herself into a dither over it.
When she had time, Annie figured
she'd better walk by Jerry's Auto Repair Shop. She'd look around in
the driveway for a puddle of spilled grease to put in the
protesting wheel’s axle. That always got the wheel spinning again.
She'd have relief for just a little while at least.
The grocery cart was loaded which
made it harder to push even when the wheel didn't freeze up. She
had to allow for that, but Annie felt as if her finds were money in
the bank to her. She was purely glad for every item she found since
she always had something to trade.
Besides, she wouldn't know what to
part with if she had to throw something away to lighten the load.
Sure as shooting, what she threw away would be what she needed to
trade to somebody for something else next time around.
The black leather gloves with holes
in the fingers perhaps. Nah, if she hadn't traded the gloves by
winter, she could use them herself when the weather turned cold.
Besides, they weighed next to nothing which wouldn't help the
cart's weight problem.
What about the pair of scuffed men's
slip on penny loafers? She couldn't wear them. They were way too
big for her unless she wore several pairs of socks.
Besides, she preferred her cowboy
boots. Her boots went along with her outfit, a red cowl necked
blouse and a tan riding skirt.
There was a bit of wear left in the
men's penny loafers. Might be someone would want them bad enough to
trade her something that she could use for herself or sell for
money.
She didn't see any need to ponder on
the rest of the treasures in the cantankerous shopping cart. She'd
just make excuses for all the other items. She knew there wasn't a
thing she'd get rid of. Not after she worked so hard. She'd spent
hours rummaging in the city park trash cans and store alley
dumpsters just to fill the cart.
Annie shaded her eyes with a hand,
lifted her head and checked out the sun's position in the sky. It
was around noon time. Right now what she needed was some food to
eat. She hadn't eaten since yesterday's lunch. As if to remind her,
Annie's stomach rumbled like a couple dogs fighting over a
bone.
She pushed the cart by Smoky Joe's
BBQ diner. Coming up was the fancy hotel, The Sheradon. Those two
establishments shared an alley. Their trash barrels and dumpsters
were a good place to look for food scraps at lunch time.
The hotel had a high society
restaurant. At least, that was what she'd been told. If she tried
to stick her head in the lobby door to find out for sure, Annie
figured an hombre, in a black tuxedo, was bound to throw her out
before she had time to get a gander at the restaurant.
Just smelling the delicious aromas
coming from the two eateries kitchen exhausts made Annie hopeful.
If she was lucky enough to find fresh scraps in a dumpster from one
eating joint or the other, she'd have the energy to keep pushing
that stubborn cart the rest of the day.
Getting lucky was the key. She
didn't have much faith in her luck these days. If she had a
horseshoe in her cart, it surely would be turned upside down to let
all her luck run out.
Annie looked down the alley. The
long walk way was as dim and shadowy as dusk on the government
range where she once herded cattle. For as sunny as it was on that
spring day, not much light filtered between the two high brick
walls of the buildings. The cool, dim lighting sent a spooky
feeling running through Annie the minute she entered the alley. Her
premonitions were usually right so what was going to happen to her
next?
Chapter 2
A rat, hunkered low and skittered
from under a dumpster, about as red as her shirt, on the hotel side
of the alley. The nasty creature had the nerve to rush in front of
her as if she didn't exist and cross the alley to a stack of blue,
cooking oil drums. The critter squeeze in between two drums to
hide.
One time the Square K ranch's
cookie, Flapjack Pete, told her that for every rat Annie saw there
would be ten more hidden close by. She
When she had time, Annie figured
she'd better walk by Jerry's Auto Repair Shop. She'd look around in
the driveway for a puddle of spilled grease to put in the
protesting wheel’s axle. That always got the wheel spinning again.
She'd have relief for just a little while at least.
The grocery cart was loaded which
made it harder to push even when the wheel didn't freeze up. She
had to allow for that, but Annie felt as if her finds were money in
the bank to her. She was purely glad for every item she found since
she always had something to trade.
Besides, she wouldn't know what to
part with if she had to throw something away to lighten the load.
Sure as shooting, what she threw away would be what she needed to
trade to somebody for something else next time around.
The black leather gloves with holes
in the fingers perhaps. Nah, if she hadn't traded the gloves by
winter, she could use them herself when the weather turned cold.
Besides, they weighed next to nothing which wouldn't help the
cart's weight problem.
What about the pair of scuffed men's
slip on penny loafers? She couldn't wear them. They were way too
big for her unless she wore several pairs of socks.
Besides, she preferred her cowboy
boots. Her boots went along with her outfit, a red cowl necked
blouse and a tan riding skirt.
There was a bit of wear left in the
men's penny loafers. Might be someone would want them bad enough to
trade her something that she could use for herself or sell for
money.
She didn't see any need to ponder on
the rest of the treasures in the cantankerous shopping cart. She'd
just make excuses for all the other items. She knew there wasn't a
thing she'd get rid of. Not after she worked so hard. She'd spent
hours rummaging in the city park trash cans and store alley
dumpsters just to fill the cart.
Annie shaded her eyes with a hand,
lifted her head and checked out the sun's position in the sky. It
was around noon time. Right now what she needed was some food to
eat. She hadn't eaten since yesterday's lunch. As if to remind her,
Annie's stomach rumbled like a couple dogs fighting over a
bone.
She pushed the cart by Smoky Joe's
BBQ diner. Coming up was the fancy hotel, The Sheradon. Those two
establishments shared an alley. Their trash barrels and dumpsters
were a good place to look for food scraps at lunch time.
The hotel had a high society
restaurant. At least, that was what she'd been told. If she tried
to stick her head in the lobby door to find out for sure, Annie
figured an hombre, in a black tuxedo, was bound to throw her out
before she had time to get a gander at the restaurant.
Just smelling the delicious aromas
coming from the two eateries kitchen exhausts made Annie hopeful.
If she was lucky enough to find fresh scraps in a dumpster from one
eating joint or the other, she'd have the energy to keep pushing
that stubborn cart the rest of the day.
Getting lucky was the key. She
didn't have much faith in her luck these days. If she had a
horseshoe in her cart, it surely would be turned upside down to let
all her luck run out.
Annie looked down the alley. The
long walk way was as dim and shadowy as dusk on the government
range where she once herded cattle. For as sunny as it was on that
spring day, not much light filtered between the two high brick
walls of the buildings. The cool, dim lighting sent a spooky
feeling running through Annie the minute she entered the alley. Her
premonitions were usually right so what was going to happen to her
next?
Chapter 2
A rat, hunkered low and skittered
from under a dumpster, about as red as her shirt, on the hotel side
of the alley. The nasty creature had the nerve to rush in front of
her as if she didn't exist and cross the alley to a stack of blue,
cooking oil drums. The critter squeeze in between two drums to
hide.
One time the Square K ranch's
cookie, Flapjack Pete, told her that for every rat Annie saw there
would be ten more hidden close by. She
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