solar dog

 

 

solar dog and so on 

 

for Daniel Ionita

 

I sing the whim electric

quod erat demonstrandum

 

today I am inventing the mobile solar collector

(with personality, with attitude)…

practically you may think of it as a battery on wheels

 

like the lawnmower, like the vacuum cleaner

it scoots about nobly questing

(garden or conservatory)

and this one gathers the sun

(may hunt in a pack, herd or coven)

nights come together

roost in a bank

and power our every whim

 

begin with the silent servant idea

it mows, it sweeps, it cleans

it sings

 

by little wheels like feet dash

hither and yon

and why not legs?

and lift them?

why not a tail?

 

I’m making mine a dog

(choose any breed or mongrel)

comes when called

or you could whistle

all self powered

self drive of course

no remote required

… it knows

by sniff

 

and why stop there?

the solar bird’s perfect for cloudy days

soars high

and later homes

 

a multitude perhaps

(batteries like the one in your watch)

 

economies of scale!

consider the solar beetle

(oops goes over)

consider the ant

(thermal power too!)

 

unfortunately our prototype dog

takes its genes too seriously

will run at pond or mire and roll

(might as well have a solar pig)

 

this may cloud the panels

then you’ll have to get them licked

or wait for what comes down

in the next shower

 

still the solar dog

can bury all the bones and dig

and with the right programming

could fetch in the paper

turn things on by nose

draw your sledge across the Antarctic summer

 

tomorrow I’ll be inventing

a cat

(start from scratch)

 

it may yet chase the solar birds

but they’re a later rollout

anyway we can make them faster

or taste bad or spiky

 

solar cat can do your nails

take off rough skin

licks itself clean

makes fur balls

purrs

but can’t be bothered storing

 

it uses all of the power in the sun

just to lap up the freshest of cream