SEVERAL ALLEYWAYS AND A DINGBAT

Speculatively, the badger picked up a pipe and the tin of tobacco, thought for a moment, then put both items down. Not now. He would smoke after lunch. Life was good, and everything indicated that it would be a lovely day. Except, of course, that due to modern laws he could not enjoy a smoke indoors except in his own home when the kitten was at work, and lunch as usual would be down in Chinatown.

It was probably a good thing that his apartment mate of many years was a non-smoker, as otherwise his place would stink. It was even better that her love interest was some blinky marmot in a wheelchair who lived over near the wharf, because what with being a bitter hardened cynic, the badger was sickened by other folks's saccharine interactions. Except for the two black gay guys tonguing each other in a bar the other night; that had been strangely fascinating.

The badger was, as you would probably guess, a bachelor. There was no female in his life, a love weasel or humpity beaver, or whatever have you.
He found the gentler sex attractive, but was cognizant of his own image of non-approachability and fearsomeness.

Badgers are irascible.

Besides, ladies who liked pipe-smoking forest creatures and comforts such as hot milk tea, porkchops, and just wandering through forest glades occasionally growling angrily at the pretty butterflies were rare.

There was a grey mouser with beautiful soft fur who lives near the diggings on 新呂宋巷 who allowed brief petting, but the badger could not tell the gender of the beast. It could well have been male, and in any case they spoke different languages.

A beautiful world.


*   *   *   *   *

Yeah, I'm heading into C'town for eaties later. The third tin of Stonehenge Flake is almost gone. The pipe I'll bring is large enough that it should last from somewhere near Grant Avenue all the way down to where the parrots congregate in the evening. Sadly, they've removed all the benches from that particular park, because the street people hiding in the bushes there scared folks, and tended to hog the seating.
While watching a rat scurrying through the fallen leaves there recently I was approached by an individual who entirely unbidden and without prompting told me about his run-ins with the FBI, because they knew his thoughts.
He also shared those details. The rat was far more interesting.

I like animals somewhat better than humans.


There are benches on 襟美慎街 near the 關帝廟 as well as a small park where it is pleasant to sit, and by the time I've finished lunch (should I have pork chops and rice?) the office workers will be few.


There may be a feline who lives nearby.
It looks like a cat kind of area.



NOTES

Spofford Alley, Commercial Street, and a temple dedicated to Lord Guan.
GLP's Stonehenge Flake is mostly Virginia, complex and mild.
The pipe is a Peterson System Standard, shape 307.
It's a private park, smoking is allowed.
Tomato pork chop rice.
蕃茄豬扒飯。




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