Character Interview: Slick & Junebug from Amy Metz’s “Murder & Mayhem in Goose Pimple Junction”
I’m happy to welcome Amy Metz back to From Mia’s Desk! This time, she joins us with a character interview from two very colorful people named Slick and Junebug, residents of Goose Pimple Junction. Enjoy!
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Penny: Hi, Slick. Hi, Junebug. Do y’all have a moment? I want to interview you for an article on the diner for the school newspaper.
Junebug: Why sure, hon! Come on in and sit a spell.
Slick: I’ll get some sweet tea. You want lemon in yours?
Penny: Thank you. Yes, please. *sits down* Well, I guess I’ll start off with the background stuff. How long have you two been running the diner?
Junebug: These pictures on the wall will give you some idea of how long. We took all of them ourselves.
Slick: Yeah, that ‘n over there of Moses is a good indicator.
Junebug: Let’s just say Slick’s owned this place since he was young and restless and now he’s old and senseless.
Penny: *giggle* What made you want to run a diner?
Slick: When I was about your age, I went to work at the Howard Johnson’s that used to be up on Route 4. I went from bus boy to cook, and I learned a lot.
Junebug: ‘Course he already knew a lot. His mama was a great cook, and she taught him everything he knows.
Slick: Then one day, shortly after Junie and I got married, the people at Howard Johnson’s wanted to open up a restaurant in town. They asked me to run the place, which I accepted. The first thing I did was hire Junebug to wait tables. About five years later I bought it from ‘em, changed the name to Slick & Junebug’s, and the rest is history.
Penny: Do you have a favorite story that happened in the diner?
Junebug: I swan, we got some stories. One I like is the day Pickle came in and said he was so hungry he could eat a stinkbug off a dead skunk. Well, Slick challenged him on that. He said he could make him a two-pound skunk burger. Of course it was really beef, but Slick didn’t think Pickle would eat it if he thought it was skunk, and he didn’t think he could eat the whole thing on account of him being so skinny when he sticks his tongue out he looks like a zipper.
Slick: But he ate it. It took that boy four and a half hours, but he ate it all. Made me eat my words. Plus I had to give him the burger for free.
Penny: Wow! That’s a lot of hamburger! And Pickle ate all that? Wow… Um, so, what’s your favorite part about the job?
Junebug: Yes’m. He ate it all. But don’t forget he’s a 16-year-old boy. They have the appetites of three regular people. Favorite part of the job? I don’t know. Slick, what do you think?
Slick: Well, seein’ as how I do all the cookin’ and you do all the waitressin’, I’d say my favorite is the cookin’.
Junebug: Slick isn’t much of a talker, ya know? I guess that’s what I like best–talkin’ to folks. I like fillin’ their bellies, and findin’ out what’s goin’ on around Goose Pimple Junction. Or just shootin’ the breeze. I like that too.
Penny: I can tell. So… what dish do you like making the best? Which dish of your own do you like eating best?
Slick: Hmm…*he thinks for a moment* I think I like to make hash the best–
Junebug calls out: Customer will take a chance! *she cups her hand to her mouth and says,* That’s diner lingo for hash.
Slick: Anyway…I like to make hash because it’s tasty, I can be creative with it, and I get to use up ingredients that might otherwise get tossed. As far as what I like to eat the best, I’d have to say pie. Any kind. That’s probably why you can count on there bein’ three or four to choose from every day.
Penny: I can certainly appreciate that. They all look so good! Mm… anyways. Junebug, is there something particular that Slick makes that you like to eat?
Junebug: Ooh, law, everything Slick makes is delicious. I really have to watch what I eat around here in order to keep my girlish figure.
Slick: She’s just as pretty as the day I met her. Maybe prettier.
Junebug: Am I a lucky girl or what? Not only does he cook, but he’s a sweetheart too. Anyway…I was gonna say pie, but since Slick already said that, I don’t want people to think he don’t make anything but sweets, so I’ll say his fried chicken is the best. Which it is. Can’t be beat, not even by the Colonel. But after I ate his fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn bread, I’d order his Eve with a lid on it.
Slick: She means my apple pie.
Junebug: Honey, I could live off it.
Penny: Me, too… but my mom probably wouldn’t approve of my trying. So, where do y’all get these names for your food? The diner lingo and such.
Junebug: We can’t claim ‘em as our own. Anybody in the business uses ‘em, although not everybody’s fluent in ‘em. But they do put a little spice in the gumbo, so to speak.
Penny: Certainly does make things interesting around here. Well, I think I have enough for my article. Thanks for talking to me!
Junebug: Why thank you, darlin’. You’re just as sweet as the dew off a honeysuckle. It’s been real nice talkin’ with you. You come back any time, and we’ll fix you right up.
Slick: Don’t worry, I won’t make you eat a two-pound burger.
Junebug: Good luck with your article. And you come back now, ya hear?
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Author Bio: Amy Metz is a former first grade teacher who lives in Louisville, Kentucky. When not actively engaged in writing, enjoying her family, or spoiling her dog Cooper, and granddogs, Brown Dog and Arlo, Amy can usually be found with a mixing spoon, camera, or book in her hands.
Author Site: http://www.amymetz.com
Buy Link: Amazon
Buy Link: Barnes & Noble
