Squirrel Seeks Scraps in Space

      My decision to leave this world came to me while I was eating my morning coffee grounds from Ms. M.'s garbage.

      I know.. I know..., caffeine is the last thing anyone wants a squirrel like me to have. But, I need that jolt to start my day. Trust me, NO ONE wants to be around me until after I've had my first few mouthfuls! "But Brisby," you're probably thinking, "You're such a bright and cheerful forager in the community! Surely you'd never be a hissing and scratching mass of fur and claws!" Well, thank you for your kind, and mostly accurate, thoughts but, ask Beakman how he really lost the feathers on his left wing. I'm not proud of what I did to our paper delivery bird. (Though, he should NOT have thrown my copy of the Daily Nut at me before I had my morning fix.)

      Anyway, I was crunching away and reading through the Lost and Recently Chewed (poor Sherlock Bones was missing yet another frisbee) when I saw the article. Smack dab in the middle of page three it said, One Year in Space, Three Years of Science. It told of the change's to a human's body compared to that of his Earth-bound twin after being in space for 340 days. (That annoyed me, the article said ONE YEAR not almost a year. Damned misleading headlines.) The article continued on, with a response underneath from the Coalition of Fur, Fangs, and Feathers that demanded a sister study on the effects to animals' bodies while living off planet for so long.

      What sane creature would want to float up there for a year? Were there trees in space? Did it have wires to scamper across or cars to play dodge with? Could one taunt pets through the windows of other spaceships? Where did all of the garbage go?

      That question stopped me.

      Trash. Waste. Deliciously delectable refuse! Humans were guaranteed to leave some behind. It was probably there, floating free and unclaimed. Ready for an enterprising and intelligent squirrel to swim and nibble through to her heart's content. Did rubbish taste different in space? Were the smells the same? These were questions that needed answers.

      So, for the sake of science, I sent in my application. Twelve suns later, the Coalition sent me an approval letter. They said that they were honored to accept such a qualified and resourceful volunteer such as myself into the next launch. (Actually, the words were "willing" and "sacrifice" but you get the idea.)

      I began my training. Days were spent learning how to keep still while being shaken in a tin can, how to chew through a tube to get the squishy food inside, and most importantly, how to scamper away from surprised humans while floating. Through all of the rigorous preparations, I pondered if I had made the right decision. I worried that I'd have to share the space garbage with the other explorers. I was curious about what I would do to keep myself from being bored out of my mind.

      I wondered if there would be coffee grounds on board the ship.

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Thank you @Omra-sky for my sweet Squirrple Necklace separator!Main image by @brisbyFor the 5 Minute Freewrite Prompt - one year by @mariannewest.Thanks Marianne!

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art and flair courtesy of @PegasusPhysics

Squirrel World GIF by @Omra-sky. Thank you! 😻
GIF by @Omra-sky.
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