Flamingo Blues Read Online Free

finish it.
    The next performance was a display of Aerial Hoop by a woman named, Habana. What she did with the hoops was unbelievable--flying through the air on a trapeze, while twirling large loops around her body in mid-air. It was so hypnotizing--Corny didn’t want to leave, but it was time to grant a Christmas wish.
    “Steve, my stomach is acting up, and it’s not the cotton candy. I think it was the hamburger I ate.
    “You do look a little on the green side, do you want me to go with you?”
    “That’s the sweet of you, but hopefully I’ll only be a couple of minutes.”
    Once in the parking lot she hadn’t considered how to break into the bus, which was a rookie mistake. Lucky for her the Canadians were trusting folks; the keys were left in the ignition. In the stolen Gray Lines Express bus she calculated it would take her about an hour to load the birds, drive to the lake, unload them, and return, before she and the bus were missed. The thing she never considered was she’d never driven a bus before but it had an automatic transmission, this should be a piece of cake.
    Right on time, the flock of flamingos walked with exaggerated delicacy on stork-like legs into the parking lot. She started the bus and eased over to where they all stood on one leg waiting. The less time they were out in the open, the better for all of them. She opened the bus door and one by one they hopped up the steps and made their way to the rear of the bus. The bus had a really loud engine, which she didn’t notice when she was riding in it. It was freaking the birds out. She felt like telling them not to be messing around in the bus, but she and Steve were probably the only ones who did that.
    Corny said, “Okay guys, keep your heads down. We don’t want the police pulling us over.”
    She wasn’t sure what she would tell a cop if she got pulled over, and Steve would be mad if she got thrown in jail. She obeyed all the traffic laws and was making good progress. The flamingos were chattering about being excited and then they broke the news to her.
    “Hey lady, we need a bathroom break real soon or you’re going to have a mess to clean up.”
    She never considered they’d need to go to the bathroom while still on the bus. She wouldn’t have time to clean the bus if they pooped in it.
    “What? You guys can’t wait another fifteen minutes?” Corny said in a desperate voice.
    “No, sorry but we all need to go right now.” The bird replied .
    Corny found a nice gravel driveway to pull into and one by one the flamingos did their business in an orderly fashion. If someone had been videotaping them, they would make millions off this.
    On the road again, she requested they hold it until they got to the lake. When Corny pulled the monstrous bus into the Shornclifton parking lot, there were cheers and confetti – floating through the air. Wow, these people knew how to throw a party. Some of the elderly residents were in wheelchairs and others had canes, but it looked as though they were all in attendance when the bus arrived. Every one of the residents, plus the staff, had Santa hats on. They had a huge tree decorated in the middle of a beautifully manicured lawn and the lake was glistening, like it was waiting for the flamingos to return.
    Loading and unloading wasn’t too bad; the old folks helped get the flamingos to the lake and they promised to keep a much closer eye on them from then on. For all her hard work, Corny was rewarded with several plates of cookies and a Santa hat. How was she going to explain the cookies and the Santa’s hat to Steve? Maybe she should be more concerned about being caught with a stolen bus.
    Her stomach decided to let her know it didn’t like the undercooked burger and it grumbled and churned.
    She said her goodbyes to the birds, “You guys take care now and have a wonderful holiday.”
    “ You did a good thing Mon, but how are you going to explain us being gone?”
    “It’s a Christmas