The Banalbany Projects: The Search For Nuts

Go to a public place in Albany where you can find trash or animals for at least 30 minutes. Adopt the perspective of an animal/piece of garbage and describe the location from its point of view. (It's kind of like the Sit Down Field Trip, but new you're writing as crumpled napkin, squirrel, etc.) Invent little back stories for your object animal if you would like.

Nuts.

I need nuts. Nuts. Nuts. Nuts. My friends think I’m crazy gathering nuts so early.

They say, “Oh, its almost going to be the summer, and we’re eating our winter selection. Why get nuts now.”
I say, “So I’ll have more nuts. And what if something happens to your nuts? Ever think of that? Huh? Huh? Huh?”

They tell me to calm down, but I already am scurrying away to gather more nuts. I dash across the parking lot, under cars, climbing over cars.

Wait did I say cars? Nuts! I’ll stay perfectly still right here. If I don’t move the car won’t hit me.

Okay, I’m alive. I run across the sidewalk, my hands and feet barely touching the ground. In a few short leaps I have hit the nice green grass. I think this place needs more of this stuff; it’s a lot nice to move on this than the streets and the sidewalks of this place.

Now to find a tree—wait did I hear something—let me look around to see. There’s all these tall people walking around, throwing things around and just laying around.

I have not time I need to find nuts! I climb the tree, climb it as high as I can. The best nuts are on top. At least I think so. I have no time to think! I need nuts! I look around for nuts. There are no nuts in this tree! I climbed all the way up here, and now there are no nuts. Nuts! No Nuts! Maybe the other ones were right about all this; I should calm down and come down from this tree.

No!

There are other trees on the green grass, and surely there must be nuts! If not nuts, at least there should be something these people throw around I can eat. Look, there’s a piece of bread.

One man’s garbage is one small animal’s snack. Well—that took at most three seconds to shove in my mouth. I need more food to eat with my lifestyle, with all the running and climbing I do everyday. Not just some food, I need nuts!

I also have reputation to uphold. I cannot go back to the guys with my tail between my legs. Maybe one of these houses have food. Oh, one of these tall people is walking towards me. I don’t speak their language, but I’ll try.

“I’m just gonna start looking through your garbage! I just need some food. I—”

Oh, they don’t seem to care. Alright, more food for me, I guess! I don’t think they wanted it anyway. Let me just climb up here. This can is kind of slippery. There we go, I’m in there! All this work has made me hungry. Wow, this is treasure trove! Although, I just realized I’m not sure how to get out of here—nuts! Eh, the food will keep me company… and look! Nuts!