A Whale of a Tail

We had seen most of the recent plays and movies. We had been to all the area museums, some more than once, and seen their extraordinary exhibits.

Eddie decided it was time for us to head south to the San Diego Zoo. He sure made the right choice! It spelled excitement from the moment we entered the gate…seeing all the wonderful birds, reptiles, and animals; hearing cat roars, monkey noises and bird sounds.

And, taking a break now and then from the sun and fun to grab a bite, enjoy frozen lemonade and to people watch.

After a few hours of meandering the grounds and seeing so many wonderful sights, we saw a sign and an arrow leading to a hippopotamus site. Eddie was very interested since he had been to Africa and saw their habitat and surroundings firsthand. He saw them grazing on the land and then go into the water while he happened to be in a canoe in the estuary. They even pooped on the landing outside his zippered tent.

We lucked out as there were bleachers where we could sit and relax and watch this “ginormous” hippo swim in a “hippodrome” type water tank. We couldn’t get over how huge he was but seemed as light as a feather in that tank, moving so slowly and gracefully through the water.

It wasn’t too long before a crowd started gathering. A mother and her young son sat on a bleacher in front of us. They, too, were mesmerized by this animal and its enormity. So much so that the little boy said to his mother, “Look at that big butt.”

I kid you not, it was instantaneous that the hippo’s tail started spinning like a propeller. He then backed his butt up to the glass of the tank where the little boy was sitting and pooped a streak! There was so much poop that the water turned tan in color.

The crowd absolutely roared! It was almost as if the hippo understood that the little boy was poking fun at the size of his butt and responded in revenge with, “Well, take this kid, poop-poop-de-doo”!

Sharon Benson Smith is a member of the writing class offered through the Cerritos College Adult Education Program. It is held off-campus at the Norwalk Senior Center.