Chapter 8 - Blarney Island

The next day was Saturday. XL had no homework from school, so the whole day was available for exploring. He told his mom and dad that he would like to take Saucer 1, to go find Fred.

"I don't much like the idea of you going to a strange house by yourself, especially when it's in the middle of nowhere," said his mom, Larissa.

"We could come along too," Anna said, joining the conversation. "There is an indoor saltwater spa not far from there, and we could take a little detour for a nice swim."

XL's mom loved spas, so she turned to his dad, Max. "What do you think of that idea?" she asked.

"It's fine," said Max. "I will come too. We will bring our cross country skis too. There are some nice trails in that area, and maybe the skis will come in handy. I presume you would like to invite Beeba, right XL?"

"Absolutely!" replied XL. It was still breakfast time, but both he and Beeba always awoke early, so XL knew that Beeba would be up already. He phoned Beeba without delay.

It turned out that Beeba had promised to take care of his little sister, Sophie, that afternoon while his parents were doing home repair chores. However, that responsibility was easily accommodated by inviting Sophie to come too.

So, half an hour later, XL and his family were in Saucer 1 floating above Beeba Boeboo's house. XL and Anna dropped down in the elevator to meet Beeba and his little sister, who was kindergarten age. Beeba was carrying his skis, poles, and boots. He and his sister each had a backpack containing a swimsuit and towel.

"I'd say we have a full load," said Max as they came on board the airship.

Soon they were zooming across the city. Each of them were sitting on chairs looking out the large Plexiglas windows that ran all the way around the perimeter of the airship's passenger section. Anna and Sophie sat on one side of the saucer, and XL and Beeba sat on the other. XL's parents were at the front.

As the saucer left the city, it climbed to a higher altitude. They could see the snow-covered farms spread out across the prairie below them. "It's O.K. for saucer 1 to go a bit higher when we're out in the country," said XL to Beeba, "as long as we stay away from airways or other air traffic zones."

On the other side of the airship, Anna began reading a story book to Sophie. At age 13, Anna was old enough to be a baby sitter, and some months ago she completed a baby-sitting course. She really enjoyed taking care of little children.

The Saltwater Spa was en-route, and upon arrival they decided that Anna and her mom would take Sophie to the spa while the others went on to Blarney Island.

"Is it true that swimmers can float in the salt water without moving?" asked Sophie, as she entered the elevator to go down to the street by the spa.

"Yes, indeed," said XL.

"Even skinny bean-poles such as you?" asked Beeba.

"Yes, that's right," said XL. "One does not need to be as wide as Beeba to float on this water!"

"I am not wide!" exclaimed Beeba. "I'm just a bit husky."

They said their good byes and agreed to meet again later for an afternoon swim. Soon XL, Beeba, and Max were on their way, and 10 minutes after that they arrived at Blarney Island.

"There's the town!" exclaimed Beeba as they approached.

The Town of Blarney Island wasn't on the island at all, but on the shore next to a lake. It was a small town, with a main street down the middle, and several other streets intersecting it. There were small stores and shops along the main street, and the rest was residential. At the far end of Main Street, there was a bridge to the island.

The island was thickly covered with trees. Most of the trees were deciduous trees that had dropped their leaves for the winter. XL could see a few houses and cabins amongst the trees.

"Those trees are so thick that we might get the elevator cable tangled if we lower it there," said Max, "so let's set it down in the town."

When Saucer 1 reached the middle of Main Street, XL set the controls to hold its position. Then all three of them took the elevator down.

They walked down the street, observing the various stores. Beeba wanted to stop in a modern-looking "Super Discount" toy store, but XL told him they didn't have time for that. Many of the stores looked quite old, and as they passed by an old stone building, XL noticed a sign: "City Hall of Blarney Island - home of the world's greatest lying contest."

"This is probably not the only city hall where lying has occurred," remarked Max, "but it may be the only one to make an art out of it."

Next to the city hall was an old "General Store" made of varnished wood. It seemed to have more snowy footprints leading into it than most of the other stores. "Let's inquire there," said XL. "This is a small town and the store keeper probably knows everyone."

"Do you think they will tell us where to find Fred?" whispered Beeba to XL. "Maybe the people here know that Fred and his mother don't get along. If they know why you are here, maybe they won't tell you."

"Don't worry," replied XL. "Let me handle this."

When they entered the store they found it cluttered from floor to ceiling with a miscellaneous array of goods. There was only one person present: the shop keeper who sat beside a cash register at the back. He was an older man with grey hair and a moustache, wearing overalls. XL walked up to him.

"Howdy stranger," said the shop keeper. "What brings you here?"

"I'm looking for Fred Rose's home," said XL. "But I don't know where to find it."

"Really?" replied the old man. "Why do you need to know?"

What should XL say to the shop keeper?

Choice A	XL should make up a story about why they want to find Fred, without mentioning Fred's mother.
Choice B	XL should say honestly why they are there and ask again where to find Fred.
Choice C	XL should tell the shop keeper to mind his own business and demand that he tell XL where to go.

Return to Universal Ethics Home Page