WALKES

                               WALKIES

IT’S A REALLY LOVELY SUMMER’S DAY,

ALFIE HAS COME TO VISIT GIZZY, TIME FOR PLAY.

AFTER A WALK IN THE PARK, NUMPTY BOSS DECIDED WE WOULD GO INTO TOWN—TIME FOR

SOME GROWING UP AND SOME INTELLECTUAL

LESSONS. I RECKON HE HAD BEEN DRINKING.

ANYWAY, IT WAS PLEASANT ENOUGH—PLENTY OF PEOPLE, SOME KIDS POKING US AND PULLING OUR EARS [YOU GET USED TO IT]. JUST THEN WE PASSED A MUSIC SHOP SELLING ALL SORTS OF INSTRUMENTS. THAT TONE-DEAF NUMPTY GERRY

DECIDED WE WOULD GO IN AND HAVE A LOOK AROUND. IT WAS OKAY, A BIT BORING—NOWHERE TO PEE. NEXT THING I HEARD WAS THE LOVELY SOUND OF AN ORGAN BEING PLAYED; MOZART, I BELIEVE, OR MAYBE IT’S HANDEL’S WATER MUSIC.

I LOOKED UP—IT WAS GIZZY PLAYING. BOY, WAS HE GOOD! PEOPLE STOPPED TO LISTEN; A CROWD OF KIDS LOOKED THROUGH THE WINDOW. IT

WAS REALLY MAGIC—HIS TOUCH AND TONE WERE QUITE MOVING. ALFIE LOOKED AT GIZZY, WHO GAVE HIM A WINK. HE THEN ASKED ALFIE TO SING A SONG.

WELL, I NEVER! ALFIE ASKED GIZZY, “CAN YOU PLAY DANNY BOY?” HE SAID YES. OKAY, WELL, ALFIE FOUND A STRAW BOATER AND SOME BRIGHT RED LIPSTICK. HE STOOD IN FRONT OF THE MICROPHONE; HE STARTED SLOWLY. THE CROWD WAS NICE AND QUIET, VERY RESPECTFUL. EVEN WHEN

ALFIE GOT TO THE FINISHING LINE AND WAS SINGING, “AND WHAT’S MY NAME?” THE WHOLE CROWD—EVEN THE PEOPLE OUTSIDE THE SHOP WINDOW—AT THE TOP OF THEIR VOICES SANG

“SONNY BOY.” IT WAS SUCH A LOVELY DAY! THE OWNER OF THE SHOP, A TEAR IN HIS EYE, SAID, “THANKS VERY MUCH” WITH REAL GRATITUDE. MAYBE THAT WAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH HIS SALES FIGURES—TWO ORGANS AND TEN TRIANGLES. IT WAS A NICE, HAPPY MOMENT.

THE LAST THING I SAW WAS THE KIDS OUTSIDE DANCING AND SINGING, PLAYING THEIR TRIANGLES. I GUESS NUMPTY GERRY BOUGHT THEM.

ALFIE GIZZY

A MUSICAL TRIP TO TOWN