BEWARE THE NIBBLER

BETTER THAN CARROTS?

My deafness continues to spread a fog that makes it difficult to hear my Muse, so I will avoid the heavy themes and play it light: Once when I was living in a room-and-board house in Chicago, I was given a baby rabbit for a birthday present. I didn't really want it, but I felt that it was given to me as some kind of challenge--it would have been an easy thing just to release it in Lincoln Park. I named it Symbol, thinking that if it turned out to be a male, I would spell it Symbull, and if female, Symbelle. Instead of getting a cage, I decided to let it live free in my room, with water, food, and litter trays in the closet. Rabbits are very neat and clean when it comes to you-know-what; so it was a pleasure watching it play and grow, until: one day my telephone went dead, and I couldn't locate the cause. When the telephone maintenance man came he quickly discovered that Symbol had nibbled through the wires in several places. So, I released it in the park after all. The lady who had given it to me said that I had "passed the test." (I won't tell you what the award was.)

YOUR MESSAGE WILL BE FORWARDED: I think some of my callers are really just checking to see if I am still alive.They can be a nuisance, particularly when I am expecting an important call. If I announce on the answering machine that I am dead, will they leave me alone?

TODAY'S HALLUCINATION: a horse in my bathtub.

TODAY'S DELIGHT: a peanut butter/banana sandwich on white toast.