Those 70ish Girls

There’s this kid in school who says I’m nosy and people should be very careful around me. That offends me. I like to think of myself as observant. If I see something that’s not quite right, I take note. And after I take note of something I think is full of smoke and mirrors, I pay extra attention and quietly follow-up. That’s being observant. Nosy is when you go around asking people personal questions like, “How much money do you make?”

I look at myself as being more like a sleuth. Sleuths happen onto suspicious things all the time. Look at Nancy Drew. Everywhere her roadster took her, there was a mystery to solve. She got into some pretty tight spots sometimes, but her smarts always got her out just in time. I doubt anyone ever called her Nosy Nancy.

Oh well, I’m not going to worry about it. I don’t worry about much. I think that’s why Mom named me Victory. I like my name, Victory. People try to call me Vicki or Tory, but I don’t answer to anything but Victory. Someday, after I’ve solved a few high-profile mysteries, people will remember my name. They’ll say, Isn’t that Victory Lane something? My last name is Lane. I really should remember to thank my mother for my name. If nothing else, she gave me a great name. One that’s fitting for a sleuth.

Well, I better get out there and nose…I mean sleuth around. There’s got to be a mystery to be solved around here somewhere. I just need something to cut my teeth on. I don’t need a murder to solve or anything. I’m really not used to the idea of dead bodies yet. I know death comes with most run of the mill detective work, but I’m still pretty young. I don’t like blood much either. Especially if it’s my blood. I got a bloody nose once and I passed right out at the sight of my own blood.

You know what I just noticed? I’m casually looking across the street and who do I see but Penny Walter’s Uncle Jimbo. I wonder what old Uncle Jimbo is doing back in town. Boy he’s hard to look at. It must be two years since he left and he looks like he’s got the very same clothes on as when I last saw him. He was sitting at the bus stop in front of the Texaco gas station. Penny’s mom kicked him out of their house. Penny said it was because all he ever did was sit in their squeaky rocking chair and watch I love Lucy reruns. Penny said all you could hear all day long was squeaking and laughing and it drove them all to distraction. I’ve always thought there was more to it. I suspected he left under kind of a cloud. I wonder where he went? I wonder why he’s back?

This could be a good mystery for me to solve. Years from now people around here will look back and say, “I knew Victory Lane before she was a world-famous detective.”

I’ll get started on solving this thing as soon as I possibly can, but first I’m going home to fix myself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. You should never sleuth on an empty stomach.

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I was in the mood to write a little story.

Guess what? Kip just added it up. We traveled 7,439 miles on our 44 day trip.

You did good, SeeYa