I’ve had a turtle ever since I was a kid- her name’s Gigaflop, but we usually just called her Turtle. She was really unique in that she’d let you pet the top of her head. Most reptiles aren’t that friendly, I think. She got to do some pretty special things as a turtle, so I wanted to share some of them.
Here’s a painting that she did in maybe 1996 or 1997. My friend Todd also had a turtle (larger, and not as friendly). We put them in boxes with canvases and paint, and they ran around the canvas to make these. I’m glad I still have it.
At some point after I moved to LA, I heard about a bar named Brennan’s where you could race turtles. I built a spoiler out of duct tape and paperclips, and put it on her shell. Added a racing stripe. A bunch of my friends came out to cheer her on. I remember Chris sticking his phone into the box to play “Eye of the Tiger” to psych her up. She raced against the house turtles, sliders, and got last place. It was still pretty awesome tho.
Next, at Akasan’s going away party, my sister built a huge cardboard replica of Japan (complete with correct Kanji) that was also a turtle racing track. We raced my turtle against Ashley’s tiny baby sliders. My turtle won that race.
She’s partied and chilled, and is pretty much the best turtle anyone could ask for. She’s participated in GISHWHES and been on periscope and watched pretty much all of the TMNT cartoons. <3
