A Grandpa's Notebook Part 10

s.l.u.tter rams power into Banana's motor and, a moment later, sees Coconut up ahead. The hot rodder's ship is pushing and b.u.mping Coconut.

s.l.u.tter maneuvers Banana behind the hot rodder. Lowering Banana's nose, he slips it under the rear b.u.mper of the hot rodder. He quickly raises Banana's nose and flips the hot rodder away.

s.l.u.tter moves Banana up alongside Coconut. The hot rodder, seeing the Coconut has a Banana for a buddy, veers off. Together, they're too much for him.

'Thank you, s.l.u.tter,' says Stobey. 'If you hadn't stopped that hot rodder he might have cracked my Coconut. You sure saved me.'

'I'm glad I was here to help,' s.l.u.tter replies. 'If it was the other way round I'm sure you would have done the same for me. Come to think of it, Stobey, if that hot rodder had b.u.mped against my buggy, and you weren't here to help me, he might've peeled my Banana.'

Stobey and s.l.u.tter think that's funny. They laugh and they laugh as, flying along side by side, they move along the s.p.a.ce lanes into the Super-Rock parking block.

They find parking s.p.a.ces next to each other. When they step out from their s.p.a.ce buggies they come together with smiles and a hug. Hand in hand, they head for the gate that leads into Super-Rock, the most spectacular children's park and playground in the entire outer region of the solar system.

Swinging from a Star.

As Stobey and s.l.u.tter enter Super-Rock Playground they are greeted by a Hooten-Nanny. The Hooten-Nannies are a family of jugglers, trapeze artists and clowns who enjoy making people laugh. One job that they really enjoy is to meet visitors at the Super-Rock gate and show them the sights and rides. Stobey and s.l.u.tter are lucky; a Hooten-Nanny wants to show them around the park.

Hi,' says the Hooten-Nanny as he twirls about, flips a double somersault, a triple spin and a rollover. 'I'm Chug-a-lug the Hooten-Nanny from over Europa way. Just call me Chug. I'm one of the fellows who work here, and I like to show visitors around our park. May I join you?'

Stobey and s.l.u.tter look at Chug. They never met a real Hooten-Nanny, but are not surprised at the way he looks. They've seen pictures of Hooten-Nannies in storybooks, television, and on several Websites of the Solar Wide Web (http://sww if you're interested).

Chug looks like a single length of very thin spaghetti, but stiff, like before it's boiled. Chug's head is long and thin too, and his arms and legs also look like strands of spaghetti. The clown's suit he wears glows with all of the universe's colors; it's made entirely of rainbow mist.

'We certainly would like you to join us,' Stobey and s.l.u.tter say together.

'What are you going to show us?' Stobey asks.

'And what are we going to do?' s.l.u.tter adds.

Chug bends forward so that his head is close to Stobey's.

'You'll see what I'll show you when you see it,' he whispers with a big grin and a wink. Turning to s.l.u.tter he says with the same grin and wink, 'You will know what we'll do when it happens.' Then, to both, 'Ar-r-re you ready?'

'Yes, we ar-r-re ready,' shout Stobey and s.l.u.tter together, jumping up and down with excitement.

'Then we're off.' Chug yells a shrill 'whoop' as he reaches down with his long arms and wraps one around Stobey and the other around s.l.u.tter. Lifting and hugging them close to his thin chest he springs upward with a mighty leap. Holding on to each other, they soar over the gate and above the road leading into the park. Looking down, Stobey and s.l.u.tter see the faces of many people staring up at them.

They hear shouts, 'What are they? Are they birds? Are they s.p.a.ceships?'

And they hear, 'I know. I know. It's Chug-a-lug, the Hooten-Nanny, and he's flying his friends to see the sights and to take the special rides. Aren't they the lucky ones?'

They approach a mountain peak. With a flip and a flop they land on a tiny platform at the tip of a tall pole. They see the ground far below. Beside them, tied to a railing on the platform is a trapeze bar.

'For goodness sake,' exclaims Stobey, 'What's a trapeze bar doing here at the very top of a mountain?'

'This is my own special trapeze,' Chug replies. 'I use it to travel from one place to another. Very often, when I'm feeling real good, I do somersaults as I go along. Shall we swing?'

'Now just a moment,' s.l.u.tter says, looking around and then far up into s.p.a.ce above Ganymede. 'A trapeze bar swings through s.p.a.ce, that I understand. But the lines that hold the bar need to be fastened to something at its other end. I don't see where the trapeze lines end. What are they fastened to up there in s.p.a.ce, Chug?'

Chug grins and points up. Stobey and s.l.u.tter look again. The trapeze lines stretch up and up and disappear from sight. Far, far away, beyond where the lines seem to join and disappear they see a flickering light.

'My special trapeze,' Chug says softly, 'is. .h.i.tched to a star.' Raising his voice, he shouts, 'Are you ready?'

'We ar-r-e ready!'

