G. WHILLIKERS' DEBUT
Since Timjimmy Auxberon initiated Seanchai Wednesdays as a theme night at The Wayside, that night of story-telling has proven to be very popular, sometimes even moreso than the Thursday Pub Quiz. And when the scheduled teller of tales is Sarah Willagus Weeks, who uses "G. Whillikers" as her "minstrel" name, the tavern is assured to have a full house. Most surprising thing about that for Timjimmy is that on those nights, most of the customers will be the Notchfolk from Notchborough, Ct., rather than the (un)usual "Waysiders" who pass through the purple back door which is the portal connection to Notchboro and the Flatlands.
But to be fair to all, Sarah does announce before she's scheduled what her exact topic will be, since the Notchfolk are not interested in all of the stories she has on her particular realm of subject matter, only the ones which deal with their hometown's contributions to her theme....
Tombstones.
Sarah is a taphophile, the la-de-da way of saying she loves exploring cemeteries for the unique gravestones and cenotaphs to be found in those stone gardens. Some might think that being a "tombstone tourist" would be unsettling, but Sarah finds it comforting to be surrounded by the peace to be found in a cemetery. [1]
Timjimmy's friend Callie Henstrom, the town librarian, had booked Sarah to be a guest speaker once at the McElligott Library. After, Callie convinced her to audition for the Seanchai Wednesdays, especially since it was a paying gig. As such, Sarah chose a particular topic which she never would have considered for the library, but for that pub which straddles the dimension veil between Earth and the Flatlands, between Notchborough and its severed sister city of Notchboro....
Well.... Let me just share how she concluded the story about the cenotaph which marks the final resting place of William Thruston, a "jake" in the Notchborough Fire Department back in the 1930s:
“Mr. Thruston specified in his will that as he was probably going to be the last William Thruston more than likely – he never married – then he wanted a huge ‘willie’ thrusting into the sky to acknowledge that Willy Thruston once walked the Earth.
"Of course, there were a few complaints, especially from the Decency League, no surprise. But on the whole, people still accept it, ninety years on....”
Timjimmy hired Sarah on the spot to be a regular seanchai. [2]
O'Bservation: 01] Timjimmy Auxberon doesn't have access to such a luxury. Being a "namchipay," one who can see and speak to the Nearly Departed, he's constantly hounded by the "spooks" (as he calls them) whenever he visits the cemetery where family is interred. At least, the ghosts who supposedly live in his co-op and who hang out at The Wayside know better than to pester him.
02] Granted, Timjimmy is an easy mark for that type of humor. But Sarah probably had an "in" anyway - she and Timjimmy are both "Congregators," those most ardent fans of folksinger Billy Dan Whiskey and the band The Whiskaways.