Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Father, no! Not the Bore Worms!
I was cutting the grass when I noticed that are neglected tomato plants looked a lot shorter. Every leaf was gone, and every stem was about two to three inches shorter than it had been. On the sole surviving plant, I spied a misshapen tomato hanging under the stem. On closer inspection, I had a moment of Obi-Wan clarity….that’s no tomato, that’s a worm. A tomato worm, to be exact.
Ironically, Jane had been working on an illustration for a Science Fiction Literature conference at the University. In images of 1940’s pulp art, the iconical image of the plastic domed space suit kept popping up over and over. That suit is actually based on an early atmospheric suit designed the Air Force, that, ironically, was named the tomato worm suit, as its hinges were based on the very same worm I just found in the garden.
Mere coincidence, or fate? Believe it or not.
By the way, doesn’t that Air Force guy look a lot like Deep Six?
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