2003dec15. I don’t think I explained the turkey movement quite properly. Okay. It’s a lot like winding up a rubber-band powered car. It starts out slow, and then accelerates. That’s what the turkey did, back and forth, back and forth, in front of me, and when it walks anywhere it doesn’t just move from point A to point B, it comes up with all of these intermediate points that must be visited that are sort of on the way. I think what’s happening is that the turkey doesn’t have much self-confidence. It kind of knows where it wants to go, so it points itself in the general direction and then heads out, crossing imaginary turkey fingers in its own mind. As it’s moving, it notices that yes, it’s getting closer, so it gains confidence and speed. But then it has to stop for some reason, like maybe because selective breeding has created a race of franken-turkeys that can only walk for a few feet before tiring and wanting to jettison one or more tasty phatt turkey legs for snacking at various state fairs. In other desert news, the javelinas are right outside the house right now. The porch has sort of a one-way screen and a wee javelina started noisily munching on a prickly pear about three feet away. The rest of the family was looking wistfully at the garbage cans, now nestled inside a home-built anti-Javelina garbage can corral built by my girlfriend while I ate pudding and made funny noises which was extremely helpful, I think. Also, they enjoy playing the “freeze” game with the flashlight. “You clearly cannot see me if I don’t move yet at the same time release powerful odors.”
