a bunch of things

So occasionally I wander into new pet shops looking for cheap cat food, which seems to be a bit of an oxymoron. Yesterday while shopping for new winter boots (my right boot has a hole in it--is that supposed to happen?) I happened upon a new shop on Mont-Royal. I won't go into the awful smell that welcomed me when I walked in, I'll tell the tale of the neglected pet store another time when I have more strength for the heart-breaking. So, they had such a collection of birds; budgies all flittering about in such an array of colour, finches huddled up together (as they always do--likely frightened of my telescope eyes), round, and I'm not kidding, entirely round puffed up looking bright-yellow-as-the- day-is-sunny birds of which names I've now forgotten, some morning doves perched near the other and calm as buttons, a couple spunky cockatiels, couple a love birds, some other birds I'd never seen before, and a larger foreign bird intent on unfastening its door lock, poor thing. I stayed awhile, whistled my human bird talk, was entirely brushed off by bird society, less a couple budgies winking at me, and wishing I'd had a thousand dollars to scoop up all these birds and take them to some greenhouse somewhere and just let em loose....and just beneath all these little gifts from the sky, there was a sign in French that went something like this: "If your bird does not sing within 30 days, bring it back and we will exchange it for another bird of equal value". If only we put as much value on other life forms as we do us human ones, we would secure a lot more internal compassion. If I do not sing, will I be returned?

In other news, I carried a hair dryer under my arm yesterday and no one looked at me funny. Is that what happens in Montreal? Why, if I saw a hat on a foot, I'd sure look.

Story: taking a Greek mythology course and just finished reading parts of Prometheus Bound. Here's an interesting story that relates us humans to animals, in a way.

Prometheus had a brother, Epimetheus. Ep was given the task of handing out attributes to all the animals of the world, after Zeus and Prometheus had created all living things and sectioned them off in a zoo, for the time being. Ep, being none too bright, gave out all the attributes (sharp teeth, fur, speed, etc.) without thinking ahead and left humans with pretty much nothing. To fix this oversight, he asked his brother for some help; Prometheus decided to pity the humans and give them cunning and foresight, but they missed out on the extra body hair (thank the gods).

Don't forget to come to the reading on Sunday Oct. 30th. Coach House is gonna be there, Matrix folk too. And, myself.

I've taken up knitting. I think I'm knitting a blanket.