Around the Block: Episode 5 -- The Flea Market

Welcome to a new episode of Around the Block...

Today, Joan and Kathy are checking out the flea market.  They can't believe the boxes and piles of junk and treasures there are to look at. Joan is looking for something unusual and interesting for a blank wall in her bedroom. Jerry Slickhaire, of a local shop called "You Can Take It with You Vintage" and Kathy's secret admirer, is telling them about a great estate sale for a Mr. B. Lou Gosi. that he went to a few weeks ago. He says that Erica Swerica, local art dealer, had grabbed up some great artwork at the sale and they should check out her booth.

A few booths down, Joan and Kathy find themselves checking out the artwork of art dealer, Erica Swerica.  Kathy has purchased other artwork from Erica and says she has some great bargains. Erica points out the pieces she got at the sale.  Joan becomes entranced by rather odd painting of a man with really bad teeth.  On the back it says "Painting of V.  Lad Impaler."  She mesmerized by the brush strokes, the use of color, and assumes that he must be British, due to the teeth.  Joan asks how much?  Erica says 10 blocks.  Joan says Sold!  She can hardly wait to get home and hang it.

As they leave the booth, Jackie a.k.a. Catwoman shows up in a new suit that she found down the street in "Loretta's Lotta Vintage" booth.  And she informs them that she has renamed herself to Jackie a.k.a. Leopardess.  She sees Joan's new painting and kind of freaks out.  She can't get over the teeth.  She says that he must be British.  Regardless, Joan is happy and is ready to hang her painting.  Kathy say they must stop at Jerry's booth to purchase the magnifying glass she saw earlier, and she just loves looking at his junk.

 About ten minutes later, two extremely pale grey eccentrics approach Erica, asking if she was at the sale of their distant cousin, Mr. B. Lou Gosi.  They are anxious to find a painting that was sold.  It was of another relative that they simply refer to as Lad.  Erica tells them that she sold the painting.  They in turn hiss at her, bare their teeth, and scurry away.  Erica thinks they must be British because they were such a strange shade pale grey.

Meanwhile down the street at the pet store, there has been three parrots sitting in a row in the window.  Now there are only two. Polly and Cracker are starting to squawk about their missing friend, Wanda.  The pet store hasn't noticed the one that is missing yet.  But, Mr. Barton C. Mesteel, a local kleptomaniac, slowly walks out of the pet shop with a suitcase with a hole in it.  Out of that hole, crumbs are falling, creating a trail....