Last real danger was two years ago, ending in capture and commitment of Loretta a.k.a. ‘Lottie the Psycho’ Only caught after confession on live TV
Since Lottie, garden variety crime and administrative mediocrity are enjoying an extended run before packed houses each night
Felicia the MBA: friends with ex-wife #2, still cordial Smart, hard-working, clever What we’d like to be if we stopped insisting we already were
Elderly Betty Crockman walks by Called Betty Crock o’ for her b.s. Sure she hears God’s voice in her own humble opinions
I step inside Felicia’s office She looks concerned Have you ever seen something like this? she asks, as she pushes a small metal case toward me
Small pewter box, unmarked Inside: orange plastic salamander & note, folded in thirds
The note: ‘Walk Swim More Talk Write More Never a Chore’ Notebook paper, cut unevenly, folded awkwardly
Odd handwriting in blue ink Confident, bold Spoof? Mental patient? Politician? All possibilities
Felicia asks me what it means I don’t know Unusual acquaintances? Anyone/anything different? She stares back at me
Salamander left at her office door this morning I take the items, head to my place to ponder The Clergyman drives past
Clergyman: If gossip were Doctrine, he’d be a bishop Scurries for info like a pigeon for breadcrumbs, hoping for bits to drop
My apt: bdrm, lr, den books computer dog-crap DSL connection parrot named Ludwig Scandinavian austerity
All my ex-wives use Microsoft – justification for annulment Only Apple here No crashes OS X boots fast, Safari ready
Search of note’s message – nothing but Irrelevant, Unlikely Google, deep web nothing Lyrics? Poem? Stoner talk? Why now? Why Felicia?
Note’s meaning? Walk, Swim More – salamanders walk & swim, what more? Orange ones live in Midwest, in forest streams
‘Talk Write More’ What’s more? Read, publish, photograph, film? Handwriting’s bold, in blue ink
Toy salamander’s made in China, like toys, textiles, government corruption, dissidents People’s Republic mass produces everything
Notebook paper, cut from a composition book, wide ruled Pewter box has no other contents
Library visit: small, modern, expanding A book on salamanders, few on amphibians On the shelf, a book not listed online: Salamanders and You
Unlisted salamander book: page 12, in margin, bold blue marker: ‘Not old books, but new pages, form the plan’