Harlan? said Blurtso. Yes? said Harlan. Are you awake? said Blurtso. Yes, said Harlan. Have you ever thought about suicide? said Blurtso. Yes, said Harlan. Why do you think people do it? I don’t know, said Harlan, I suppose we all need a reason, at least one pure activity to go on living. One activity? said Blurtso. Yes, said Harlan. Like what? said Blurtso. Like anything, said Harlan, love is an activity.
Cheep! said Harlan. Cheep! said Blurtso.
A donkey was pursued by two tigers, one from in front, one from behind. He also had a Chemistry exam the next day. “Is there any more pumpkin pie?” said the donkey.
Hey, said Frank, who’s hogging the Kama Sutra?
You have not spoken of pumpkin pie.
I have not spoken of pumpkin pie.
This is the true pumpkin pie.
I wonder if anyone will ever know all that’s inside of me, and if I will ever know all that’s inside of them? Or if that’s impossible for creatures who are burdened with motion and words.
Hunger is the bow, whipped cream the arrow,
and pumpkin pie the target
one sights unflinchingly.
Stay tuned for the News Hour and tonight’s roundtable debate, “Can black and white be considered colors, and if so, which one is more colorful?” moderated by Dr. Jonathan Wellborn Truington III, renowned taxidermist and Pulitzer prize-winning author of, Is White White or Is White the New Black?
I think humans, said Blurtso, take themselves too seriously.
Harlan? said Blurtso. Yes? said Harlan. Do you miss Borneo? Yes, said Harlan. What do you miss most? I miss it all, said Harlan, the beauty, the peace, the danger, the poverty. You miss the poverty? said Blurtso. Yes, said Harlan. Wouldn’t it be nicer, said Blurtso, without the poverty? Not, said Harlan, if it just becomes a playground for the rich. Oh, said Blurtso. What do you think about international aid? I think it’s often misguided, said Harlan, and there’s nothing worse than convincing someone they need something that they didn’t need before.
What’s your inner parakeet telling you? said Harlan. He’s telling me, said Blurtso, that there’s a half-eaten pumpkin pie in the fridge. What’s yours telling you? He’s telling me, said Harlan, that someone already finished the second half.