Most headlines are so boring and predictable, like these from today’s edition of the New York Times:
E.P.A Asks for Stricter Rules for Pollutants Causing Smog
and
Chinese Decision on Rates Seen as ‘Turning Point’
Important, sure, but those headlines could be from any paper anytime. Once in a while a headline comes along that captures the imagination, that tickles the mind and spurs the heart to imagine not only what is, but what could be.
Alien Iguanas Free-Fall From Florida Trees
It’s poetic. It’s slapstick. It’s the most interesting weather headline I’ve read in a long time. I hope the iguanas (who fell from trees because the temperature in Florida dropped so low the poor cold-blooded creatures lost their grip) don’t suffer too many bruises when it warms up and they wake back up. Can you imagine? You’re sitting there, not even aware it’s cold, though you do note the grayish cast to your fingers and toes. Next thing you know, you’re lying on your back, staring up into the sun. “What day is it?” you ask, as if you’ve just slept off a double dose of Ni-Quil.
I know it’s not important (unless you’re an iguana), but it’s interesting and unusual and sets a writer’s brain spinning after the various stories it could concoct from such an inspiring headline.
Epilogue 