Fat Louie was a fluffy white duck
He lived in an area east of Atlanta, known as Snapfinger Woods, which was comprised of Snapfinger Woods Estates, a converted rustic style apartment complex, and a man made pond known as Snapfinger Woods Lake.
Fat Louie had spent the first years of his life happily swimming and splashing in the pond. He was the biggest and fastest of the small flock of ducks, and soon became head duck .
The human residents of Snapfinger Woods took great joy in feeding Louie and his companions. They would throw bread, cake, and other foods into the lake, and watch with glee as the ducks raced to be the first to reach the food.
Being the biggest and fastest, Louie usually got most of the food. He would eat, and eat,and eat some more.
One morning, Louie woke up with a constant throbbing pain in his right foot. He had developed the gout as a result of all the rich human foods which he was consuming.
The other ducks quickly rejected Louie as being defective, and a danger to the rest of the flock. They chased him out of the water, forcing him to waddle around on dry land.
Louie became Fat Louie, and most days he could be found waddling around the apartment complex ,limping on his bad foot.
Feeling sorry for the “poor” duck, the human residents showered Louie with an array of rich human foods, which made the gout worse.
He was forced to sneak quick splashes in the water, hobbling in and out accompanied by a great deal of squawking and quacking as the rest of the birds rushed to eject him from the pond.
That Spring was unusually rainy, and the small pond gradually overflowed its banks, The water ran down a slight incline, soon filling a nearby gully, and forming a tiny secondary pond.
” It is time for me to get my own home” Fat Louie thought to himself as he surveyed the newly formed mini pond.” I have some duck credits saved up. I think I’ll go to the Greater Atlanta Duck Association (GADA) to apply for Duck ownership to the new pond,’Louie’s Little Lake’, as he had already secretly named it.
Drexel Duck, chief real estate liaison between GADA and the general duck population, was a small grey duck. His down was carefully groomed, and his crown was fluffed to give him the appearance of additional height.
He gave Louie a disinterested stare.” So you want to purchase a residence.. From your application, this is a new construction, Unoccupied?”
Louie quacked “yes”.
” I also see that you have a 10% downe payment” He continued. ” and you want to apply for a Fowl loan for the balance.”
Again Fat Louie nodded his agreement.
Drexel paused for a moment.” I will give you a government acceptance voucher. You will have to pay a small fee and a 10 % gratuity for my trouble,” he held out his wing waiting to recieve his “payment”.
Realizing the way that government worked, Fat Louie slipped him a fat envelope.
Drexel glanced inside, seemed satisfied, then continued.” Take this voucher and go to the Greater Atlanta Fowl Realty Authority(GAFRA) They have mortgage money available for disadvantaged low income fowl.
Fat Louie put down a deposit of 10% and was able to borrow the 90% at 6% interest on a 10 year mortgage.
Louie’s Little Lake belonged to Fat Louie. He quickly settled in, building a soft moss nest on the far end, near the wild grass which Fat Louie loved so much.
Fat Louie had been on human, public dole so long that he forgot how to feed himself.So, every morning he would hobble over to the apartment complex, hopeing to catch the big humans before work, and the smaller humans before school.
He would eat until he was ready to burst, then when all the humans were gone, he would return to his new home in the suburbs.
The following Spring into Summer, the rains stopped, and a drought soon developed. The heat of the summer sun caused many of the lakes and streams in the greater Atlanta area to dry up. Water levels fell , and Fat Louie’s new home gradually returned to its previous rocky dry gully.
Fat Louie went to GAFRA, asking for help. ” My home has dried up. I can’t live there any more. What should I do?”
Earl Grey, the loan officer in charge of GAFRA looked down his beak at Fat Louie.” What do you want me to do? Pay your mortgage .”
Earl Grey was a very large grey goose. He had stopped off in Atanta during a migration several years ago, and had found it much easier to stay and feed off the locals that it would be to continue the endless flying. Back and forth, north then south then north again.
” Haven’t you heard about our new leader?”Asked Earl Grey.” The ADDOP elected a grey goose as flock leader for the first time in history. The word is share the wealth. We are all brothers under the feathers.
“But my home is worth less than the money I owe. “Complaine Louie.”Why should I have to pay ?”
“Did we force you to purchase this property?Asked Earl Grey.
“Listen,” said Fat Louie. It is my right as a citizen of the common flock to get assistance from the American Democratic Duck Open Party .(ADDOP)
“Sorry, ” Replied Earl Grey, ” Due to the prolonged drought, we have allowed our brother birds, including Geese, Swans, and migratory flocks from across the border, to share our lakes and ponds. If you need assistance, get in line with the Illegal arrivals.”
” Quack, quack, o.k.”said Fat Louie.” In order to help my fellow ducks, I will also help the other birds, even though they don’t help us, or work for the common good.”
” That’s the spirit,” encouraged Earl Grey
As a good citizen of Duck, Fat Louie continued to pay his mortgage. The drought and the recession among humans caused many of the humans to move away. The Complex and Snapfinger Woods Lake became somewhat rundown, and more humans moved away.
With the humans leaving the easy food became more scarce, and Fat Louie was now sharing his wealth with thousands of illegan birds from Mexico.
The good news is that Fat Louie lost weight due to scarcity.
His gout went away.
He met a pretty Daisy Duck, and what happened next is a story for another day.