Oasis of Life
At the corner of 17th Avenue and Broadway, a young man built an oasis into his condominium. The tall corner window stretches floor to ceiling and a red snapping turtle swims lazily, turning to watch puzzled passersby. I peek through the window and see wide fountains and housebound pools. Succulent plants stretch over stones gathered from creeks, bookcases, and a long-abandoned guitar. Life explodes in there, its momentum propelling it under the door frame and through the cracks in the caulking. It strikes neighbors and pedestrians with the urge to stand still and quietly overflow. Girls walk by, on cell phones and amphetamines. They stumble in their animated conversations, never sure what has shaken them.
Musical Inspiration: A Shoreline Dream – Peel You Open. No real background to this story, except that I like the band. They did a great song with Ulrich Schnauss, too.
Image “Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary” from Wikimedia Commons.
My less reverent writing involving marsupials and mad scientists.
December 4th, 2010 at 5:12 am
KMG – This story is kind of like watching one one those beams of light that illuminate all the dust particles that you didn’t know where floating all around you. It is very beautiful.
It reminded me of a man I know who has hundreds of millions of dollars, no official identity and a huge terrarium/aviary in the middle of his non descript mansion.
December 5th, 2010 at 4:30 am
Oh wow, I want to visit that guy’s house!