Oh, alonzo!

• Stephanie Eddison, Grade 5
• Short Story
• 2006

Oh, Alonzo!
By Stephanie Eddison 5S
Alonzo is my chimp. I got him from a shop called ‘All Creatures Big and Hairy’. The owner, Mr. Mince, said Alonzo would be no trouble at all. But so far, he has been nothing but trouble.

“Alexandra!” Mum screamed. “Come and get your chimpanzee out of my laundry!” I got off my bed and ran into the laundry. “Oh, Alonzo,” I sighed. He had been trying to help with the washing. Instead, he got himself a ride in the machine, complete with bubbles.
I pulled him out, and he gave me a chimpanzeeish grin. ‘Oh well’, I thought. ‘At least I don’t have to give him a bath later’.

As it turned out, I did have to give Alonzo a bath. After getting out of the washing machine, he decided to dry himself off by hopping into the dryer. He then pressed the ‘GO’ button, without closing the door. Chaos. Mum and I had to catch Alonzo before he hit the wall. After catching him, I brushed his fur while mum made dinner. Alonzo tried to help by baking a cake for dessert. “Oh, Alonzo!” I cried when I saw the chocolate goop all over him. “Time for a bath,” I said, dragging him into the bathroom.

The next day, I was in my room reading a book, when there was a knock on the door. It was dad. He held a flier out to me. “I found this in our mailbox, Alex.” he said. “I thought you might be interested.” I took it from him. This is what it said:
CALLING ALL KIDS!
There is going to be a big pet show at Rusty Park! All pets welcome. Free hot air balloon and ferris wheel rides. Food and drinks for everyone!
“I’ll take Alonzo!” I cried. “He’ll be the greatest chimpanzee at the show!”

Of course, things didn’t go quite as I had hoped. I dressed Alonzo in an old football jersey and shorts. I put him into a wagon and pulled him down the road. When I got to the park, my stomach began to feel queasy. There were heaps of kids! It was a while until the judging began, so I took Alonzo over to the hot air balloon stand. But before I could say, ‘ Two please’, Alonzo jumped into one of the balloons, bit the strings, and floated up into the air. “Oh, Alonzo!” I yelled. Suddenly, the balloon burst, and my chimp plummeted to the ground.

Alonzo spent the next few days in the hospital, but soon he was up to his old tricks again. A few days later, I got into the car to go to school. When mum tried to start the car, it didn’t work. When she opened the bonnet, the fan belt had been chewed. “OH, ALONZO!!”
The End.