Flow English Advanced: Lesson 19
Decapitated Cat
There is a man named Clem. He has a little Tonkinese cat named Teton whom he loves like a daughter. But, he has a problem; the cat is always getting into lots of trouble! She also likes dirt and mud. So she is always very, very dirty. Teton is a naughty, dirty kitty!
Clem didn’t know what to do. No matter what he did, Teton was always causing lots of problems. One day Clem wanted to work on his garden and plant corn and catnip for Teton. He was going out the door and shutting it, when, all of a sudden, the cat tried to run outside. She wanted to dig in the muddy garden.
“Hold on!!” Clem said. But it was too late. Naughty little Teton made a rush for it and got her neck caught in the closing door! The closing door decapitated Teton! Teton howled out loud as her head bounced onto the spongy ground.
“Oh no! That is the third time this week she got her head cut off,” Clem said. He grabbed Teton’s head and body and took her to the sink to wash off the dirt. “No, don’t wash off the dirt. I like it!” said Teton. Teton can speak two languages: she can speak “Cat” and English.
So Clem packs Teton’s head and body into a cooler with liquid nitrogen to keep her alive. He drives her to the veterinarian in his new Toyota Prius- a hybrid car. Teton gets dirt and red cat blood all over his new pearl-white car!
The veterinarian’s name is Dr. Sam. Dr. Sam sews Teton’s head back on with biodegradable thread. He does not wash out the wound because he knows Teton loves dirt and germs. “Holy Cow, that is the third time this week I had to sew her head back on! She sure is a poorly behaved cat!” says Dr. Sam.
Dr. Sam gives Clem the bill, it cost $1.99. It’s a bulk rate for having the cat’s head sewed back on so many times in one week. “Thanks Doc,” says Teton in English.
Clem and Teton drive home.
Clem makes Teton wash the cat blood and dirt off his new hybrid. Later at night, he makes Teton watch bad television for 6.2 hours of punishment for her poor behavior and for incurring the expense of having to have her head sewn back on for the third time in one week!
Vocabulary:
Tonkinese: cross between Siamese and Burmese cat breeds, often called “Tonks”
loves like a daughter: loves very much
getting into: making or finding
naughty: bad, misbehaving
kitty: cat (slang), kitty-cat
all of a sudden: suddenly
Hold on: stop, wait
made a rush for it: go quickly despite danger
decapitated: head cut off
howled out loud: cried out in pain, hollered
spongy: soft and rubbery
liquid nitrogen: coolant, liquid phase of nitrogen at 77 degrees Kelvin
veterinarian: animal doctor
hybrid car: gas and electric car
all over: on
biodegradable: naturally goes away, goes away over time, does not pollute
wash out the wound: clean the cut or wound
Holy Cow: wow!
poorly behaved: bad behavior
bulk rate: discount for multiple purchases
incurring the expense: causing something that costs a lot of money
Notes:
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