"Pumpkin pie, all around, and keep it coming," Aaron Finn told the waitress. "Best pumpkin pie in the city," he said to the rest of us. "And they don't skimp on the whipped cream."
"So, have you seen Billy the Phantom Bellboy lately?" Seamus Finn asked his father.
"No, he seems to have taken off somewhere," Aaron Finn said. "He does that, you know."
"We're worried that ghosts have been disappearing," Ken Ahara said. "It might be something very serious."
"Or then again, it might not be," Melvin said.
"What if it is like rats deserting a sinking ship?" Ken Ahara asked. "What if some inconceivable catastrophe is about to happen, so the ghosts are leaving?"
"Didn't something like that almost happen a year or two ago?" Aaron Finn asked. "It was a rainy night, as I recallâthe dark powers were going to come back. I can't quite remember the details, but you must know, Sergeant Caleb, being a shaman and all that."
"I wasn't there," Melvin said. "I was at the bowling tournament that night."
"I think I was there," Neddie said. "But I forget the details."
"I hope you find that notebook, Neddie," Melvin said. "I'd like to read what happened."
"My mother threw out a huge stack of my comic books, without asking," Neddie said. "She claimed they were a fire hazard. It's possible the notebook was with them."
"That's a pity," Melvin said. "But, never mind."
"I'm worried that the ghosts disappearing has some serious meaning," Ken Ahara said.
"Who wants more pumpkin pie?" Aaron Finn said. "Don't be shy. Eat lotsâit's good for you."
"Say, do they serve spirits in this place?" a voice said. We looked around. The booths on both sides of ours were empty. "You know what ghosts eat for breakfast? Ghost Toasties!" the voice said.
"Billy!" Neddie Wentworthstein said. "Is that you?"
"Nobody else but," Billy the Phantom Bellboy said, becoming slightly visible.
"We all thought you'd disappeared," Ken Ahara said.
"You mean like this?" Billy asked, becoming invisible again.
"He means, where have you been?" Seamus said.
"Can't tell you that," Billy said. "Top secret."
"A lot of ghosts have been missing lately," I said. "Do you know anything about that?"
"I know all about it," Billy said.
"Can you tell us?"
"Nope. I'm sworn to secrecy."
"Can you at least tell us if it's something bad?" Ken Ahara asked.
"I can't tell you anything," Billy the Phantom Bellboy said. "Does anyone feel like having a hamburger with grilled onions? I'm in the mood for a sniff." Aaron Finn ordered a hamburger for Billy to inhale over.
CHAPTER 27
The Day of the Dead
G
ente, voy a cantar
un pequeño corridor
de la ciudad de Los Angeles
donde se hacen las peliculas,
y un muchacho, Neddie.
Ãl era honesto y valiente.
People, I'm going to sing
a little corrido
of the town of Los Angeles,
where movies are made,
and of a boy, Neddie.
He was honest and brave.
A big magician told him to take this turtle,
sacred to the Indians.
When the time would come
when dark and evil powers
came to subjugate the people,
the guy with the turtle
would save the day.
And Neddie did it!
We don't know how he did it.
Neddie is a hero.
He saved the town.
We salute this brave boy
and also I salute you all
and take my leave.
â"Corrido" by street singer on Olvera Street
Olvera Street is in the middle of the crummy downtown section of Los Angeles. It's the oldest part, dating back to the Spanish colonial days. It's a tourist attraction, with Mexican restaurants and little stands where you can buy a piñata, or a sombrero, or Mexican pottery. It smells good, with all the Mexican cooking, and a couple of the old houses have been
restored to the way they were in the 1800s, and you can go in and see how the people lived back then. We'd all been there, on school trips, or with our parents to have dinnerâbut we had never been there during DÃa de los Muertos.
Neddie, Seamus, and I took the bus downtown, and when we arrived things were in full
"So, have you seen Billy the Phantom Bellboy lately?" Seamus Finn asked his father.
"No, he seems to have taken off somewhere," Aaron Finn said. "He does that, you know."
"We're worried that ghosts have been disappearing," Ken Ahara said. "It might be something very serious."
"Or then again, it might not be," Melvin said.
"What if it is like rats deserting a sinking ship?" Ken Ahara asked. "What if some inconceivable catastrophe is about to happen, so the ghosts are leaving?"
"Didn't something like that almost happen a year or two ago?" Aaron Finn asked. "It was a rainy night, as I recallâthe dark powers were going to come back. I can't quite remember the details, but you must know, Sergeant Caleb, being a shaman and all that."
"I wasn't there," Melvin said. "I was at the bowling tournament that night."
"I think I was there," Neddie said. "But I forget the details."
"I hope you find that notebook, Neddie," Melvin said. "I'd like to read what happened."
"My mother threw out a huge stack of my comic books, without asking," Neddie said. "She claimed they were a fire hazard. It's possible the notebook was with them."
"That's a pity," Melvin said. "But, never mind."
"I'm worried that the ghosts disappearing has some serious meaning," Ken Ahara said.
"Who wants more pumpkin pie?" Aaron Finn said. "Don't be shy. Eat lotsâit's good for you."
"Say, do they serve spirits in this place?" a voice said. We looked around. The booths on both sides of ours were empty. "You know what ghosts eat for breakfast? Ghost Toasties!" the voice said.
"Billy!" Neddie Wentworthstein said. "Is that you?"
"Nobody else but," Billy the Phantom Bellboy said, becoming slightly visible.
"We all thought you'd disappeared," Ken Ahara said.
"You mean like this?" Billy asked, becoming invisible again.
"He means, where have you been?" Seamus said.
"Can't tell you that," Billy said. "Top secret."
"A lot of ghosts have been missing lately," I said. "Do you know anything about that?"
"I know all about it," Billy said.
"Can you tell us?"
"Nope. I'm sworn to secrecy."
"Can you at least tell us if it's something bad?" Ken Ahara asked.
"I can't tell you anything," Billy the Phantom Bellboy said. "Does anyone feel like having a hamburger with grilled onions? I'm in the mood for a sniff." Aaron Finn ordered a hamburger for Billy to inhale over.
CHAPTER 27
The Day of the Dead
G
ente, voy a cantar
un pequeño corridor
de la ciudad de Los Angeles
donde se hacen las peliculas,
y un muchacho, Neddie.
Ãl era honesto y valiente.
People, I'm going to sing
a little corrido
of the town of Los Angeles,
where movies are made,
and of a boy, Neddie.
He was honest and brave.
A big magician told him to take this turtle,
sacred to the Indians.
When the time would come
when dark and evil powers
came to subjugate the people,
the guy with the turtle
would save the day.
And Neddie did it!
We don't know how he did it.
Neddie is a hero.
He saved the town.
We salute this brave boy
and also I salute you all
and take my leave.
â"Corrido" by street singer on Olvera Street
Olvera Street is in the middle of the crummy downtown section of Los Angeles. It's the oldest part, dating back to the Spanish colonial days. It's a tourist attraction, with Mexican restaurants and little stands where you can buy a piñata, or a sombrero, or Mexican pottery. It smells good, with all the Mexican cooking, and a couple of the old houses have been
restored to the way they were in the 1800s, and you can go in and see how the people lived back then. We'd all been there, on school trips, or with our parents to have dinnerâbut we had never been there during DÃa de los Muertos.
Neddie, Seamus, and I took the bus downtown, and when we arrived things were in full
Similar Books
