Well got any ideas asked Miss Priss-A-Poo as she scribbled Vanessa’s Brilliant Ideas on her paper I had to think fast A marker caught my eye I’m going to draw tattoos and charge a buck each I’m a fab-u-lo-so artist you know Miss Priss-A-Poo smirked Oh does your mom put all your pictures in gold frames and hang them in your house too I ignored her My super-duper tattoos will raise way more money than your car wash Crockett squeezed in next to me and rolled up his sleeve Arrr he said I’ll take a tattoo matey He must think today is Talk Like a Pirate Day I grabbed a marker and sketched a pirate on his arm He gave it two thumbs-up 8
But I didn’t stop there I added an earring stubble on his chin and a pirate patch Johnny Mazzaratti crawled over to have a peek-a-roo Johnny Crockett and I have been friends since first grade That’s when Crockett and I volunteered to sit with Johnny at the peanut-free snack table 9
Can I have one Johnny asked Two minutes later he was the spittin image of a pirate from the Caribbean Miss Priss-A-Poo studied the tattoos She looked impressed with my artistic ability Want one I asked She twirled her hair around her finger Not a pirate she said I want a bumblebee One itty-bitty bumblebee it is But it looked lonely so I said How about I add some flowers She nodded So I grabbed all the markers and used a different one for each flower By the time I finished Miss Priss-A-Poo looked like a garden of daisies delphiniums and daffodils waiting to be picked Suddenly Crockett pulled his sleeve over his tattoo and whispered Shiver me timbers 10
I followed Crockett’s gaze to Mrs Bingsley Arrr Was she trying to talk like a pirate Wh wh The arrr was great Mrs Bingsley I said politely But I don’t think pirates say wh-wh That’s when I noticed her grumpy grumpy eyes and her red red cheeks She sure looked like she needed a happy face tattoo Mrs Bingsley took a deep breath What are you doing with those permanent markers Oops I didn’t realize I had been tattooing everyone with permanent markers I tried to change the subject with a super-duper fun fact Mrs Bingsley did you know that there are 293 ways to make change for a dollar 11
