Turtles and tortoises and terrapins are all testudines.

Alligators and crocodiles and caimans are members of the crocodilian species.

The confusing difference/distinction is pretty much what they have in common, the testudines and the crocodilia order.

We have enough in our front yards – barely – to make a post.

And the anthropomorphic surfing turtle from around the corner from Mark Olivier’s beach trash art house on Colusa:

It turns out that this is a Mark Olivier piece.

Christina told me this story. Olivier first installed the surfing turtle at the Albany Bulb. A storm blasted it. Olivier put it back together and brought it home to Colusa.

Sure enough – here is a photo from Mark Olivier’s website showing the surfing turtle in front of his house.  Christina, an artist herself, loved it and bought it.

I asked my friend to look through the photos.  After a somewhat deserved somewhat snide remark about the just-barely-quorum satisfying number of photos, he suggested a game.  We each write down the most famous turtle and the most famous alligator in popular culture.  Okay.

Turtle first.  We both went the same way – Aesop.

And then, alligator / crocodile.  I flirted with the croc in Peter Pan (Mary Martin version) but then went with my gut.  My friend went the same way!

It’s a safe bet with the two of us.  If anyone or anything from Pogo is one possible answer, it is the only possible answer.  We agreed to get out some of the old Pogo books and look at them tonight, an assuring ritual.

So, though, we were two for two.  Setting aside the fact that there are only seven photos, what did my friend think of the post?