Latest / Children's Hour / 3.21.26 - Part 2

Transcript

3.21.26 - Part 2 · Children's Hour

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Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome to Radio Eye's Children's Story Hour. As
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a reminder, RADIOI is a reading service intended for people
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who are blind or have other disabilities that make it
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difficult to read printed material. Your reader today is Patty. Today,
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we're going to be reading from several books about April first. Now,
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that day some people call April Fool's Day, So we're
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going to start with the book entitled April Fool Watch
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Out at School. The author of the book is Diane
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de Groat. It was published by Harper Collins Publishers in
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two thousand and nine. From the inside cover, it's April
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Fool's Day and Gilbert is looking forward to playing tricks
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on his friends. Unfortunately, he's the one getting tricked by
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everyone else, including Missus Bird. But the worst prankster is Lewis,
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the bully. In the end, Gilbert out wits Lewis with
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the best trick of all. So now let's read April
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Fool Watch Out at School. Gilbert woke up and looked
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at the calendar. It was April first, April Fool's Day.
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He hopped out of bed and started filling his backpack
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with tricks to play on his friends. His sister, Lola
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peeked in the door and said knock, knock. Gilbert answered,
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who's there, April fool? Lola shouted. Gilbert laughed and explained,
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you're supposed to play a trick on someone, not tell jokes.
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Oh okay, oh, Lola said, do a trick on me.
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But Gilbert didn't have time to play tricks on his
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little sister. He was already out the door. Gilbert met
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Patty on the corner as they walked to school. Patty
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suddenly said, watch out, Gilbert, your shoes untied. Gilbert stopped
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to tie his shoe, but it was already tied. Gotcha,
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Patty said, April fool. Gilbert laughed he couldn't wait to
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try that trick on someone else. Principal Pug smiled and
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waved when he saw them moving toward the school. Morning Good,
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he said, day, nice to have. He was talking back.
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The bell rang and Patty said to Gilbert, up hurry.
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Let's missus. Bird was not smiling or waving. She said,
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put away your tricks so we can get started with
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our reading lesson. Gilbert, please start on page ten. Gilbert
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stood up and read out loud, where is my book?
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Sam asked, I need it now. Missus Bird stopped him
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and said, well, when someone reads out loud, it would
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be nice to know where the punctuation marks are. Then
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she said, here's an idea. When you come to a period,
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say pomp. When you see quotation marks, say put. A
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question mark can be humph, and the exclamation point is boing.
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Try it. Gilbert took a deep breath and started over,
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phe where is my book? Huh h h. Sam asked, pop,
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I need it now, boeing. Gilbert said this is hard,
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Lewis said, and it sure is funny boeing. Everyone laughed.
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Missus Bird laughed too, and said, thank you for being
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such a good sport, Gilbert April fool. Gilbert sat down
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and made a loud mrrh sound in his seat. That
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wasn't me, he cried. Somebody put a whoopee cushion there, gotcha,
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Louis said. They finished their reading silently, but Gilbert kept
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thinking pop and boying every time he saw a period
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or an exclamation point. He also kept thinking about how
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he could play a tree on Louis. He had hot
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spicy gum in his pocket, so he turned to Louis
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and asked, would you like a piece of gum, Louis,
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No way, Lewis said. Later, Gilbert put a plastic spider
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on Louis's desk when he wasn't looking. This is so fake,
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Louis said when he handed it back. Then he slapped
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Gilbert on the back and said, your tricks are the worst.
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But when Gilbert wasn't giving up, he still had a
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few more tricks up his sleeve. He also had a
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sign on his back that said I smell no wonder.
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Everyone was snickering. As he walked to the cafeteria, Louis,
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Gilbert grumbled. Before he ate. Gilbert first checked his seat
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for a whoopie cushion. There was none, so he sat
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down and opened his lunch box. Suddenly, he jumped out
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of his seat and yelled, ah, there was a worm
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in his apple. It's just a gummy worm, Patty said,
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And look there's a note. The note said April fool.
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It was signed mother. Gilbert couldn't believe it, even his
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mother had tricked him at recess. Frank said, watch out, Gilbert,
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there's a bee on your head. Gilbert swatted at his
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head while Frank laughed and said, April fool. Margaret said,
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watch out, Gilbert, your shoes untied. Gilbert bent to tie
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his shoe. Made you look, Margaret said. Gilbert sighed. He
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couldn't believe that he had fallen for that trick twice
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in one day. Then Philip shouted, watch out, Gilbert. But
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Gilbert wasn't going to get tricked again. He said, I'm not.
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But before he could finish, a kickball smacked him on
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the head. I told you to watch out, Philip said,
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I thought it was another trick. Gilbert groaned as he
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rubbed his head. This is the worst April Fool's Day ever.
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Everybody's playing tricks on me. But I can't trick anyone.
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I told you your tricks were bad. Lewis laughed, you'll
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never trick anyone. Gilbert said, that's what you think, Louis.
