Kids say (and think) the darndest things. And as a kid, I was definitely no exception to that rule.
I grew up as the BIGGEST Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) fan in the world. I think I have every TMNT action figure ever made (and can still name them all)! I also had the sewer, the Technodrome, the Turtle Blimp, the Turtle Tank, the Turtle Van, and the Rat King’s boat! Needless to say, my favorite animal when I was smaller was the turtle—even the ones that had never been exposed to radioactive ooze and grew to human size and learned karate from their father figure, and overgrown rat named Master Splinter. J
So in the days when my imagination was running wild with the thought of crime-fighting turtles, I saw them everywhere. From a long, straight stick that looked as though it could be a bo staff used by the one and only Donatello to my desire for the TMNT’s favorite food cheese pizza, I was interested in all things “turtles” and adamant in my desire for a world in which humans and turtles could peacefully coexist.
That’s why I was so excited when I discovered that my parents’ car came with an indicator on the dashboard that would let you know when you were approaching a turtle in the road so that you could avoid it! What a great way to save the lives of turtles crossing the road! The icon would light up when approaching a turtle in the road, emitting a red image of what the turtle would look like if not avoided. The image was of a turtle, upside-down on its shell, with a single drop of blood dropping from its tail. The dashboard icon has now become standard on all vehicles in order to further promote the harmony and peaceful coexistence of turtles and humans. You may recognize the icon as the image below.
