Page 25 of Nearly Roadkill
Cheers,
Drew
TOOBE ENTRY
I just found a Chinese wall, a bathroom stall, a place everybody writes random stuff in no particular order: an electronic graffiti board. I grab anything new that’s popped onto the Net. It’s completely disorganized when it comes in, then I arrange it like a collage. Some of the postings are like a bulletin board, some more urgent, like the walls in a ghetto where you can see lines being drawn, rage or sorrow vented.
FUNNY OF THE DAY
Where are the baby pigeons? Has anyone *ever* seen one? No! You just see grown-up ones…
—P.
That’s all there was today. I didn’t say they were real deep or anything. Although it’s true, I’ve never seen a baby pigeon.
I’m not sure I’ve mentioned Jabba before. Jabba is a genius, and although I always thought ze was a guy, hanging around with S&W I realize how stoopid that was. I have to admit I’ve never seen a pronoun. I’m gonna sayshe, just to balance it out. I’ve known her forever, through my dad. As far as I know, they’ve known each other a long time.
Jabba never comes out of her hole and has banks of computers all over the place. It’s freezing inside, and that’s why she has fish. They can take the cold. The lights from the computers weave a magic stream through the tanks, rippling patterns all over the ceiling and walls. The water bubbles through little chugging pumps in the tanks, scattering ultraviolet and dark green pockets around the room. And the computers hum, of course. It’s really cool. Feels like a safe, green cave with water escape routes.
I saw it only once, when I went over a long time ago to pick up a disk. Jabba was there, but she didn’t come out of the other room until I left. I always picture it when I write with Jabba. Here’s something I got today.
To:Toobe
From:Jabbathehut
Subj:Handwriting
My quick little friend, I need a favor of you. A distribution point, if you will. I won’t begin to tell you my thoughts on the proud forces of government, but you may have been following the news re: Registration.
Where there is a new rule, there are new rule breakers.
Our men in Washington are attempting, in their usual slipshod way, to organize that which cannot be organized. But what they do have on their side is the slowness of Time. In other words, those who don’t go along with the program will simply be put in a category called Other, where they will languish until they figure out what to do with them.
As it stands now, if you don’t Register, you don’t get to play where you were able to play before. In an unusual burst of compassion, I have come up with some bypass codes. They are quite simple and easy to use. You, who seem to have the attention span of a gnat (as a teenager you can be forgiven this, but not for long), are the perfect letter carrier for me. You may never light long but you do light everywhere. If you would, please offer your acquaintances these codes (discreetly of course) in your wanderings. Would much appreciate.
Fighting God,
—J.
PS baby pigeons grow incredibly fast and reach adult size in the blink of an eye. So yes, my featherless friend, you’ve seen plenty of baby pigeons.
No, I don’t know what Fighting God means, and I’m afraid to ask.
To:Jabbathehut
From:Toobe
Subj:On the wall
“Burst of compassion” my nuts. Just how much are you charging for these, may I ask? Don’t tell me you’ve put a virus on them so they stop working if people don’t pay?
To:Toobe
From:Jabbathehut
Subj:Exactly
Of course, my little schmendrik. At least I don’t require real names, as the Registration mavens do. Will upload package within the hour. You, of course, may simply fill out yours with your screen name, free of charge.