Chug unties the trapeze from the platform. He grasps the trapeze bar in the middle; Stobey takes a firm grip of the bar on his right and s.l.u.tter does the same on his left.

'Don't let go,' Chug shouts and with a powerful shove they swing out and away from the mountaintop. The trapeze gathers speed. Down below, the ground rushes past, much too fast to see the people that they know are watching them.

'Now! See me hang by my feet', Chug calls out.

He flips through a somersault and catches the trapeze bar with his long spaghetti-thin toes. Stobey decides to try. She takes a deep breath, twists, and in an instant she is somersaulting. Completing the twist, her feet reach for the trapeze bar.

The bar isn't there!

Stobey's heart almost stops. She feels herself falling. Out of nowhere, a hand grasps one of her ankles and she feels herself drawn in. Her hands find the bar. Chug holds her until her grip on the bar is firm and she is safe again.

'Hmmm,' Chug smiles, 'maybe we're better off staying together.'

Stobey gulps and nods. She glances at s.l.u.tter who nods in return.

'I think I'll put off doing a somersault or holding on with my toes,' s.l.u.tter says, 'at least until I practice.'

'I guess you're right,' Stobey says, 'I think I'll wait a while before I try that again.'

The trapeze reaches the end of its swing. Up ahead is another mountain top with a tiny platform at the peak. The platform is attached to a pole like the one they left. As their feet touch the platform they each grasp the railing.

They are on firm footing again. Chug ties the trapeze bar to the rail.

'Did you enjoy the ride?' Chug asks Stobey.

'Sure did.'

'The same goes for me,' adds s.l.u.tter.

'How will you describe this ride to your parents and to your friends?' Chug asks.

Stobey and s.l.u.tter whisper to each other, then, together, they gaze up and point to where the trapeze lines disappear into the far, far distance of s.p.a.ce.

'We'll tell them all,' Stobey grins up at her tall friend, 'at Super-Rock Park we met Chug-a-lug, the Hooten-Nanny, and the three of us had a wonderful time swinging from a star.'

'I can't think of anything nicer to say,' Chug smiles. 'Let's do some more exploring and see what we can find.'

Chug-a-Lug the Hooten-Nanny reaches down, wraps one arm around Stobey and the other around s.l.u.tter, and draws them close. He leaps up and away and, laughing together, the three friends are off to another adventure.

Visitors from Planet Earth With the trapeze adventure behind them, our three friends are on the path that leads to the Super-Rock Midway.

'The Midway,' says Chug, 'is the fanciest and flashiest Midway between Planet Mars and Planet Pluto far out on the Solar rim.'

You're right,' says Stobey. 'This Midway really is the last word in midways and I'm looking forward to seeing it. How about you, s.l.u.tter?'

'Yep,' s.l.u.tter says, 'me too.'

Up ahead, they see the gate leading into the Midway. It's on the other side of the s.p.a.ce-block where the bus line s.p.a.ce ships are moored to the tops of tall towers. s.p.a.ceships smaller than busses land on the surface, so they're lined up in parking lots.

'Let's cut across the parking block,' says Chug, 'it'll shorten the walk to the gate.'

'Fine,' says Stobey.

They head across, cutting in and out among the rows of parked s.p.a.ce ships and s.p.a.ce buggies.

Half way across they suddenly they feel a deep, thrumming vibration from s.p.a.ce. Looking up, they see a gigantic, pancake-shaped, interplanetary s.p.a.ce liner moving in above the parking block. Interplanetary s.p.a.ce liners are not like the little single-seaters, family wagons, or even the big bus line and ferry s.p.a.ce ships that carry folks like Stobey and s.l.u.tter from their homes to Super-Rock. s.p.a.ce liners are much larger than the biggest ocean liners that sailed the seas of Planet Earth long ago, and you've seen in history books how enormous they were.

Stobey, s.l.u.tter and Chug watch as the huge s.p.a.ce liner slows and stops in s.p.a.ce just above the Super-Rock Playground. Colored lights flash and glow brightly all across its underside, along its rim, and through thousands of portholes.

'What's that s.p.a.ce liner doing here?' Stobey asks, turning to stare at Chug.

'Gosh, I don't know,' Chug replies. 'I don't recall ever seeing a big s.p.a.cer like that coming to Super-Rock. They always go to the big s.p.a.ce ports in orbit around moons Io and Europa. I wonder what's going on.'

They watch the s.p.a.ce liner, and after a short while see one of the huge panels along its side move aside. An orange-and-green-striped s.p.a.ce boat drifts out and holds in place. The s.p.a.ce boat is as big as a bus and is known as a 'flitter.' Flitters are used to ferry people and cargo back and forth between big s.p.a.ceships, or among planets, satellites and other places where the big interplanetary ships can't land. As Stobey, s.l.u.tter and Chug watch, the tail of the flitter glows yellow and the s.p.a.ce boat turns down toward the surface.

