Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?

Because the rooster was chasing her.

No. Really.

Right smack in the middle of this very modern metropolis known as Houston. There we were - close to 20 cars - held to a standstill by two ten pound birds in the intersection of an otherwise busy street, waiting and watching rather amused (at least we were) while a rooster slowly chased a chicken across the road.

A second chicken was right behind them but seemed to change her mind mid-stream and headed back for the other side. Perhaps she didn't want to be a part of the re-enactment of this age old joke.

And this isn't the first time we'd seen farm creatures roaming the streets of our concrete jungle.

Two years ago we were in North Side (say it Nancy, North Sieeed) - which is a seedy area of Houston at its best - helping with a little something our church calls Houston Project. Approximately ten of us have set out on foot going door to door inviting the folks to come join in the fun at the local church when out of nowhere comes a donkey. A rather large, forbidding looking donkey who is quite agitated to say the least.

Now being the educated city folk that we are, we stood right there in the middle of the road and pretty much right smack in the middle of his path and not one of us is moving. I believe we were in shock. I mean it is not the most normal thing to see coming out of the backyard of a house in inner city Houston. Inner city anywhere for that matter.

A few seconds behind him comes his owner with a rope in his hand yelling in Spanish for the donkey to 'stop' and 'get back here' and I think that he called that donkey a few choice names which might have made matters worse because that darned animal seemed to take offense at whatever he was saying. Okay so I don't know nothing 'bout no donkeys, but I am pretty danged sure the yelling and name calling ain't a working. But that's what he keeps right on doing at the top of his lungs as the pair of them go running right by us standing there with our mouths hanging open.

Apparently this was a common occurrence - at least for these neighbors - as it did not warrant the slightest bit of attention from anyone else but us because folks went right about washing their cars, fussing at their kids, playing in their sprinklers and paying no mind to the man chasing the donkey down the road.

That's what's going on here in Houston folks. What about in your neck of the woods?