Well, I’m on my way to Pearl the human’s to get Pearl the dog. My routine hasn’t changed much even though things at Pearl the human’s store have changed big time. You should have been here to see it all go down.
Pearl’s Elixerfixer has been selling like hotcakes. Pearl even bought a new pink car, so we don’t have to drive the clunky old Jeep anymore.
We have to go to Pierre two or three times a week for the Elixafixer ingredients. Red Owl can hardly keep up with us. I think they look at us sideways when we go in there, but Pearl says they don’t. She wouldn’t know anyway because she always wears her huge sunglasses. She says she has to be incog neat oh, which means hard to identify.
I think Pearl mainly likes the Red Owl Store because she loves red and she sort of looks like an owl. I’m not being mean…She just does.
We’ve been making so much money at Pearl’s Busy Nest that we’ve been able to make a lot of improvements. Grace still gets letters from people who want her to help them solve their problems, and she does her best to help them out. It’s only backfired a couple of times. Once was because she didn’t run it by me first. You see, I recognize everyone’s problems because I know everybody in town and I notice things. There aren’t very many people in Murdo who have problems that I don’t know about. They all think Grace has got extra sensories, but it’s just me operating in the background. Grace thinks she’s just a few columns away from being approached by The Murdo Coyote to put her column in the paper. I know she must be itching to make money like Pearl does with her Elixerfixer. I’m at Sanderson’s Store now, so I’m going to run upstairs and get Pearl the dog. It’s Saturday, so Pearl’s Busy Nest will be super busy.
Well, we aren’t there yet, but we almost are.
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“Hi, Grace, Hi, Pearl.”We’re here, are you?”
“Lan sakes, Ellie, I thought you would never get here. I have a situation and I desperately need your help! Come over here and I’ll show you.”
It’s not like I’ve never seen Grace in such a state before. It doesn’t take much to get her hands wringing. Her little feet with her little pumps, strapped on with rubber bands, just trot all over the place.
“Here, Ellie,” she said. “Read this.”
Dear Grace,
Thank you for advising me last week. Your plan worked like a charm. I knew I couldn’t get to Sanderson’s in time to get some of that good sweet corn before the Methodist church ladies and their friends got there, so I called the store and told that nice lady who works there that I would like her to reserve two dozen ears for me. I hinted that I was one of the Methodist Church basement cooks…just like you said to.
Well, I went into the store a few hours later, and got my corn. The nice lady was all a flutter. Apparently, she got a royal chewing out by the basement cooks, because they didn’t have enough corn for the funeral luncheons this week, and the families of the dearly departed would have to be fed Lima beans and who likes Lima beans?
Well, the nice lady at the store asked me why I would call and make her think I was a Methodist. She said she felt fairly certain that I was a Lutheran, and she happened to know the Lutheran’s didn’t have any of their parishioners go to the other side this week.
I told her I was merely taking the advice of “Dear Grace.” I thought I should let you know. The corn was delicious.
What should I do next week, “Dear Grace?”
I was feeling panic well up inside. We were surely going to get a visit from The Sanderson’s Store lady and it would no doubt be unpleasant.
My heart was pumping which made my ears ring. I heard Pearl’s voice above it all.
“Essie!” (Pearl never knows my name.) “You and Grace get Pearl and go get in the car, while I put a note on the door saying we will be closed today. I’ve got to go to Pierre to get more supplies. On the way back, we’ll get a carload of sweet corn.”
“Where are we going to buy sweet corn, Pearl?” I wasn’t following her train of thoughts.
“We’re not going to buy it, Essie. We’re going to pick out a good cornfield and help ourselves. They will never miss it. We’ll sell it for a little bit more than Sanderson’s Store does. That’s the only right thing to do. We won’t affect their business at all. That letter writing snit can buy her corn from us. Let’s get going, girls.”
“But Pearl…Grace looked bewildered. “How is this going to get Dear Grace back in the good graces of Sanderson’s?”
Pearl was flying out the door. “We’ll tell them we are so sorry, we intended no harm. We thought the conniving woman was a Methodist, too. we’ll even give them two dozen of our ears. Now grab my sunglasses and let’s go!”
I can’t believe it…We’re going to steal corn in a pink car.
Are you watching Grace? Hurry Essie and Pearl the dog. It’s getting dark.”
I Like Lima Beans.
Vrooom…..