Sunday, 07 April 2002 | Tree

There's a tree on Interstate 40 just west of Raleigh that is considerably higher than the others. The top of it pokes maybe 30 feet out of the rest of the forest like an overripe teenager, just next to the east-bound lanes. I notice it almost every time I approach it, but, as I get closer, I am a victim of angles and it disappears. Sometimes I wonder if anyone else sees the gangly, symmetrical tree, or if I am the only one who appreciates its dissimilarity.

Well, today, I found out it isn't a tree at all, but a radio tower dressed like a tree. Just to be sure, I found my way to its metal base, and stared up at it in disappointment, feeling foolish. I've been tricked.