When John was thirteen he had a girl friend whom he talked to on the phone; for hours. So, he told me, not wanting to tie up his families’ phone.. I interrupted here, “You mean you wanted privacy.”… yes he admitted, he wanted privacy too, he walked to a pay phone. The phone was located a mile, or maybe only half a mile, away and outside a small store at the end of their parking lot. A “friend” had shown him the trick of using a penny instead of a dime.  The “second” time he used the penny the woman who ran the store called the police. When the police came they said the pay phone was full of pennies and did he know anything about that. John, having not yet developed George Washingtonian qualities, acted surprised and shocked.
Now here’s where the cheek comes in; He ASKS them for a RIDE HOME! And they give it to him! I bet his fiends were impressed.
I mention John here because he’s the inspiration behind so many of the children’s books I author and illustrate. Even today he’s full of humorous adventures, one of which I’ll mention in tomorrow’s blog.

Thanks for reading, Nancy Mauerman.  nancymauerman.com