Leftovers: A Novel (12 page)

This made Vivian’s eyes open wide.

“‘The one with Roma Paige on the cover,’ he added. Now I loved my gramps so I granted him his wish, got the nudie magazine and rushed back to his room. He asked me to check where my grandmother was and I could see her outside pinning up the laundry. Then he told me to leave, closing the door behind me and come back in about 15 minutes.”

Vivian’s brow furrowed.

“So I did as I was told, watched the clock and maybe five minutes later my grandma comes back in and heads for the stairs. I tried to stop her but she wanted to check in on Gramps. She got to his room, put her hand on the doorknob, turned it, entered and . . . ”

Stew just stopped talking. Vivian was about to fall off of the edge of the sofa. “And what?”

“Grandma screamed. On his lap was the opened magazine and a smile on his face. Gramps was dead.”

Stew laughed so hard knowing he must have lightened Vivian’s heavy heart with his keen sense of humor. For a split second her face was blank as she stared at him.

“It’s true, Viv! Ask Babs.”

Suddenly, Vivian’s face scrunched up and she started to cry. Stew stopped laughing as she got to her feet and ran into her bedroom, hysterical.

Stew was completely confused. “Aw, geez.”

•  •  •

The following week, with no other work options available and with an extra 10 bucks from Babs, Vivian broke down and purchased her Tupperware start-up kit for $35. In 1954, that was a lot of money considering the average American household made $3,960, a pair of nylons cost $1 and a gallon of gas was 21 cents.

A gigantic box was shipped to her from Florida and inside it was a suitcase full of Tupperware. Also included were very precise instructions on how to sell the products, sell yourself and maintain the bookkeeping. But the best thing she had going for her was that she had Stew and Babs to mentor her along the way.

Babs was driving her car down Main Street past the library with Stew squeezed in the back with the Tupperware while Vivian sat in the passenger’s seat struggling with her demonstration speech.

“The Pie Taker provides easy transportation for all your desserts.” She paused, hunting for the next word. She sensed Stew was about to tell her and like a traffic cop she halted his voice with her hand. “Don’t tell me. It’s something about popsicles. Um . . . everyone loves popsicles and now you can make your very own with Tupperware Ice Pops!”

Stew reached forward and touched her shoulder gently. “Ice Tups.”

“Shoot! Why are they called ice tups?”

“Tups . . . Tupperware?”

Vivian was exasperated. “It still doesn’t make sense to me.”

Babs was just aching to talk. “So let me finish telling you about this guy I met, Kenneth.”

Vivian checked her make-up in a compact mirror. “Babs, you always order the same thing: tall, dark and . . . ”

“Disappointing,” Stew added, laughing.

“Kenneth was married but she died. Very sad. He has two kids: Salvatore and Hannah.”

Vivian chuckled. “Are they Italian or Jewish?”

Babs shrugged her shoulders. “Irish.”

Stew and Vivian shot each other a glance.

Vivian turned back around and straightened out her simple green wool suit. She and Babs had searched her closet and although the button-down jacket and a-line skirt were almost a size too big, it was the one ensemble that fit the best. It came with a belt and would have looked more fitted if she had worn it, but Vivian held steadfast to her rule.

Feeling performance jitters, Vivian flailed her hands at Stew in the backseat. “What’s after the popsicles?”

“Wonderlier Bowl sets,” he shouted.

Babs couldn’t help but cut in again. “Our next date he’s taking me dancing.”

Vivian looked at her with disbelief. “A second date?”

Stew leaned forward and stuck his head in between them. “This is a committed relationship.”

Babs smiled. “But you’ll never guess where he took me for my first date.” She gestured to outside the window and slowed down the car as she approached the building.

Vivian sat up in her seat to get a better look. “What is it?”

Stew wiped the fog from his back window. “A restaurant?”

A slew of cars were parked in front of the establishment, underneath a giant golden arch. Across it was a red sign that screamed:

15¢
McDonald’s
HAMBURGERS
We have sold OVER 1 MILLION

All three stared at the bizarre red and white striped building and the golden arches piercing through it.

Stew squinted. “McDonald’s?”

“Kenneth says it just opened.”

Vivian leaned forward to get a better look. “But why the golden arches?”

Babs stopped the car in front of the restaurant. “Maybe something to do with St. Louis? So he takes me inside and we’re about to order and he says, ‘I’m gonna buy a McDonald’s.’”

Vivian clarified what she was saying. “A burger.”

Babs shook her head. “No, the restaurant. They’re going to try to sell ownerships across the country. And Kenneth also said he could get me some stock in the company on the cheap. Supposed to make a lot of money.”

Stew rubbed at the steam fogging up his window again. “The sign does say we have sold over one million.”

A car behind Babs honked its horn. She shifted the car and drove on, shaking her head. “I give this burger joint a year before it goes under.”

Vivian grabbed a handful of tissue and stuffed it into Babs’ oversized pumps she was wearing. “They’re going to have to sell a lot more than just a million to make a good profit, yes? And what are the odds of that?”

Babs looked out towards the McDonald’s one more time. “Maybe I’m a snob but I wouldn’t be caught dead eating in a place like that, again.”

They all laughed as Babs drove on.

•  •  •

Vivian had lost touch with almost all of her friends. She had rung up Gloria asking if she’d like to host a party and she said yes, but had to wait a week or two. So Babs very generously handed over her next party to Vivian.

As they pulled up to the hostess’s house, Vivian’s butterflies in her stomach flittered into extreme nausea. She jumped out of Babs’ car and restuffed the tissue into the shoes.

“Is it hot out here or is it me?” Vivian asked, fanning herself.
“It’s you,” Babs smiled as she popped the trunk and dragged out a box of Tupperware.Vivian took off her coat and threw it into the car as Stew carefully slid off the backseat to a standing position on the street. He had changed out the single crutch for a cane and wrapped his free arm around a box.

