. . . that was unexpected . .
he heard it
did he say it
Yesss
he heard himself say Yes
That was unexpected
. . .
he
heard it asif he was far off
he didnt try to talkhe knew he couldnt
he thought a laugh bubbled in That was unexpected then he went black black blackeryet
going out onto the porch he caught
the amberorangetinged crescent moon just above the hill on the horizon yesterday
by dumb luck
watched it slipout of the sky a long fearsome orca fin shark fin a moltenredorange
dot then the sky where it was went
black
a feral cat female he named wee
walked on the porch rail before him he
petted her as he watched
Well girl thank you for the
company Well have a date tomorrow night
too awright
his fortune in life was his dumb luck
Wha time is it to no one
Christ he
stopped writinglet the pen fall to the page and bolted out of the studio up
the hall crossed the livingroom the small game room to the screen door to the
porch outside
wee mewed in the dark he heard
her leap up onto the railing
he couldnt see herstill had too
much light in his eyes
groping for the railingplacing
his hand flat on top it she bumped his wrist with her headshe always led with
her head
Hey girl wheres the moon he was slightly panicked didnt want
to miss it he felt for her petted her abruptly
then moved right he couldnt see the moon furthur right just
again there above the distant
black hill Dumb luck
he sighed a wroughtiron café chair was
between him the end of the porch he
steppedup stood on the chair
wee moved down the railing to him
but because he was on the chair she was out of reach
it was a deeper marbledamber this
evening the moon took its colour from the
smoke in the atmospherefrom the wildfires burning north a bruised scythe teetering on the black
hill it sank a sullen
boomerang tuna tail hammerhead dorsal blunted chevron flame then a molten dot then blacknesshaunted by the trail of light in
his eyes how fortunate he was
sullenly wee leapt down onto the
chair from the railingthe chair rocked she got caught between his feet he shifted
them to accommodate her he must have stepped on her tail she lashed outscratched
him he jerked his leg awaythe chair rockedhe lost his balancewent over the railing
backwardslanded in the gravel around the firepit on the back of his headhis
body torqued up snaggedleaned on the raw latticework under the porch
. . . that was unexpected . .
2357, Thursday,
15 7. 21
1239, Reggae Friday, 16 7.
21
