The Ram Rebellion(46)
We can keep the idea in reserve, but I'm also afraid that just making the bags would take more cloth than we have right now. We pretty well need most of it to put clothes on people. The Ecumenical Emergency Refugee Relief Committee is bound to think that people are more important than prettifying the scenery.
Not to mention what the men are likely to say! I know what Tom said when I mentioned it to him at dinner!
Maybe at the meeting we can have one of those brainstorming sessions where everyone comes up with ideas and then we weed them out gradually.
Would one of those scraper things that the guys are using to scoop up creek gravel to surface the roads work as a giant pooper-scooper, do you suppose?
Your friend,
Veleda Riddle
Dear Veleda,
I do suppose the cloth shortage will end someday. I'd certainly like for it to be soon. My jeans are wearing out, and you know me, I just hate to have to pay those kinds of prices at the tailor's. Perhaps the canvas people will be able to develop those bag things someday. Are they really called horse diapers? I giggle every time I think those words.
J.D. did do one of his snort noises when I mentioned them. Men! No imagination. Can't live with them and there's no resale value. Sigh.
I do wish someone were able to use Fran's composting idea. We're already composting here on the farm, but it's the rabbit waste. It's amazing how much waste such small critters can produce.
I really don't see why one of the scraper thingies wouldn't work. The trick will be getting one of them released for the work, I expect. Still, streets full of horse poop are not a good thing.
Well, I see I have yet another snooty noble type coming up the drive. Wonder if this one will do that "stare past me and demand" thing like the last one? I'm really getting tired of this dress-up and suck-up thing. And, I still don't understand this fascination with that rotten ram.
See you at the meeting.
Your friend,
Flo Richards
Dear Flo,
I asked Hannelore Heinzerling, and she agreed on three things—first on the luncheon date. She also agreed that it would be a good thing to be members of a League of Women Voters, and she asked about childcare plans for the meetings. I told her that I had no idea what the plans were, but that I'd be happy for Kathi to volunteer as a sitter. I told Kathi that it was her civic duty, and now she has gotten Anne Penzey to help her. Mina Matz wanted to help, but Kathi told her that since she's eighteen now, she should come to the meeting.
Did you know an idea would grow like this?
Finally, Hannelore thinks it's a shame that no one is making money off all of the horse manure. "It should be good for something beyond flies," is what she said. I really think that we could get one of those guys from the back hills interested in using it for a nitrogen farm for stuff that goes "boom." As for a place to put the manure, is the meeting at the library? Could Christy Penzey use all those land maps to help us figure out if there's even a place in the ring of Fire that would be safe to compost that much manure without endangering the water downstream?
Your frustrated friend,
Fran Genucci
P.S. Thank you so much for entertaining us with that ram of yours. Which of your partners writes those stories? Is it Herr Sprug? He seems so quiet.
Dear Fran,
It is amazing, isn't it? Once I finally convinced Anna Sprug, Ilsa Schmidt and Maggie Utt, that, YES, they really can vote and have a say in the world, they dug right in. So, they and Lena and I will all be at the meeting. We do plan to leave the children at home, under Ursula's supervision. There's just so many kids around this house, I don't feel it would be right to overload the baby-sitters that way.
Veleda and I have been discussing the manure problem. I certainly agree that it ought to be good for something. How about you talk to one of those guys you mentioned and see what he says? We're thinking that we might be able to at least get the stuff in question scraped off the roads with one of those scraper thingies. Surely if we get enough signatures and raise enough of a stink, the city council will listen. Have you spoken to Christy? It would be good if she could come to the meeting. That way, she could report to everyone at one time.
That reminds me, Veleda said there's a meeting, but I'm not sure where it is. Guess we better find out, hadn't we?
Fran, I have no idea who is writing those stories. It's making me crazy. It wasn't so bad when they just talked about the devil in sheep's clothing, but that last one! I'm seriously ticked off about it. The very idea that I'm going buggy! I do not think the ram is smarter than I am. Honestly! I really don't think it could be Johan Sprug, unless he's hiding a much better understanding of English than I think he has. Although, there are translators, now that I think about it. Hmmm. I assure you, when I find out who's doing this, I will do something. Maybe I can put whoever it is in the pen with Brillo.