1.
The dachshund marching in brisk laps
around the kiddie pool,
serious as a drill sergeant.
2.
The Pac-Man faces on the CT scan instruction panel,
ordering her to breathe,
hold it.
3.
A full orchestra, chugging electric guitars,
a sweet choir soprano wailing
and bellowed incantations in broken Scandinavian English.
4.
The salamander's expectant smile,
the cuttlefish's coy wave, the cool string tail
of the brown mouse and her twitching whiskers.
5.
The frequent midday discovery
of sideways underpants.
6.
The boy beside her.
7.
The teething Japanese baby at the sushi bar,
gleefully gnawing a raw baby octopus,
tiny purple legs dangling from her mouth.
