lost sheep

This sheep doesn't look too worried. For twenty-five cents, they give you a bag of feed. The sheep will eat it right out of your hand and then you get to pet it. That's how it worked at the petting zoo in the camp ground. As for the lost sheep, I had a flash back to a situation that took place thirty years ago. I'll write it down below and organize later.

It took place when Lohbado turned twenty-one, in a back yard, a crab apple tree over by a fence, a mountain ash, a plum tree, some flowers and a lawn. Lohbado walked into the middle of the yard, gazed at the sky. The sky spun around and he collapsed, into a deep sleep. He awoke to find himself in the bedroom of the woman next door. She tied him to a chair, while he slept and pulled the blinds. The woman wore a deer mask and told Lohbado he too would have to choose a mask. She got upset when he asked her what kind of animals were available and told him to choose. He chose giraffe. The woman had to go down stairs and take care of dinner guests. After the guests went home, she would return upstairs and ask if he made any discoveries while tied to the chair.

The giraffe mask was fine, except it stretched his neck. He could sit there like a giraffe while a dozen people in the living room ate roast turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes in gravy and peas. During the time it took for them to eat a turkey dinner, Lohbado was supposed to discover something. She would enter the bedroom and want to know. He would be required to enact his discovery. She wouldn't elaborate as to what she meant by discovery. He had a few hours to ponder her cryptic comments and eccentric behavior. The silk cords didn't hurt. In fact, the chair was surprisingly comfortable. Once he got used to the giraffe mask, he felt waves of deep relaxation. Of course, he would have preferred to be lying in the queen sized bed, but then he would probably have fallen asleep. He wanted to stay awake, to be ready for whatever might happen. He could smell perfume and hear voices from the guests below. The voices came in waves, a kind of clucking sound, with interspersed laughter.

Suddenly, he realized what was going on. It was a job interview. He sat at the head of a board room table, while twelve men and women interrogated him. Why did Lohbado feel he was the best candidate for the job? What were his flaws? Where did he see himself in five years? What did he know about the company? Lohbado gazed at the interviewers, who wore animal costumes. The main interviewer was dressed as a big horned water buffalo. His assistant wore a grizzly mask. There were a couple rabbits, a wolf, a fox and a sheep. To keep himself from falling apart, Lohbado stared at the sheep, as he stammered barely audible replies to the steady stream of questions. The sheep was the only animal that gave off friendly vibes. The buffalo was terrifying. The grizzly wasn't much better. The rabbits made him feel like he was on the verge of a psychotic episode. But the sheep actually turned him on, even though he knew it was not appropriate for a young man to be turned on by a sheep during a job interview.

As the interview progressed, the animals became agitated and started smashing up the place. They kicked over the table and smashed the chairs in a fury as they explained that Lohbado was not suited for the job. They had better candidates. But they told him to not be discouraged. Keep trying.

Lohbado kept on trying.