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Show 159 That spring Helen helped Red gather up the best of his drav/ings and submit them in support of his application for a job as an art consultant for the Erie Times News, which Red didn't think too much of as an idea, not that he didn't think xkai he was one of the best artists around, he just didn't think being good at something had much to do with anything, and the more that was disproved, the less faith he had in the human race, xkx which was just the obverse of Helen who despite her unerring faith in God and various socio-cosmic principles of balance aaxaa could always see what kind of fruit was in the jello, even if she didn't eat the stuff, which in later years is what she did, served it up and didn't eat it, so while Red applied for the art consultant position Helen took the aiax local Catholic Women's Scholarship Exam which funded tv/o scholarships to each of the three Catholic women's colleges in town, even though the scholarships usually went to girls who went to the Catholic Prep schools affiliated with the colleges; but Helen had skipped a grade and ranked second in her graduating class and she certainly was Catholic. She won the sixth scholarship. Meanwhile Red got an interview with the Times and Kaxax Helen told him "see" and Red said "Ah" but still went to the interview in his only coat and tie and sat in front of an old bald guy with glasses who wore a suit worse than Red's who said, "Boy, you're xaaa talented," and "Cripes, these are £ good," and Red was thinking how all that was true and feeling happy about/Helen helped him pick out all the right drawings, mostly ones of women with their legs showing, and feeling more and more confident, and he said "You're god-damn right they are," and the bald guy scratched the side of his head where he had some unkempt hair and said, "But you're so young," and Red said, "What's wrong with that?" "How come I didn't notice you were so xa young?" said the aaxxa art editor. "I don't know," said Red who already figured he was on the outs. "Seems to me you should have known that kaxaaxa before you dragged me in here." Then the old art editor ia£ixxxaxa£xxa scratched his head and left the office and came kak back after awhile and said, "You have to have a college education to apply for this position. We |