Louise Rennison_Georgia Nicolson 06 by Then He Ate My Boy Entrancers Page B

imagine it being called that in Shakespeare-a-gogo land? Anyway, as we waited at the lights they changed and instead of the “Beep beep beep” thing it had a woman talking in a Memphis accent! Honestly! She said, “Now you all are safe to cross the road.”
    A shop next to the drugstore had a notice onits door that said NO DRINKING, EATING OR FIREARMS IN THE SHOP .
    Wow!
    in the drugstore
    We asked the drugstore man how to use his telephone thing. He gave us loads of quarters or something. I couldn’t quite make out what he was saying, as he was eating a hamburger at the time. I did hear him say, “Are you going to phone Her Majesty at Buckingham Palace?”
    What is he talking about?
    telephone box
    The telephone is a bit low. Are there a lot of tiny people in Memphis? I was a bit phased about asking the operator for numbers in Manhattan as my first go at the phone thing, so I thought I would try phoning Rosie.
    Jas was looning about being an unhelp. I said, “Are they five hours ahead?”
    And she said, “Well, if it’s yesterday tomorrow in Kiwi-a-gogo, well, that makes it…er…”
    As she was rambling on I picked up the receiver and it made a really funny dialing noiseand then I had to shove in tons of quarters. Then it made a funny ringing type noise. It was almost like I was in a foreign country.
    Perhaps no one was in.
    Then Rosie answered the phone.
    Yesssssss and three times yesssss!!! Contact!!!
    England! England! A person who spoke my own language at last!
    Rose said, “Bonsoir.”
    â€œRo Ro, it’s me and Jas!!!”
    Jas was trying to get the receiver off me and yelling, “Let me say hello. Let me.”
    Vair annoying.
    I let her have a go, though, because I wanted her to do stuff for me. She was ludicrously excited, like we had been away for years in the Antarctic and had just found a phone on an ice floe.
    â€œRosie, it’s me, Jas, in Hamburger-a-gogo!”
    She rambled on for ages, saying stuff like, “What is the weather like there? Oh, is it? Raining? Is it that light rain that soaks you right through? Yeah? Right. Not really raining, more like spitting? It still wets you right through, though, doesn’t it? It’s boiling here. The money is different.” Really really boring stuff. For ages.
    I said, “Give me a go, Jas, before the money runs out.”
    She handed the phone over to me. I said, “Ro Ro, guess how many people over here have said they love me?”
    And Rosie said, “None?”
    Happy days. Back to normality.
    I luuurve my friends. Rosie is growing dreadlocks and Sven has had his thumb pierced.
    After we had said good-bye to Rosie, Jas went off into another booth to speak to Hunky.
    I took a deep breath, got my coins ready and got through to the operator.
    fifteen minutes later
    Do you know how many Scarlottis there are in Manhattan?
    A million.
    I could spend the rest of my life phoning them.
    Jas came out of her tiny-person’s booth to get more change, and I said, “It’s bloody hopeless. There are about a billion people called Scarlotti in Manhattan.”
    She said, “Why don’t you use sort of psychicluuurve bonding and just telepathically think of where he will be and choose that number?”
    fifteen minutes later
    I have made many many new Hamburgese friends, all called Scarlotti. One of them seemed a bit on the Chinese side and I think I may have ordered egg fried rice to go, but that is life. Oh, I have laughed, I have cried with my new mates, I have talked about central heating and so on, but I have not spoken to anyone who knows Masimo. And I have spent almost all my money.
    Jas was still on the phone, nodding like a nodding thing.
    Huh, she was probably doing pretend snogging on the phone to Hunky.
    I was exhausted.
    I went up to the counter and ordered myself a milk shake.
    The young chap wanted to talk. Oh dear.
    He said, “Now, where are you all