Pogo

The office at one of the locations I work is in a sleepy little Mall that is fighting to stay alive in the current recession.  The Big Boy left 2 months ago after apparently not paying rent for a year and just this week a Pearle Vision across the hall saw the light and moved to a better location on 28th street.  A sign on the Joseph A. Banks store to one side of our office announces a closing sale, location to be vacated by January 1st.  When you see 50% off at a Banks it makes you wonder.

There is a Post Office and a Secretary of State office and I think that they must generate 80% of the Mall traffic.  I would be surprised if the motley group of seniors who walk the Mall spend much.  Our business recently partnered with an organization to give a 4 hour driving class to people who want to have points removed from their driving records.  That is held in an empty store space (take your pick)  twice a week and attracts about 50 people per class.

But there is hope.  Pogo was back again this Christmas season.  Each year after Thanksgiving a woman sets up a little space across from Santa, dresses in a festive green outfit and has with her a little organ grinder type monkey.  Pogo is about a foot tall standing up and wears a red vest and a little red hat and I guess a lot of the locals must bring their kids in every year for a visit.  I don't know what Pogo actually does but then I've never trusted monkeys so I keep my distance.

I was walking out of our office this afternoon and see the lady walking down the hall with Pogo sitting on her right shoulder.  The lady's head is about 45 degrees to the left as she walks, monkey breath probably not the most appealing thing in the world,  and every once in a while I hear her say "Ouch".

I'm going the same way but behind her and finally comment;  "I thought we had beasts to bear out burdens instead of the other way around" and she answers back, "Maybe next year".

Later that afternoon I'm on a test and we see ahead of us a bouncy little cockier spaniel sticking his head out the car window.  This makes me think that monkeys must really be smarter than dogs.  I know this because, although I have seen thousands of happy dog faces staring into the wind, I have never see a monkey sticking it's head out a car window.  Pogo always looks worried, as if he knows that, getting on in years, he might forget his place, stick his head out the window going home, and get a bug in the eye. 

Along the same line we know that people must be at least as smart as monkeys because we rarely stick out heads outside the car when driving, except if you are a teenager, but I digress.