WARD RICKER

It was a hot, dry day, and Chester decided to stroll down to the local pond to get a drink. Arriving at the water hole he encountered his old nemesis, Freddie. Before he could get a single gulp of water Freddie was at him already.

"You damned chipmunks. Why don't you stay in your own area and leave us frogs alone?" he called out.

"Not you again," Chester responded. "Do you ever let up? It's not your pond, just because you live here. We chipmunks have to drink, too, you know."

"Oh, go off and dry up!" Freddie retorted. "Who cares if you chipmunks all dry up and die off?"

"Oh, go blow it out your frog leg," said Chester as he bent his head down and took a sip.

"It hasn't rained in two months," Freddie continued. "There isn't enough water for us frogs and you chipmunks, too. If it wasn't for all this heat and dryness I would come over there and hop on your head. Just go away and leave us alone."

Chester finished his drink and was about to respond when he heard a sound off in the distance. "What was that?" he asked.

"What was what?" Freddie asked.

"That rumble I just heard," Chester said.

"What rum…" Freddie started to ask, when it happened again a little bit louder. "Oh that rumble. Sounds like thunder to me."

"Yes, I think it is," Chester responded. "Sounds like it is coming from the north, where the desert is."

"Well, good," Freddie said. "Why don't you go check it out and get out of my pond?"

"Actually, I think I will," responded Chester.

"Good! Get out of my sight. I'm sick of looking at you."

Chester ran off up the dry creek bed that led north out of the pond, ignoring the flash flood warning signs along the creek. He heard some more rumbling as he was going. Then, when he had gone a mile or so north, he heard a loud clap of thunder and saw the lightning flash overhead. "Oh, whee! We are going to get some rain," he exclaimed.

Another lightning bolt flashed, and then another, and then suddenly it started pouring rain. "Yes!" he exclaimed again. "Hurray for the rain," not realizing the danger he was in.

Just then he heard another rumbling a little bit different than before. "Hmm, what's that, I wonder?" he asked himself.

Then he saw it, but it was too late. It was almost like a wall of water when it hit him and knocked him off his feet. He thrashed and struggled, trying to keep his head above the water and get to the side of the creek, but the current kept him in the stream.

"Help!" he tried to yell, but each time he did he got a mouth full of muddy water. "Oh no, I'm a goner," he said to himself.

Just then, though, he saw something on top of the water. It was green and was getting closer. "It's floating," he said. "If I can just grab that, maybe it will save me."

He thrashed around a few moments longer, trying to get closer to the object. Finally, it was upon him, and he grabbed it.

"Ouch!" he yelled. "That thing is sharp," as he let go.

"Oh no, I'll drown if I don't hold on," he said and thrashed around a little bit more until he got hold of it again.

"Ouch!" he cried again, but held on this time. He pulled himself up onto the object, yelling and cussing the whole time because of the pain. "It's a damned cactus," he said once he was on board. "It must have come loose in the desert up north and floated down in the torrent."

He sat down inside the cactus leaf, pulled out a spine from his front paw, and licked his wounds as best he could with the leaf bouncing and bobbling in the wild torrent around him.

He pulled another spine out of his rump just in time to look up and see that he was nearing the pond where Freddie lived. "Oh no. I hope I don't run into that varmint again. That would just add insult to injury."

As soon as he had said it, though, he looked out and saw a green splotch up ahead. It was Freddie clinging to a limb that was overhanging the water. He started yelling as he approached. "Ha, ha, you overgrown lump of green lard. You're stuck now, aren't…."

"Thunk!" he then heard, and felt the weight of Freddie's body landing on the leaf.

"Oh, no, not you!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, no, not you!" Freddie echoed.

"What are you doing on my cactus leaf?" Chester asked.

"The same thing you are doing," Freddie replied. "Saving my hide!"

"Why don't you just jump off into your pond? You wanted more water, didn't you?" Chester continued.

"Oh, no. This is too much. I ain't jumping into that raging mess!" Freddie replied. "Why don't you jump off and leave me alone?"

"No way! We chipmunks don't swim," Chester responded. "This is my boat, and I'm staying on board."

"Well, I guess we're just stuck with each other then," Freddie replied.

"Hrrrumph!" Chester grunted back.

"Hrrrumph!" Freddie grunted back in agreement.

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