O l i v e r B e n j a m i n
•
Wade, Bob and Leonard had just finished the third production of
their puppet play, entitled, “In the Beginning Again,” and had
stepped out from behind the stage to count up the booty. They
figured that they’d take out a little so that they could score some
breakfast.
“How much we got, man?” said Bob.
Wade rummaged through the donut box upon which Bob had
penned their play and counted the change inside it, “—seventy-two,
seventy-seven, seventy-eight. Seventy-eight. Seventy-eight cents.”
The others looked a little sad.
“Here, let me count it again.”
He counted again. “Nope, seventy-eight cents. What can we buy
with that?”
“A bag of chips,” said Leonard.
“But we’ve got to save it for a new T.V.!” exclaimed Bob.
“Hey, relax,” said Wade, “It’s still early, and we need our energy.
Which way’s the Megamart?”
Wade looked around and noticed a man sprinting towards them.
He looked kind of familiar. Wade waved.
•
Deaf Lemon was getting ready to take the stage. Melinda was giving
him a back rub and some much-needed encouragement. Truth was,
for the first time in his career, he was nervous. He had played live in
plenty of clubs and auditoriums before, but this was different. This
thing was supersized. Broadcast live all over the United States as well
as other countries, this parade was one of the largest of its kind, and
he knew that he didn’t belong there. People were only still buying his
records because of an excellent marketing and public relations
campaign. He had Melinda to thank for that. He had Melinda to
thank for everything. She could work miracles, it seemed, but for how
long? Even Moses couldn’t keep the Red Sea parted forever.
For the moment, everything seemed okay. He was introduced
and when he walked out on stage, the crowd went wild. Since no
projectiles were being hurled at his Technicolor Lounge Jacket, he
assumed that the reaction was favorable. After welcoming everyone
to the New Year’s Day Parade and Carnival, he sat down to play one
51
 |
 |
 |
 |