It was a dark and normal night.
And the park was empty.
I’d trekked with a friend or two, maybe more, maybe none, to see the not forgotten monkeys from childhood. But the cages were empty except for the diagonal shadows from the street lights. Cages long since abandoned and left to rust and wither and metal decay.
Maybe I was drinking or maybe I wasn’t during that particular small town adventure. I could’ve been in my late teens or early or late twenties. The older man’s reality is blended with fantasy, stirred and shaken. Like a thick fictitious smoothie.
The monkeys may not have even been real in Memorial Park but I’m pretty sure I didn’t make that all up. My imagination fills in the details and the gaps of the things I don’t remember. Maybe there was only one monkey that I never saw and only heard of from the elders. Maybe there was a flock of three mini-apes under the red and white bulldog water tower. I know for sure the little makeshift zoo was a thing. 🐒
As I was drifting off to sleep last night I was thinking on that 47 acre park for whatever reason. Thinking of the never ending woodlands, the valley too big for a kid to traverse in one session, and the body water at the bottom that smelled like a haven for the dead.
And the monkeys. The monkeys. Untamed in a cage with a concrete base. The most unnatural habit for anything living. I wouldn’t be surprised if the city did away with them after the neanderthals threw beer cans at the fences after dark. Again, that’s me writing a narrative for things I can’t remember or don’t know.
So anyways, the real story is I think of caged monkeys brandishing their teeth because that’s what animals do when you lock them up in close quarters for public consumption. I probably went there to rattle their cages myself on that normal night, tap into my own anger and oppression. Another conduit of the passing teenage rage I felt for no good reason. A baboon’s red ass and canine teeth. Maybe dressed in an 80s jean jacket.
Ennui, ennui you’ve torn your dress. Ennui, ennui your face is a mess.
But the park was empty.
And I was a bit more than mildly disappointed when we left with nothing in our pockets. The era of rattling cages had set inside and out, and I didn’t need to be stirring up trouble.
Oh sure, you can go home again but chances are good that the lights will be off and the rooms creaky and dusty, and you’ll feel even more empty when you leave.
Now I don’t know what to say because it’s Christmas Eve in 2019 and I’ve been reminiscing about small town life. I should wake Maggie up and grab some eggnog and Santa hats. 🎅
#alternativefacts
JK · Dec 28, 2019 at 2:24 pm
Breakfast!
Reply
Post
darlene · Dec 28, 2019 at 2:28 pm
donate it to Lazarus House!
Reply
Post
Momma J · Dec 28, 2019 at 2:52 pm
Reply
Post
Grab Bill · Dec 28, 2019 at 3:40 pm
Looks delicious! Freeze it for Friendster.
tcr! · Dec 28, 2019 at 6:37 pm
What is Friendster?
Grab Bill · Dec 28, 2019 at 7:08 pm
Friends Easter
tcr! · Dec 28, 2019 at 9:22 pm
Oh, I been there!
Reply
Post
Furno Mitchell the First · Dec 28, 2019 at 4:09 pm
Freeze it for later
Reply
Post
eGarcia · Dec 28, 2019 at 5:34 pm
It fascinates me that people are giving advice and can’t figure out this is a joke…
tcr! · Dec 28, 2019 at 6:37 pm
Somebody actually messaged me on FB, inquiring about the pizza. I’m 100% serious.
eGarcia · Dec 28, 2019 at 6:39 pm
I believe it. Society really is doomed. I see it everyday on social media.
Reply
Post
lederman14 · Dec 28, 2019 at 6:55 pm
Now I want pizza 🍕
Reply
Post
J Weg Rzyn · Dec 28, 2019 at 7:18 pm
Interested! Can pick up next Thursday @ 4:37 pm
Reply
Post
Dunne · Dec 28, 2019 at 7:33 pm
I’d like one piece
tcr! · Dec 28, 2019 at 9:19 pm
(and everybody else interested)… One day I’m gonna get a cheese pizza delivered to the court yard by McNally’s and invite all you guys. First come first serve of course. 👍
Reply
Post
Waxman, Jules · Dec 28, 2019 at 7:55 pm
Reply
Post
schlakxz · Dec 28, 2019 at 8:57 pm
tl;dr
Reply
Post
ouellette · Dec 28, 2019 at 9:00 pm
You could’ve fed 3 rescue dogs with that or one large coyote. What a waste…
tcr! · Dec 28, 2019 at 9:16 pm
☠️
ouellette · Dec 28, 2019 at 9:19 pm
Video (MP4): bulldog with pizza
Reply
Post
VICKRAS · Dec 29, 2019 at 8:24 am
If ever you have leftover food like this The Lazarus House in St Charles accepts it.
Reply
Post
jinks · Dec 29, 2019 at 11:10 am
Reply
Post
Debbbie Kerrrman · Dec 29, 2019 at 1:09 pm
You are silly 😜
Reply
Post
kerstin.german · Dec 29, 2019 at 4:53 pm
Can I order through UberEats? 🤣
tcr! · Dec 29, 2019 at 5:07 pm
I think so. Lemme check with management.
Reply
Post
marney0160 · Dec 30, 2019 at 4:50 pm
What! I missed the jeweled bone earrings!?? I could have pretended they came from my hand. Dam it!!
tcr! · Dec 31, 2019 at 6:58 am
Your hand bones are what gave me the inspiration for the jeweled bone earrings!! 👂🦴
Reply
Post