girls
and jumping his best to impress them
I had a hard time getting him back
the girls were not at all interested in
seeing the giant snapping turtle lay eggs
in the sand with all appropriate drama
-they wanted to see a kitten jump
Taser I assume had completely
forgotten about the giant turtle
who could have eaten him in one gulp
and was merrily performing for his
newly assembled fan club
This I learned:
Girls prefer kittens.
kittens prefer girls
Japanese tourists prefer
sea monster turtles
but sea monster turtles
don't like anybody
