It is a rainy Friday here on the US East coast. It’s a great day for staying inside with a cup of tea and reading the dictionary. HAHA! I kid!

I will likely never use today’s Dictionary.com Word of the Day after I wrangle it into a haiku for you. It’s not one of those words that roll off the tongue. And to be honest, I don’t spend a lot of time discussing tortoises or things that pertain to or resemble them. Testudinal entered the English language in the 1800’s. It gets its origin from the Latin word, testūdō for “tortoise”. There’s not alot of info online about the word. No witty anecdotes or fascinating history to share. It’s just a word that I didn’t know before today and now that I do will likely forget tomorrow.

That being said, I do love the little critters. We inherited a Russian tortoise from a family member several years ago. We call him Flash. You can laugh…we meant it to be funny because of course tortoises are not considered the fastest of creatures. Though I will tell you, if he has a mind to, Flash can move quite quickly!

Now you may know that I have a few dogs…and a few cats…and a tropical bird…and now you know I have a tortoise too. Yes, I live in a zoo. It’s a character flaw actually. I am a sucker for critters with no place to go and I can’t say no.  And I can’t resist snuggling with all my adoptees…even Flash.

Don’t let anyone tell you that a cold reptile does not have the capacity to be warm and fuzzy. I am here to tell you that Flash is one of the best snugglers I know. He goes for the crook in my neck and blows in my ear before falling asleep.

Here are a few photos of me and Flash…followed by my haiku inspired by the Tale of the Tortoise and the Hare.

Have a great weekend!

A tortoise will win
at a testudinal pace
never count him out.

kat ~ 30 September 2016