Wednesday, October 05, 2005

Tortoise Times Two

I apologize for being absent for the past few days, but things have been really hectic since I returned to work full time. Besides that, I hurt my right eye somehow and I constantly feel as if I have a rock in it. It’s all red and weepy and the whole experience is very unpleasant. I went to the eye doctor this morning and he said, “Yup, you’re having a severe allergic reaction. Here – take these drops and let me know if it doesn’t get any better.” Then he charged me fifty bucks. (I am SO in the wrong profession.)

AND, as if I didn’t have enough to worry about, Paul came home with ANOTHER baby tortoise yesterday. Shirley, that’s what we named her, is smaller than Sherman, and she appears to have been through a trauma. According to reports, she spent a few hours as the chew toy for a very lonely Chihuahua. She is still ambulatory, but she sort of drags her tiny, little, elephant looking, right hind leg as she wanders around her knew habitat. To make matters worse, Sherman greeted Shirley with a mighty nip; as mighty as his tiny mouth could muster. Shirley didn’t flinch, but the incident left be worried that if I left the two alone for longer than a minute I would return only to find Shirley’s itty, bitty, cannibalized remains.

The thought kept me awake all night.