Fannie Flagg - Standing in the Rainbow

"Yes, ma'am, I sure will," he said.

Bobby sat there with Mr. Fowler and wondered why but figured he would find out sooner or later. After a while Fowler said, "That's a mighty fine little wife you have in there."

"Thank you, sir."

"I've been knowing you and your family for a long time now. Watched you and your sister grow up."

"Yes, sir."

Fowler cleared his throat. "You know, if I had married and had a son such as yourself just starting out in life, this is what I would say to him but since I don't have one I'm going to tell it to you instead.

"Young Robert," he said, "we… you and I… have to stop pecking around in the barnyard of mediocrity and dare to fly with the eagles out into the world of big business. That's why a few years back I started buying up an interest in as many chicken farms as I could. I looked up and saw the handwriting on the wall, so to speak, and this is what it said. It said, Charlie… the poultry business is changing. It's no longer just an egg world out there. It's a fried-chicken-in-a-bucket-to-go world and you better jump in while the jumping's good." He leaned closer. "Now, son, this is strictly between you and me, but I just signed an exclusive contract with this fellow over in Kentucky for me to supply him with all his chickens. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not making money yet, but I've got my eye on this fellow and the way business is booming I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't open up another place real soon."

"Really?" said Bobby.

"Yep… and it all pans out with my theory about the future."

"What's your theory?"

"Quantity," he said emphatically. "Not quality. Fast, not friendly. That's the secret of making money nowadays, boy. This is the jet age. People want to eat on the move. How fast, how cheap, and how much do we get for our dollar, that's what folks are interested in today."

Bobby nodded and thought about it.

"Anyhow, young Robert, what I'm saying is this. I'm looking for a good man to work for me, somebody with personality, good PR. skills such as my own, and I think that you fit that bill to a tee. Say the word and the job is yours."

Bobby was flattered by the offer but he did not know a thing about the poultry business. "I sure appreciate you considering me for the job, Mr. Fowler, but…"

Fowler did not let him finish his sentence. "Now, before you talk it over with your wife," he said as he pulled a small notebook out of his pocket, "I'm going to write down a figure as to what you can expect to earn the first year. And this is just to start, mind you." He jotted down a number and handed it to Bobby. "Of course, you would have to relocate but I think it is a chance worth taking and I give you my word, son, if 7 do well, you do well."

The number Fowler showed him was twice the salary he was making now.

The next morning when Monroe stopped by the house for coffee and Bobby showed him the figure, Monroe, true to form, said, "Whoa… that's some serious bucks."

Bobby was torn. He hated to give up teaching but with a baby on the way and no new teaching offers, he and Lois talked. They decided to get out of the cold of New Hampshire and take a chance with Mr. Fowler.

Tot Whooten had never met Charlie Fowler but when Mother Smith was down at Tot's beauty shop having her hair dyed purple again she mentioned Bobby's new job Tot said, "Well, for his sake I hope it works out. But no matter what you do in life there's a fifty-fifty chance that something will go wrong." She threw a teacup full of cream rinse on Mother Smith's head and added, "Of course, with me it's always been a ninety-nine percent chance that if something can go wrong, it will."

Tot must have had a premonition.

The following Monday Norma Warren had just returned from driving her eleven-year-old daughter, Linda, over to Poplar Bluff to spend the week with her grandmother, Ida Jenkins. Much to Norma's irritation, after her father had died her mother had picked up and moved there so she could be nearer to the Presbyterian church. "Now that I'm a widow," she said, "I need to be closer to my own kind." It hurt Norma to think her mother preferred the Presbyterians to her own family but she still had Aunt Elner, even though she was a handful. Today was Norma's at-home beauty day and she was right in the middle of giving herself her weekly Merle Norman facial when the phone rang again for the third time in an hour. She did not answer it but it would not stop ringing so she finally had to pick up.

"Hello, Aunt Elner," she said, as pleasantly as she could, trying not to ruin her facial, but this time it was not Aunt Elner again. It was Elner's neighbor Verbena calling from the cleaners.

"Norma, it's me. Have you heard what happened to poor Tot?"

"Oh God, what now?"

"You know Rochelle, his assistant, that heavyset gal who likes to have a snort or two with Dr. Orr?"

"Yes, what about her?"

"Well, I guess they lost poor Tot's upper plate over the weekend. Too much fooling around in the office."

"What do you mean they lost it?" she said, destroying her facial.

"Friday Dr. Orr pulled her teeth out and took an impression of her gums for a set of false teeth and told her to come back Monday and he would have her plate ready… and this morning she sneaks up there by the back alley she said she would just die if anybody saw her without her teeth so she goes in and sits down. She said she couldn't wait to get her new teeth. And then Dr. Orr walks in and she said she should have known something was wrong, she could smell the liquor on his breath, so anyhow he says, "Open up," and then he tries to put this upper plate in her mouth and it no more fits her than the man in the moon and he calls out, "Dammit, Rochelle, this is not Tot's upper plate!" He says to her, Wait right here," and then she hears all this yelling and cussing, so anyhow, about fifteen minutes later he comes back and says, "Tot, I'm sorry, your teeth must have been thrown out by mistake. I'm going to have to take another impression and start over."

"Oh, no."

"Oh yes. So as you can imagine, Poor Tot was fit to be tied. She said it was no telling whose teeth he had put in her mouth. And not only that, this was the very week she was going to the new catfish place. You sure can't eat catfish without teeth, much less corn on the cob."

"No."

"And you know what the worst part is?"

"How could it possibly get worse?"

"I think James is slipping around on Tot with that Rochelle. That's what Merle said. He saw them out on the highway at that old Casa Loma Supper Club, and they were all over each other, kissing and carrying on."

"Oh no, poor Tot."

"I think it was sabotage, just plain sabotage. I think that girl just threw her teeth out for meanness so she could run around with James while Poor Tot has to stay home. But mind you, I didn't tell Tot that."

"Poor Tot."

"Isn't it the truth? If it's not one thing, it's another. And right after her mother set the house on fire and now this. It's a wonder she can even get up in the morning."

Norma went and cleaned her face and started again. She thought she better take care of her looks. She did not want Macky going out to the Casa Loma or someplace with some other woman.

Unfortunately, things had not turned out well for Betty Raye either.

Hamm did not keep his word to her and in 1960 decided to run for another four years as governor. There went her dream of having her own home again. She had been heartbroken, but even she could see that his political career was like a train that could not be stopped. He was at the height of his popularity and he said not to run when he had all this momentum going would be such a terrible waste of all the time and energy he had put in. He pleaded with her, promised her that if he could have this one more term it would definitely be the end. "Anyway, honey," he said, "the state law says a governor can't serve three consecutive terms. So even if I wanted to I couldn't run again. What better guarantee can you have than that?"