Wanda’s Heavy Metal Dreams: A Fish Tale

In the quiet town of Millbrook, at Pete’s Pet Paradise, there lived a peculiar goldfish named Wanda who had what you might call unusual aspirations. While other fish were content with their plastic castles and bubble streams, Wanda spent her days pressed against the glass of her tank, watching the construction site across the street with undisguised fascination.

You see, Wanda wasn’t interested in the typical dreams of a fish. She couldn’t care less about finding Nemo or swimming with schools. No, Wanda’s heart belonged to a bright yellow Caterpillar steamroller that rumbled past her window every morning at precisely 8:17 AM.

How, you might ask, did a goldfish develop such an unlikely passion? It all started when Pete, the pet shop owner, accidentally positioned her tank next to the window during last year’s store renovation. That first glimpse of the steamroller, with its massive steel drum flattening the pavement into glossy perfection, was all it took. Wanda was hooked.

The other fish thought she’d lost her scales. “You can’t even breathe out there!” her tankmate Trevor would bubble nervously. “And besides, you don’t have legs!” But Wanda would just swish her tail dismissively. Minor details, she thought.

Every night, Wanda would dream of the impossible. In her watery reveries, she wore a tiny construction helmet (safety first!) and operated that magnificent machine with fins that somehow worked like hands. She imagined the thrill of the engine’s vibration, the satisfaction of smoothing rough asphalt into pristine roads, and the respect she’d command from the construction crew – once they got over the whole talking-fish-operating-heavy-machinery thing.

Pete noticed Wanda’s peculiar behavior, how she would follow the steamroller’s movement with her entire body, performing elaborate figure-eights whenever it passed by. He even caught her attempting to practice steering using a sunken piece of driftwood in her tank. Instead of worrying, he found it endearing and started calling her “Roller” – a nickname that made Wanda positively glow with pride.

One memorable Tuesday, the steamroller broke down right in front of the pet shop. Wanda was beside herself with excitement, performing enthusiastic loops as she watched the mechanics work. She pressed her face so close to the glass that her “nose” left little smudge marks, which Pete later had to clean while trying not to laugh.

The construction workers, on their lunch breaks, would sometimes sit near Wanda’s window to eat their sandwiches. They never realized that the little goldfish watching them with such intensity was mentally taking notes on proper steamroller operation and maintenance. In her mind, she was already one of the crew.

To accommodate her interests, Pete installed a small toy steamroller in her tank – though he had to weight it down to keep it from floating. Wanda spends hours “driving” it around her aquatic domain, flattening imaginary roads between the plastic plants and over the colored gravel.

Some say dreams should be realistic, achievable things. But Wanda believes otherwise. In a world where cats become social media stars and dogs learn to skateboard, who’s to say a goldfish can’t dream of operating heavy machinery?

So if you ever find yourself in Millbrook, stop by Pete’s Pet Paradise. Look for the tank by the window with the tiny toy steamroller. That’s where you’ll find Wanda, the fish who dreams in yellow steel and asphalt, proving that sometimes the best dreams are the ones that make absolutely no sense at all.

Just don’t tell her that steamrollers aren’t designed for underwater use. Some dreams are better left unquestioned.