Humans Do Talk Funny

"Zip-a-dee do da," sang Midge as she skipped along the sidewalk on her way to Booker-T's house. Booker-T met her at his front yard gate.

"What are you singing?" asked Booker-T.

"Zip-a-dee do da," sang Midge. "Zip-a-dee-ay. My, it's a wonderful day."

"It is a wonderful day out today," smiled Booker-T. "Where did you hear that song?"

"My owner was watching a movie last night and it was in it," said Midge. "The man was singing it to some little kids and animals."

"What are we doing today?" asked Booker-T.

"I don't know," said Midge. "What do you want to do?"

"I don't know either," said Booker-T. "Maybe Jake has a good idea."

"Lets go," said Midge as they started walking along the side walk.

They got to Jake's house and found him sleeping on the porch swing.

"Hey Jake!" called Midge. "What are you doing? Wake up!"

"I'm not sleeping," said Jake.

"Yes you are," laughed Midge. "You didn't even hear us walk up to the porch."

"Sure I did," said Jake. "I heard you in my sleep."

"How did you do that?" asked Booker-T. "I don't hear anything when I am sleeping."

"I can hear everything when I am sleeping," stated Jake.

"I don't hear anything when I am sleeping either," said Midge. "I don't know how you can hear with you are sleeping."

"I don't know, but I do," said Jake.

"No you don't," said Midge. "You are pulling my leg."

"He isn't pulling your leg Midge," said Booker-T. "He isn't even touching you."

"That is just a saying Booker-T," said Midge.

"What kind of saying?" asked Booker-T.

"It means he is joking with me," said Midge. "My owner says it a lot when she is talking to her little nephew."

"Boy," said Booker-T. "Humans have funny sayings don't they?"

"I heard my owner say blue in the face," laughed Jake. "I looked at her and her face wasn't blue so maybe the person she was talking to on the phone had a blue face."

"How could a person have a blue face?" asked Midge.

"Maybe they got into the paint," said Jake.

"When my owner's little niece comes over," said Booker-T. "My owner will ask her something and the little girl just smiles at her and my owner will say 'Cat got your tongue?'"

"Did you get her tongue?" asked Midge.

"No," said Booker-T. "I looked at her and meowed trying to tell her I didn't take the little one's tongue and I would stick out my tongue to show her all I had was mine."

"My owner sometimes says 'You have a one track mind, Jake,'" said Jake.

"Why does she say that to you?" asked Midge.

"I don't know," said Jake.

"When does she say that to you?" asked Midge.

"When she is eating, I sit there and beg for a bite," said Jake. "That is when she says it."

"What is a one track mind?" asked Booker-T.

"I don't know," said Jake. "I didn't know that a mind has tracks."

"That's a funny thing to say," said Midge.

"Humans are funny," laughed Jake.

"They should be like we are," said Midge. "We are easy to understand."

"I wish we could talk to them so we could ask them what they mean when they say things," said Jake. "Some times, they confuse me when they are talking."

"I know it," said Booker-T. "Me too."

"My owner the other day said something really funny on the phone," said Midge.

"What did she say?" asked Jake.

"She invited someone to come over to the house so they could chew the fat," said Midge. "Why would they want to chew the fat. Isn't fat what they cook with?"

"I think so," said Jake. "Maybe it comes in a block and they are going to chew on it. I tasted fat one time that was in a pan she had on the stove and it was icky tasting."

"Do you want to go do something Jake?" asked Midge.

"Do you want to go to the little zoo and see who is there now?' asked Booker-T. "We can visit the petting zoo too. Maybe Pinky is still there."

"Okay," said Jake. "Lets go."

They walked along the sidewalk going to the zoo building. They looked both ways and crossed the street and ran to the front door and stood inside looking around the room. They saw an elephant in the big cage near the door, a couple of meercats, a zebra, a couple of monkeys and a hippo.

"Come on," said Midge. "Lets go talk to them."

"What are those humans doing?" asked Booker-T.

"I think they are getting the petting zoo animals fed before they open so the kids can come pet them," said Jake. "Do you want to go find Pinky?"

"Maybe we better wait til the humans finish feeding them," said Midge. "They won't like it if we are walking around with the animals."

"Okay," said Jake. "Lets go talk to these animals while we wait."