Tuesday, October 13, 2020

A Most Unfortunate Incident

 Saturday dawned with a reasonably low number  in the green area on all my air quality apps.

Well, hardly dawned  as I am never up before or with dawn.  However, during the morning all three of my apps displayed green breathable air.  Never one to miss such a rare occurrence I headed off for the Berkeley Marina. I drove along San Pablo Avenue at about 11.30 a.m. There was a fairly large amount of traffic, and just before Marin Avenue I noticed that ahead of me cars were slowing and jostling into the left hand lane.  Of course I followed suit.  Just as was about to enter the left side I saw what was slowing the traffic - the resident University Village wild turkeys were crossing the avenue - they don't use traffic lights or pedestrian walkways. Suddenly I heard a thump and a squawk and I looked to my left. I hit a turkey who was just out of my line of sight. The turkey flew up with a squawk looking like a comic book illustration of an alarmed turkey in flight trailing a couple of feathers behind it!

Alarmed and somewhat shaken I continued driving and moved back to the right lane. At the red light on Monroe a silver Honda drove up next to me - its window was down, so I lowered my window. A couple were looking at me smiling -

"I hit a turkey," I said at the same time as the man said to me "you hit a turkey."  

"I don't know what to do" and he said, "you knocked out a few feathers, he'll survive" and he gave me a thumbs up and drove away laughing.

I continued onward to the Marina fully expecting a gaggle of turkeys to come squawking after me, or a police man, or a traffic cop.

In the end, with nothing and no one behind me I silently offered healing to the unfortunate turkey and do hope he survives.

1 comment:

Marianna said...

What a story!!! I'd say that the Turkey was actually pretty fortunate to get away with only a few lost feathers, and you are pretty fortunate that it there was nothing to be done. :) You are the best story teller!!!