Sunday, January 26, 2014

Do You Eat Meat?

At this point, I'm cowering next to a concrete pillar, aware that the beast's
right rear hoof is braced for who-knows-what mayhem.
First I hear braying snorts and then see an arresting sight as I StepMaster up a narrow concrete path, so steep it’s corrugated to allow footholds. Not twenty feet ahead and above me a big black, angry steer blocks the way.

Cuidado!” one of the attendant cowboys shouts in warning.

Wannabe bull stiffens and snorts again, more loudly.

I brace myself against a post, eye rusted barbed wire curled below, and calculate chances of escaping injury by jumping down that way (”Is my tetanus shot still up to date?”) instead of standing my ground next to, but unfortunately not behind, the concrete shield. 

Odds not good--better to hope the downhill caballero keeps the rope taut enough to prevent the steer from lunging my direction. 

It’s tense for some minutes. The dogs get involved. We all escape injury.  

As I dart past--as much darting as one can do, going up three feet for every four horizontal--I meet a fellow coming down. He had been delayed by the bullish brouhaha as well.

¿Tu comes carne?--Do you eat meat?” he jokingly asks.

“Si, claro,” I reply.

Ahí está tu cena--There’s dinner.”

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

You should have been wearing a white shirt and trousers, with a red waistband and neckerchief. Then you could have had your photo taken and claimed that you were "running with the bull." Great sport! Or, even better, if you had been photographed with your magenta and gold capote, along with a lance, you could have gone back to Seattle claiming that you had become a famous matador. But, I don't think you would enjoy the killing. It becomes rather messy and could stain your traje de luces. I guess this is enough bull for today. Bye.
Rosie

The Last Quarter said...

Visions of Pamplona bulls flashed through my mind, Rosie, as I looked for a way to escape. You sound like a aficionado of the blood sport. No?

Anonymous said...

a huevo!!

NR