Sneak Peek Carousel Week: Hello Skunk

Today we had the privilege of sitting down with Skunk, one of the characters created for the new custom carousel on the Rose Kennedy Greenway.

Skunk

Thank you for taking the time to chat with us, we know you are a bit shy sometimes.

I think I am often misunderstood. The truth is, I am an extrovert – I love people, especially children, but I am quite little and do scare easily. Need I say more? I think you know what happens then. Over the years I’ve learned to tell my non-skunk friends “Stock up on tomato juice and let’s have fun!”

What do you think of city life so far?

I could hardly sit still when I found out all seven of us would be coming to Boston for Sneak Peek Carousel Week. Friday’s “class photo” was a lot of fun, but the highlight for me was my time at the Greenway Open Market on Saturday. The attention was enough to make me blush. You know that joke “what’s black and white and ‘red’ all over?” It wasn’t a newspaper! It was me!

What has it been like, getting to know Jeff Briggs?

Jeff and his wife Lindley have been taking really good care of us up in Newburyport. He’s kind of a father figure to me. He works a lot, and he is really taking great pains to be sure we have a wonderful life on the Greenway.  He tells me all the time to be the very best me I can be. So, I am working on that.

Are you friends with the other carousel characters?

I like all of them, I really do. In the beginning, I think they had certain preconceived ideas about me, but we have really bonded during our time in Boston. I have to hand it to Nancy Brennan. She is very accepting of people and animals, and she asked us all to focus on the positive and realize we could be one big happy family. That made a huge difference. I’m a fan.

Are there other skunks you particularly admire?

I grew up in the shadow of Pepé Le Pew, a towering presence in the skunk community. He really helped put skunks on the map. Admittedly, I don’t have a French accent, but I hope I can generate just as much fun and excitement on the Greenway.

Where are you going to appear next?

I’m enjoying the view from a storefront in the North End for the first part of this week, but by Thursday I should be rolling down the Greenway to a favorite lunch and farmer’s market spot.

Sneak Peek Carousel Week is off and running. All seven new carousel characters will be in a public location along the Greenway Corridor.  We’ll post a riddle on Twitter and Facebook the day before with clues to which character is being featured that day and its location. If you find it and get there between 11AM to 1PM, you can ride the character, get a picture taken, and enter to win free carousel tickets. See how many you can figure out!