The bug whisperer/entrepreneurIan begged all day long to go to Alberston's to catch grasshoppers. (They are huge there and hangout on the side of the building which makes them really easy targets for an expert catcher like Ian)
I told him he could catch 4 and carry them around the store in his ziplock bag. It took about 36 seconds to catch all 4, and then we were off to the pharmacy to get some cough drops. Ian was so happy with his new friends that he started chanting "Grasshoppers, grasshoppers for sale!" at the top of his lungs.
An elderly gentleman turned toward us and very kindly asked where he caught his bugs. Ian told him you could catch them in front of the store, but he was selling his grasshoppers for only $1 a piece.
I was beet red by this time and trying to shush Ian. I mean, selling grasshoppers, really? This man looked at Ian and said, "Well, grasshoppers are good bait for cat fish." Then he pulled out his wallet and handed Ian a dollar. Because he was going fishing this weekend and he really needed some bait...two days early, at the grocery store, from a little boy, who was selling grasshoppers.
Ian promptly opened his baggie, grabbed the biggest grasshopper (at least 2 inches) and pulled it out. Then he put it in the gentleman's hand. The man had that now-what-am-I-supposed-to-do look. He couldn't let the grasshopper go because Ian was watching intently. The poor gentleman didn't have a ziplock bag like Ian, so he tried to gently ease his grasshopper filled hand into his pocket, only that is really hard to do in a pair of jeans. He looked straight at me and said, "my wife is never gonna believe this." I responded with, "neither will my husband."
Ian said thank you and offered to sell him some more if he wanted as I was trying desperately to extract ourselves from the pharmacy before I saw anyone we knew.
As we walked away, Tara leaned into me and whispered in frustration, "if I had known we could sell grasshoppers for a dollar I would have caught one too."
A friend happened to be at the front of the pharmacy line and overheard the whole thing. She caught up to us and let me know that the silence in the pharmacy line was broken when the gentleman said, "I just bought a grasshopper for a dollar and it's in my pocket." Then the entire line of people started buzzing about the purchase of grasshoppers, etc. The gentleman kept the grasshopper in his pocket too. He should be sainted!
Ian offered grasshoppers to everyone else in the store and was turned down by all of them.
He also caught an extra grasshopper as we were leaving because I promised he could have 4.
14 comments:
Great story. Perfect timing for a dull Friday afternoon at work.
That is so awesome! That kid cracks me up.
Awesome. My girls are obsessed with grasshoppers. Good thing we weren't in Albertson's or I would have had to buy one.
You'll never run out of stories for your blog with that kid around!
Very cute story. Ian is great.
Hilarious!
The YMCA also has a ton if, you know, you need a new hunting ground.
Seriously that poor man with a grasshopper in his pocket. Really though what was he thinking. He offered to buy it. Ian is a crack up.
Too bad we don't live closer. I was just looking for fake flies, frogs or grasshoppers to give my Primary children when we talked about Moses and all of the plagues. It would be awesome to give each kid their own grasshopper.
Bless that sweet man. I'll bet he was thinking Ian would give him the ziploc bag along with his purchase!
What a cute entomologist you have!
What a hoot! I think putting his grasshopper in Ian's second bag and then handing him the bag with only one grasshopper would have done the trick, but "I've got a grasshopper in my pocket" is really a much better story ending, now isn't it?
And Tara learned an important secret about being an entrepreneur: sometimes it's too late to act, once someone else has acted first!
I just realized the multiple bags were probably from a later date. But I wanted to add that I spent many a summer day when I was Ian's age in the vacant lot nextdoor catching grasshoppers and garden spiders. My container of choice was a margarine tub...
What a great story! I bet you were so embarrassed, but it's obvious that Ian was so proud of his smartly earned dollar!
I see this was in August. What time of year are the grasshoppers out and about where you live? I might need to order some! Nobody sells live hoppers online that I can find and many people are looking for them. Cha Ching! I want to raise them. Instant business...
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