'Look, look,' s.l.u.tter yells. 'The flitter is heading this way.'

The flitter hovers just above the Super-Rock parking block. Stobey waves her arms.

'Over here, over here,' she yells. 'Here's a parking slot. Right over here.'

s.l.u.tter rushes to the empty parking slot and waves up at the flitter. The pilot must have seen him. He guides the flitter to the slot and lands gently.

Stobey and Chug rush up beside s.l.u.tter. Together, they watch the flitter's door.

'I wonder who'll be coming out,' s.l.u.tter says.

'...or what'll be coming out,' Stobey mumbles. 'There are many strange beings living in our Solar System.'

'Yes,' adds Chug, 'real strange.' His long, thin spaghetti-like head bobs up and down. His long, thin spaghetti-like body sways. 'Yes,' he repeats with a nod.

Stobey and s.l.u.tter look at Chug and then at each other. They smile. They know Chug looks different than they do. They also know that all people and things look a little different from each other, and looking and being different is natural and just fine. They turn back to stare at the flitter's portal.

The portal slips aside. It's dark inside.

A ladder slowly lowers from the portal and unfolds as it approaches the surface. They hear a clicking sound and the ladder locks into place. Stobey, s.l.u.tter and Chug are quivering with excitement. A s.p.a.ce-suited figure moves into the doorway. It stands there, not moving.

Our three friends look at the s.p.a.ce-suited figure, and they see a face through the clear plastic s.p.a.ce helmet. The face's eyes are looking at them. Stobey, s.l.u.tter and Chug do not need s.p.a.ce suits since they're where they live all the time. They're used to getting around just the way they are, but people who come off s.p.a.ce liners, they know, aren't able to get around without their own kind of air and pressure. One of the jobs of a s.p.a.ce suit is to hold the right kind and mix of air and pressure for the wearers. The s.p.a.ce suits do look strange, though.

'Whatever it is, it's just standing there,' Stobey says.

'Sure is,' adds s.l.u.tter. 'I wonder whatever is in that s.p.a.ce suit looks like.'

'Me, too, Chug mumbles.

The s.p.a.ce-suited figure starts down the ladder. As it leaves the doorway another s.p.a.ce-suited figure appears. That one, too, looks around and starts down the ladder.

Stobey, s.l.u.tter and Chug run to the bottom of the ladder.

'Hi,' Stobey says.

A voice comes out of a speaker panel on the strange figure's helmet. 'h.e.l.lo,' it says, followed a moment later by a 'h.e.l.lo' from the other s.p.a.ce suit.

'Where are you from? 'Stobey asks.

'Third planet from the Sun.'

'Planet Earth?'

'That's right,' from the other s.p.a.ce suit.

'Well, then, call it that, 'Stobey says. 'Who are you? Do people on Planet Earth have names?'

'Of course we have names. Every one on Planet Earth has a name. How could we tell each other apart, or write each other letters, or call each other on the telephone if we didn't each have our own name.'

'We also have names,' Stobey says. 'My name is Stobey and,' she points to s.l.u.tter, 'this is my friend, s.l.u.tter.'

Stobey points straight up at Chug's head towering above her and adds, 'This is our guide around Super-Rock Playground and he's our friend. His name is Chug-a-lug, and he's a Hooten-Nanny.'

'We're very happy to meet you,' says the voice from the first s.p.a.ce suit.

'Now tell us your names,' Stobey says.

'Our names,' says the same voice, 'are Suzanne and Roger. I'm Suzanne.'

'Suzanne and Roger. What strange and interesting names.' Stobey repeats the names a few times, and so do s.l.u.tter and Chug. 'Suzanne and Roger. Suzanne and Roger. Hm..m..m, strange sounding names, really strange.'

'They're not strange where we come from,' says Roger.

'I suppose not,' says Stobey. 'Tell us, Suzanne and Roger, why has an interplanetary s.p.a.ce liner come to Super-Rock Playground. Aren't the regular ports for s.p.a.ce liners in orbits above Io and Europa?'

'Well, yes,' Suzanne says. 'We're on our way to Europa to visit our uncle who's in charge of a s.p.a.ce colony. The colonists are also people from Planet Earth.'

'The Captain of our s.p.a.ce liner told us the port at the Europan colony is temporarily filled with other s.p.a.ce liners,' Roger adds, 'so he brought our liner here for a couple of hours to wait until a mooring slot for us opens up there.'

'Right,' Suzanne adds. 'When we got here and saw this beautiful playground we asked the Captain if we could visit it for a while. As you see, he agreed, and here we are.'

'We're certainly glad you came,' Stobey says. 'We're heading for the Midway. Would you like to join us?'

'Oh, yes,' says Roger, 'we sure would.'

'Yes, we would like to join you,' says Suzanne, 'and we thank you for the invitation. But we must be back aboard the s.p.a.ce liner in two hours. Will you be sure that we don't miss getting back here in the parking block in time to lift off?'