Reality

The Chico and Sno ^ Show

 

A Cape Summerland story

 

By Thelma Mary Caroline

 

 

 

It was a lot different than when it was a group of co-workers.

 

Every morning, they got up as soon as the sun rose.  They would wash their faces, and get dressed.  Everyone made their beds and helped sweep the dust out of the bunk houses.

 

For breakfast, they ate fruit and vegetables that they had collected from around the settlement.  Carefully, though.  They always double checked against the records the original pioneers had kept to make sure it was editable.

 

After that, they set about chores, going where they were needed most.  Laken usually did the gathering and exploring, helped by Elle Jae.  But she loved to help with the laundry, even if they did have to do it the old fashioned way.  They would stop for lunch when they were hungry, and then do whatever they wanted the rest of the day.  Usually, it was still work, but they didn't have to work after lunch.

 

And then after dinner, the group would get together and talk about the town, and what they wanted to see happen and what they wanted to do.

 

"I want us to try to domesticate some of those animals," Laken said.

 

Elle Jae added, "It we catch one of those .... scows, I think they called them.  If we catch one of those things that looks like a purple cow, we can probably have milk and cheese and butter and stuff."

 

"Suppose we do get a scow, and it does give milk," Casey said.  "Does any one here know how to make cheese and butter?"

 

Sno raised her hand.  "I read how in a book."

 

"Yeah, Little House," Laken said.  "I've got a pretty good idea.  And we've got a churn and stuff in the storage shed."

 

"Okay, then.  Tomorrow we'll try to get some scows!" Chico announced.

 

 

 

"Are we going to catch this thing?" Chico asked the next morning, trying to "plump" them up.

 

"Yeah!" they screamed.

 

"I can't hear you!"

 

"Yes, Chico, we're going to catch it," Dan said.

 

We split up into groups of two, figuring that we had a better chance if we all took our own individual approach.

 

"Here, scow," Elle Jae called.  "Here, scowie."

 

Laken approached one slowly.  It gave her a strange look but didn't run.  She figured that it probably hadn't seen a human before.

 

Carefully, she slipped a rope around his neck.

 

"We got it! We got it!" Elle Jae cried.

 

Suddenly it bucked, causing Laken to lose her footing.

 

"Oh my God!  Laken!"

 

The scow took off running, but Laken still let go of the rope.  It dragged her behind it.

 

"Laken!  Let go of the rope!" Elle Jae said.  "Let go of the rope!"

 

"NO!" the girl called back.  "I've got a plan."

 

Slowly, she pulled her self up the rope until she was no longer dragging across the foreighn ground.  She climbed up onto the back of the beast, and clung to his neck.

 

"I'm going to ride until he calms down!" she cried.  "That way he'll be easier to handle!"

 

And slowly, the huge beast did calm down.  The two were able to lead him into barn with only the slightest resistance.  Chico and Sno, and also Dan and Casey had caught one.  So they had three scows.

 

They through a huge party that night.