...Finally Darcy was discovered by the Pier-Master and asked to leave but it didn’t matter. The visitors to the pier had been generous. Giving the Pier’s graceful form one last glance, Darcy hurried back into town. She had something important to do.
Part 33
Darcy spent the next few weeks finding creative ways to dodge the Pier Master and accomplish her turn on the pier and then visiting the weekend jumble sales in her free time. Her first purchases were a tube of glue and a small sewing kit. From the jumble sales, she collected broken bric’a’brac, plus any half decent but affordable ornamental pieces she could find.
In crowded halls, the race was on
Snatching, grabbing, worthy wares
Old ladies’ vicious elbows cruelly
Jabbing hard to claim as theirs
Fledgling learned to jab them back
And keep her precious plan on track
Night by night, she’d made repairs
And cleaned the treasures she’d accrued
Items long since cast aside
Their meagre value now renewed
Pennies spent to speculate
Can double and accumulate
Darcy’s next move was to acquire a small space in the Air Street market. She wandered amongst the stalls until she spotted a small area next to an ice cream van. She spoke to the man who served the ice cream and it turned out it was an unused part of his pitch.
She explained what she wanted to do and, after a bit of persuasion and bartering, he agreed to let her use the space for her venture, the following week, as a trial run. In return, she would give him ten percent of her takings to go towards his pitch fees.
Her stage now set. Her goods prepared
It’s time to strike and manifest
Her presence in the market place
And drum up buyers’ interest
Sunshine highlights bits of glass
Blue velvet adds a touch of class
Gradually, throughout the day, Darcy’s stall saw people come, and by the end, most of her items were sold. Her pocket was heavy with change. She counted it out and gave the ice cream man his cut. He told her she could come back the following week. Her new venture was well under way.
