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The other day Wakanomori and I stepped out onto our porch in the late afternoon, and from up the street we could hear the sound of mad running--a whole gang of kids, let's say two boys and three girls. One of the girls, the tallest, was in a frilly skirt. Another child had very bright sneakers--neon green or day-glo orange; I forget which. (I love bright sneakers).

"Here's some people!" shouted the frontrunner, a boy. "Here's some people!"

"What can I do for you?" I asked, expecting them to be...