The Middle of Somewhere Read Online Free Page B

Clark ,
Seize the Way
    My first thought:
Wow, just what I was thinking!
Minus Gee, though. I couldn't see Pop consenting to a road trip with a hyperactive seven-year-old. But Kent Clark says to zap negative thoughts, so I took out my imaginary zapper and fired away while Mama explained that she wasn't exactly trying to get rid of us, but—
    “The doctor told me the quickest way to recover would be complete and total rest—but the doctor doesn't know Gee, does he? Complete and total rest, my foot! Also, it would be a perfect opportunity for Lyddie and me to get a head start on the projects we want to sell at craft shows this fall. And the trip would be good for you, Ronnie. Because first, if you stay here you'll have almost all the responsibility of looking out for Gee, and that's no way to spend a summer vacation.” (At this, I nodded so hard my neck hurt.) “Two, you'd get to know your grandfather better. Three, you'd get to see more of the country, even if it's just Kansas. Oh, and four, you'd get to take a trip in a real RV, instead of just mooning over the pictures and diagrams you bring home from the state fair.”
    Bottom line: her dream was to start her own craft business and mine was to take an RV trip. We'd kill two dreamswith one stone. I was sold, but: “Do you think Pop'll go for it?”
    She smiled and leaned back on the pillows. “He's not the only one with plans.”
    Her plan involved a big buildup. First, we'd learn all we could about Pop's wind-prospecting business. Second, figure out how I could help him in it. And finally, keep Gee under wraps as much as possible, because my little brother in full ADHD mode could scare off a saint. It was a big job, especially the last part. But we got a boost from the Partly Baptist Church, because their Vacation Bible School started that very morning.
    We let Gee sleep in as late as possible, and right after breakfast I walked him to church. Even taking the long way, he was the first to arrive, not counting the teachers and their kids. I signed him up before anyone could have second thoughts, then rushed home to make myself obviously useful while listening in on conversations like this:
    MAMA: So you're planning to travel all over western Kansas looking for the windiest spots to build power farms?
    POP: That's it in a nutshell. Check for velocity, sustainability, shifts, and gusts. I find a spot and set up a meteorological mast—or met mast, as we say in the business— attach a weather vane on top and an anemometer to do the measuring, then I go back and check on it for three or four days. What that does … [explain, explain]
    MAMA: (after the explaining is over) And how do you keep track of all that information?
    POP: Ah. The university is supposed to give me alaptop to run the data, but I hate trying to figure out computer programs. Not looking forward to that.
    MAMA: By the way, did I show you Ronnie's last report card? All As in math, and her teacher told me she's at the top of her class in computer skills. …
    That's me—world-class record-keeper and number-cruncher. Plus, I'm very neat and systematic—Exacto-girl. “Hey, Pop, I'm organizing my room. Come see what I plan to do with my closet!”
    After Vacation Bible School, my job was to keep Gee away from Pop so it wouldn't be so obvious what a challenge he presented. Gee spent most of the afternoon with neighborhood kids, but it was exhausting to be on full radar alert. Tuesday was better—that is, until the end.
    Tuesday morning I finished cleaning up Mama's bedroom while Pop fixed the leaky faucet in the kitchen and replaced the torn screen on the storm door. After lunch, he dropped Gee and me off at the Polk County Library and went on down to Springfield to shop for his Kansas expedition. While Gee interrupted story hour with goofy questions, I found some books on alternative power and meteorology. Then we walked to the pool, and even though Pop picked us up later than he said he would, I was sweet