Vivian took out her compact again and her hand shook as she applied a layer of lipstick. She turned to them for reassurance. “You sure this looks OK?” she asked, straightening her skirt.

Stew looked at her, amazed. “You look so much better in that than Babs.”

“Gee thanks,” Babs said, elbowing him.

Vivian held her stomach. “I’m so nervous I think I’m going to throw up.”

Babs handed her a box and then grabbed another one from the car. “Think of all of these women as your best friends. Keep it conversational and look them right in the eye.”

Vivian repeated it in a whisper. “Right in the eye.”

“And if you lose your place just take a deep breath and smile,” Stew advised.

Vivian looked completely distressed as Stew winked at her. She crossed her fingers and sporting a half-smile she waddled up the walkway to the house, swimming in Babs’ shoes.

Brother and sister gave each other a worried look.

•  •  •

In the living room, the ladies sat around Vivian as she held up six Tupperware Ice Tups in their tray. Looking even more distressed than before, Vivian started to shake as her mind went blank. She glanced to the back of the room for support from Babs and Stew.

Stew clearly mouthed the words, “Just take a deep breath and smile.”

Vivian nodded, took a huge breath and then created a forced, wide grin of terror.

Babs reached for Stew’s hand and whispered, “Oh God.”

Vivian tried to talk through the smile as her upper lip quivered but instead of sounding friendly and reassuring, she unfortunately came off sounding scary and a bit mechanical. “Everyone loves popsicles and you can make your very own with . . . ” she said the words slowly and deliberately, “ . . . Tupperware . . . Ice . . . Pups.”

The room broke into laughter. At first Vivian didn’t know what they were responding to, then she heard what she had just said.

She laughed trying to make it seem like she meant to say it. “Oh, ah, Tupperware Ice Tups!”

Vivian put the tups down onto the coffee table and picked up a large and heavy Wonderlier Bowl full to the brim with macaroni salad. She held the container out in front of her and remembered what Babs had said. She then took her time and stared at each one of the ladies as hard as possible. Unfortunately, her attempt at a friendly connection came off like she was giving them the evil eye.

“Before we play the mimes Tupperware game I’d like to share with all of you the colorful and wonderful Wonderlier Bowl sets. They come in an assortment of pretty pastel colors, stackable graduating sizes and like all Tupperware products, the Wonderlier Bowls have a lifetime guarantee and keep foods airtight.”

Amazed that she got through that entire part of the speech she nervously giggled but then fumbled trying to get the lid off of the Wonderlier Bowl. “Airtight. Very tight.” She pulled with her right hand and then tried with her left. She took another deep breath. “Um . . . our food serving and storage containers are unbreakable and . . . ” She stuck the bowl between her knees. “ . . . Put economy in your kitchen and . . . ” With both hands she pulled up with all her might. The lid flew off but so did the bowl from her knees, landing on the coffee table in front of the women, splattering macaroni salad all over them. “ . . . Beauty on your table.”

Vivian smiled hard and shook harder.

•  •  •

From the outside, Vivian, Babs and Stew could be seen sitting in the front window of the McDonald’s eating burgers, fries and shakes, ravenously.

Babs counted out one-dollar bills onto the table in front of Vivian. “Here you go, honey. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven and eight.”

Vivian looked at the money as she stuffed another fry into her mouth. “Gee, we’re in the big time. Eight whole smackeroos. I’m surprised they bought that much.”

Stew came up for air after noisily sucking his thick chocolate shake up through the straw. “At Babs’ first party she lost money.”

“It’s true. I sold absolutely nothing and had to give the hostess 10 bucks for cost of food.”

Stew pressed his forehead trying to relieve his instant cold drink headache. “Viv, next time you’ll sell four times what you did today.”

Having finished everything on her tray, Vivian licked her finger and started collecting every crumb she could find, to eat. “There isn’t going to be a next time. The whole thing was so demeaning.”

Babs sat up taller, closed her eyes and lowered her voice. “When you help someone up a hill you find yourself closer to the top.”

Vivian stopped crumbing and stared at her. She looked at Stew and he smiled back. Thinking it was the show tune guessing game she thought for a moment and then asked, “Carousel?”

Stew laughed. “It’s Brownie.”

Vivian was at a loss. “A girl scout?”

He laughed harder. “No. The vice-president of Tupperware is Brownie Wise.”

Vivian literally choked on her crumbs. “I don’t know what’s harder to swallow, that a woman is vice-president of a huge corporation or her name.”

Babs stood up. “Well, I know what is easy to swallow, these burgers and fries. Another round?”

They all nodded.

•  •  •

Shell-shocked from her first party debacle, Vivian scoped out the rest of the shops and businesses in Abbot in hopes of finding a job. With no success, completely out of money and her debt to Babs and Stew growing every day, she broke down and reluctantly considered giving the Tupperware another chance. She had no choice.

That Saturday night Vivian sat on Babs’ sofa surrounded by Tupperware with her head buried in a copy of Business Week magazine as Stew stood outside of the partially opened bathroom door talking to his sister.

“Babs,” he whispered, “I’m going insane.” He looked down the hall at Vivian. “I want to wrap my arms around her and tell her everything’s going to be OK. Do you think I should?”

She whispered back. “Wrap your arms around her? No.”

“Well then, what should I do?”

“Exude confidence.”

Stew looked puzzled. “How do I do that?”

Babs opened the bathroom door enough to stick her head out, which was wrapped in a giant scarf. “You don’t do it, you are it.”

“I am?” he asked incredulously.

Babs shook her head. “What are we, in junior high? Stew, it’s all about body language. Be spacious. A woman responds to a man who takes up as much space as possible.”