by Thomas J. Erickson
Monkeys are always funny.
Remember when Sergeant Bilko inducted the little scene stealer into the Army
or when Ronnie Reagan put Bonzo to bed?
Lance Link Secret Chimp did a helluva Ed Sullivan imitation.
We all have Neanderthal DNA. Someone must have shtupped a Neanderthal
on a dare or maybe it was some type of prehistoric performance art
or the drunken jerk did it for laughs apparently before there were any
rules of comedy.
Should we get another dog after Edie dies, my wife asks.
Yes, let’s get two.
One for me and one for you.
Yours can have the booties and the rain coat.
How do we know when something is over?
Why are we so slow to realize the death
of a plant or a season or a library
or a democracy?
Even so, Senator Hawley’s mad dash through the hall broke me up
which reminded me of the second rule of comedy:
Always leave them laughing.
Thomas J. Erickson is an attorney in Milwaukee. His latest book is Cutting the Dusk in Half by Bent Paddle Press.
