Squirrel Bait and Other Stories

These eight light-hearted stories feature dreamers, schemers, minor league con men, and a variety of determined characters doing their thing, trying to do their thing, or wondering what the thing is that they should be doing.These eight light-hearted stories feature dreamers, schemers, minor league con men, and a variety of determined characters doing their thing, trying to do their thing, or wondering what the thing is that they should be doing. In Squirrel Bait and The Never-Ready-Good-For-Nothing Gadget characters judged impractical to crazy by others keep believing in themselves, spinning out new novel ideas, and gleaning the useful products and solutions from the accumulating pile of possibilities. Call Your Floor, Please demonstrates how an alert middleman can subtly get some payback for being slighted without provoking reprisals. Check It Out is a case of woman versus modern technology at the supermarket. You Can’t Go Home Again - Without a Tour Guide is a story of a small town communal con job that seems to work as long as a principal player knows nothing about it. In Clancy’s Funeral the meek, or at least the quiet, inherit the land and have some laughs at the connivers in the process. Masterworks shows how for a few individuals lowering their pride in certain circumstances can pay off with benefits for a range of people, including themselves. The Store Angel is a case of a businessman’s dilemma in a very unexpected situation. There are no serious threats, no violence, but payoffs for some who deserve and earn them and disappointments but not really punishments for those trying to be less than fully honest.