Ergo, the Ogre

It’s First Line Friday over at the Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie.

The radio was playing the oddest song when Karl took his seat in the dining room. It was quite different than their usual dinner music.

Someone must’ve changed the station. But who?

No matter! This, was a song you could dance to. It actually had a beat! Karl couldn’t help but tap his feet to the music. He was once a drummer in Bad Meringue— a 60s rock band.They never made it to the bigtime, or even the radio, but they were popular and played most of the bars & nightclubs around town.

Soon, Karl picked up his knife and spoon and began drumming the dining room table along with the drum solo on the radio. A crash of cymbals ended the song, and Karl smacked the vase that sat in the middle of the table, and shattered it.

It was the only thing to hit; what was he supposed to do?

Well, that brought everyone running. The nurses quickly sedated him and the orderlies led him back to his room.

“Hey, where are we going?”

“Back to your room, Mr. Slater.”

“Can’t I listen to just one more song? They’re really jammin’ tonight!”

“There is no music, Mr. Slater. There never is.”

“Well, why the hell not?”

“We find that it causes the residents to become over-stimulated. It’s a trigger for some patients.”

Karl looked down and watched his blue-slippered feet take turns moving the rest of him down the corridor.

“There should be music,” he sighed.

“There should always be music.”