Monday, March 26, 2007

New impressions

This sounds like something out of Raymond Roussel:

(AP) -- A woman was caught with three crocodiles strapped to her waist at the Gaza-Egypt border crossing after guards noticed that she looked "strangely fat," officials said.

The woman's odd shape raised suspicions at the Rafah terminal in southern Gaza, and a body search by a female border guard turned up the animals, each about 50 centimeters (20 inches) long, concealed underneath her loose robe, according to Maria Telleria, spokeswoman for the European observers who run the crossing.

"The woman looked strangely fat. Even though she was veiled and covered, even with so many clothes on there was something strange," Telleria said.

The incident, which took place on Thursday, sparked panic at the crossing.

"The policewoman screamed and ran out of the room, and then women began screaming and panicking when they heard," Telleria said. But when the hysteria died down, she said, "everybody was admiring a woman who is able to tie crocodiles to her body."

2 Comments:

Blogger Jenny Davidson said...

That is lovely! I want a baby crocodile...

6:14 PM  
Blogger Laird Hunt said...

Roussel or his great inheritors Mathews and Perec. The story has that Oulipian texture about it, as if the writer of the article, storyless, had taken on the constraint of writing a piece that included crocodiles, veils and apparently overweight women.

But then life, imitating Oulipo, does occasionally just spit these things out.

12:23 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home


View My Stats