Pawing The Pavement  
 

 

Patrick made a list of all the places nearby that he could apply for work.

He tried the grocery store first because it was the closest.

Patrick was VERY nervous.  He looked around amazed at how many folks were behind the scenes every day just to keep all the food in the store. He wondered how they could keep from just gobbling it up!   He bravely went up to the manager to ask if they were hiring.  The manager was very nice to Patrick and tried to ask him some questions.

Patrick wasn't paying much attention.  Every time he smelled something yummy  nearby, his head turned away to follow the smell.  There was cake, and cookies, and hot dogs, and hamburgers and someone was making POPCORN!

The manager knew that Patrick was NOT paying attention. Patrick didn't even HEAR what the manager was saying to him.

Instead, Patrick was daydreaming of all the wonderful smells and FOOD he would  be around all day if he worked here. 

"I wonder if they need a taste tester!" thought Patrick, staring at a chocolate cake.

The more wonderful the smells were in the grocery store, the more Patrick's tongue started hanging out.  Much to his embarrassment, he even started to DROOL! 

"Is this your first job interview?" The manager asked Patrick.

"Uh, yes," stammered Patrick, staring at the bakery section and trying hard to focus.
"Well," said the manager, "you seem like you would be a wonderful CUSTOMER in my store, but you don't seem to pay enough attention to WORK here.  Besides, it's not a good idea to drool on the food," he said, handing Patrick a tissue.  "I hope you  will come back when you are a little older and you have some sort of EXPERIENCE!  Good Luck!"

With that, the manager hurried off to check on a new delivery.

"Look at all this MEAT!" thought Patrick, thinking he could bring home some bacon to the gang. 

"Not until I have some money," he remembered.  "There has to be SOME place on this list I can get a job!"

"Dry Cleaners," he thought.  "That should be no pawblem!  There is nothing to drool over at the dry cleaners!" 

He crossed the grocery store off his list and headed out to find his fortune. 

Things went much worse than Patrick expected at the cleaners.  The owner took one look at him and chased him right out of the store! "OUT OF MY CLEANERS YOU HAIRY DOG!  GET AWAY FROM ALL MY NICE CLEAN CLOTHES! OUT! OUT! AND STAY OUT!"

Patrick was pawplexed.  That was NOT the reaction he expected.  The Uprights at his house did not mind dog hair on their clothes one bit.  In fact, they believed it brought them good luck. 

Determined to find a job, he crossed the cleaners off his list and headed for the bank. 

It was getting very, very cold outside, and the sky was  turning stormy gray.  It felt like a storm would begin at any minute.  Patrick was starting to realize that finding a job would not be so easy after all.  A chill went through him as he pulled his coat tight to keep out the cold.

This would be a terrible day to be homeless, he thought sadly.