A Traffic
Incident
by Bill Tope
Flat gray sheets
of rain danced across the asphalt
Like a child skipping rope. Small
animals sat
Tight In their dens and lairs, waiting
for the rain
To abate. A large, shaggy dog, oblivious
to the
Downpour, trotted happily alongside his
master,
Who was perched atop a bicycle and
haphazardly
Steering the conveyance down the street.
They stopped for a traffic signal, just
changing
From amber to red. A giant truck
motored
Through the intersection, moving like a
great
Ocean liner and tossing massive waves of
Dirty water on the pair, drenching them
Completely. The big dog whined piteously.
Moving deliberately, the man reached into
A saddlebag appended to the rear of his
bike,
Pulling out a U.S. Army-issue rocket
launcher.
Taking aim, he fired it directly into the
gas tank
Of the huge truck, which exploded in
truly
Spectacular fashion. Debris rained
down
Upon the intersection for minutes.
At length, the man turned and addressed
his
Dog: "Albert, let us make haste
homeward
And have us a hot toddy and a bit of Alpo,
Eh, what?" And the duo proceeded
through
The intersection. "Arf!" said
Albert, wagging
His tail furiously. In the distance the
wail of
Sirens could be heard growing nearer by
The second. |
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