gusto.
“Welcome to our First Lady!” Denver Lee exclaimed, warmly embracing Gaylie Girl when the others had finally relinquished her. “The gang’s all here. Now run and go fix yourself a little happy and hurry on back. I can’t wait to tell all of you what this is about.”
“After you’ve allowed me to open the meeting, I presume,” a kibitzing Renza interjected none too amicably.
It was only after returning from fetching herself a Bloody Mary in the kitchen that Gaylie Girl noticed how much open space there was surrounding the group. That enormous whatchamacallit Euss McQueen had saddled Denver Lee with since long before he had left the planet was no longer in evidence, leaving plenty of room for all the Nitwitts to maneuver socially.
“I hope you don’t mind my asking, but what happened to that wheelie-looking thing in the center of the room?” Gaylie Girl said after downing one of the olives that was floating between her ice cubes.
Denver Lee quickly lowered her voice as if passing along a well-kept secret. “I had my handyman lug it upstairs to the attic, where it will now gather dust judiciously forever and ever. No more paying the maid to clean it every week while suffering through all her strange looks.”
“Well, good for you,” Gaylie Girl added. “And by the way, what the hell was that?”
Denver Lee enjoyed a prolonged laugh, her generous girth shaking with delight.
“I’ll tell you what I’ve been telling the others over the years. I have no idea what it was. I don’t even think Euss knew what it was. My suspicion has always been that it was just something that got the better of him, and he couldn’t let go of it. Maybe it was a crazy reflection of all the whirligigs and doodads he had running around inside his head. But that’s in the past—over and done with.” Denver Lee turned and gestured dramatically toward a far corner of the room.
“Over there is the wheelie-looking thing’s most practical and melodious replacement and the reason for this meeting.” She spotted a spoon on a nearby hors d’oeuvres tray, chimed her drink several times, and raised her voice. “Ladies! Fellow Nitwitts!” She waited briefly until all the chatter had died down. “If you will all direct your attention to my new organ in the corner of the room. I know some of you have been asking me about it from the moment you walked in, but I wanted to wait until everyone was here to unveil my surprise.”
Renza and proper protocol were not to be ignored, of course. “Then may I now open our meeting?”
“By all means,” Denver Lee replied, remaining unruffled throughout Renza’s rote declaration of club business officially under way.
Everyone quickly gathered around the organ, murmuring pleasantries while sipping their drinks, and Gaylie Girl was particularly complimentary. “It certainly does something for the room. I know what a difference my grand piano makes now that it’s at home in our drawing room on North Bayou Avenue. Since I didn’t know how to play it before, it did nothing but sit there and soak up furniture polish all those years up in Lake Forest.”
“This one’s a beauty, isn’t it? A Hammond with a Leslie speaker,” Denver Lee continued. “That may or may not mean something to any of you, but this is a state-of-the-art instrument. I can do the most fabulous things with it, and I can’t wait to show you all.”
Renza resumed her contentious line of questioning. “So we’ve come here this afternoon for an organ recital? This is your surprise? Horse apples! Now really, Denver Lee, what does this have to do with Caroling in The Square? We still have serious matters to decide.”
“If you’ll just let me finish explaining, everything will become clear. You see, my piano lessons have been going so well, I decided to take things to the next level by purchasing this organ. I’ve always wanted one, and now I can actually play, thanks to the expert instruction Euterpe’s
“Welcome to our First Lady!” Denver Lee exclaimed, warmly embracing Gaylie Girl when the others had finally relinquished her. “The gang’s all here. Now run and go fix yourself a little happy and hurry on back. I can’t wait to tell all of you what this is about.”
“After you’ve allowed me to open the meeting, I presume,” a kibitzing Renza interjected none too amicably.
It was only after returning from fetching herself a Bloody Mary in the kitchen that Gaylie Girl noticed how much open space there was surrounding the group. That enormous whatchamacallit Euss McQueen had saddled Denver Lee with since long before he had left the planet was no longer in evidence, leaving plenty of room for all the Nitwitts to maneuver socially.
“I hope you don’t mind my asking, but what happened to that wheelie-looking thing in the center of the room?” Gaylie Girl said after downing one of the olives that was floating between her ice cubes.
Denver Lee quickly lowered her voice as if passing along a well-kept secret. “I had my handyman lug it upstairs to the attic, where it will now gather dust judiciously forever and ever. No more paying the maid to clean it every week while suffering through all her strange looks.”
“Well, good for you,” Gaylie Girl added. “And by the way, what the hell was that?”
Denver Lee enjoyed a prolonged laugh, her generous girth shaking with delight.
“I’ll tell you what I’ve been telling the others over the years. I have no idea what it was. I don’t even think Euss knew what it was. My suspicion has always been that it was just something that got the better of him, and he couldn’t let go of it. Maybe it was a crazy reflection of all the whirligigs and doodads he had running around inside his head. But that’s in the past—over and done with.” Denver Lee turned and gestured dramatically toward a far corner of the room.
“Over there is the wheelie-looking thing’s most practical and melodious replacement and the reason for this meeting.” She spotted a spoon on a nearby hors d’oeuvres tray, chimed her drink several times, and raised her voice. “Ladies! Fellow Nitwitts!” She waited briefly until all the chatter had died down. “If you will all direct your attention to my new organ in the corner of the room. I know some of you have been asking me about it from the moment you walked in, but I wanted to wait until everyone was here to unveil my surprise.”
Renza and proper protocol were not to be ignored, of course. “Then may I now open our meeting?”
“By all means,” Denver Lee replied, remaining unruffled throughout Renza’s rote declaration of club business officially under way.
Everyone quickly gathered around the organ, murmuring pleasantries while sipping their drinks, and Gaylie Girl was particularly complimentary. “It certainly does something for the room. I know what a difference my grand piano makes now that it’s at home in our drawing room on North Bayou Avenue. Since I didn’t know how to play it before, it did nothing but sit there and soak up furniture polish all those years up in Lake Forest.”
“This one’s a beauty, isn’t it? A Hammond with a Leslie speaker,” Denver Lee continued. “That may or may not mean something to any of you, but this is a state-of-the-art instrument. I can do the most fabulous things with it, and I can’t wait to show you all.”
Renza resumed her contentious line of questioning. “So we’ve come here this afternoon for an organ recital? This is your surprise? Horse apples! Now really, Denver Lee, what does this have to do with Caroling in The Square? We still have serious matters to decide.”
“If you’ll just let me finish explaining, everything will become clear. You see, my piano lessons have been going so well, I decided to take things to the next level by purchasing this organ. I’ve always wanted one, and now I can actually play, thanks to the expert instruction Euterpe’s
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