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I have one more trick I've been saving just for you.
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Louis laughed again and said what is it. I'm not
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telling you. You'll have to wait and see it. Gilbert
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whispered to Patty what his trick was. Patty said loudly,
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you're right, Gilbert, that's the best trick ever. Louis snorted
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and said, you'll never April fool me. As they walked
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back into the classroom, Gilbert said, oh, Louis, let me
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hold that door for you. Louis asked, is this your trick? No,
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said Gilbert. He held the door open and Louis walked
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through very quickly. During spelling, Louis couldn't find his eraser.
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Gilbert said, here, Louis, you can borrow mine. Louis looked
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at the eraser and said, is this a trick? No,
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Gilbert said, but Louis inspected that eraser very carefully before
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he used it. When they went to the art table,
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Gilbert pulled out a chair and said, here you go, Louis,
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have a seat. Louis looked at the chair and said
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it's a trick, right, No, Gilbert said, but Louis checked
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the chair very carefully for a whoopie cushion before he
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sat down. When Lewis got up to clean his brush,
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Gilbert said, be careful, Louis, your shoe is untied. Ah.
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Lewis said, I'm not falling for that old trick. But
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his shoe was untied, and Lewis did fall when he
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stepped on the lace. Everyone laughed, I told you it
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was untied. Gilbert said, I thought it was your trick,
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Louis said, tying his shoe. No, Gilbert said, my trick
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is much better than that. During quiet time, Gilbert brought
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a book to Lewis and said, I think you should
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read this, Lewis. I really liked it. Lewis wouldn't take
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the book. He said, is it a fake book? Is
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it glued shut? Is it gonna squirt at me when
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I open it? No? Gilbert said, it's just really good book.
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Louis took the book, but he couldn't concentrate on the story.
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He kept looking over his shoulder to see where Gilbert was.
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Louis was so busy watching out for Gilbert's trick he
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didn't see Kenny put a fake spider on his desk.
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Louis screamed when he saw it. Gotcha, Kenny said, And
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when Patty told Louis his shoe was untied, he bent
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to tie it. Gotcha. Patty laughed, And when Louis sat
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on his own, whoopye cushion and Margaret said gotcha. Everyone laughed.
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When the bell rang, Louis finally shouted, I give up, Gilbert,
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I can't stand it anymore. Do your trick already. Gilbert's
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smiled and said, there isn't any trick, Lewis, I just
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made you think there was. You got April fooled? Gotcha? Okay,
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now let's read another one. This book is called Winnie
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the Pooh's Silly Day. The author is Bruce Tulkington and
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the illustrator is Robin Cuddy. This book was published by
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Disney Press in nineteen ninety six. Rabbit had called a meeting.
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Everyone in the hundred Acre Wood knew that Rabbit didn't
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call meetings unless something very significant was afoot. To Rabbit,
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meetings were as important as gravy was to mash potatoes
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or honey was to a certain bear of very short
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leg who was at that very moment stepping his to
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rabbits as quickly as those very short legs would allow.
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Running just as quickly toward the meeting was a quite
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different direction, and on legs even shorter than Pooh Bear's
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was Pooh's good friend Piglet, and Eeyor, carrying his tail
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in his mouth so as not to lose it in
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his hurry, was galloping so rapidly to the gathering from
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yet another direction that his back legs would occasionally out
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distance his front ones, and the donkey would suddenly find
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himself running backwards. He would then have to stop and
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get himself sorted out before his frantic journey could continue.
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Gopher was scurrying so fast through his tunnels in order
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to reach the meeting place on time that the trees
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above ground quaked jet as he jostled their roots, and
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passing and high above those trembling tree tops, Tigger tore
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toward the meeting in a series of tremendous bounces. Meanwhile, Rabbit,
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at whose house the meeting was to take place, couldn't
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contain his excitement and was scampering through the woods toward
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the others to make sure they were all on their
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way and would not be late. As a result of
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all this hurrying, scurrying, scampering, galloping and bouncing, the friends
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not only were on time for the meeting, but were
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even early. Everyone arrived at a particular crossroads at precisely
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the same moment, all moving too fast to stop, until
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they tumbled head over heels over one another and wound
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up in a friendly sort of tangle, with Tigger on
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top and Gopher on the bottom, while Eore's tail drifted
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down to lay limply across his muzzle. The illustration here
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shows all the animals in a big pile on the ground.
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Winnie the Pooh is wearing his red shirt as he
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always does, and all the animals are on top of
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each other where they've run into each other at that
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gathering place, and right on top is the orange tiger
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named Tigger. Continuing, I suppose sniffed Rabbit after they all
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had untangled themselves and politely dusted off one another's dusty places,
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that we can call the meeting to order right here
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and now, so Pooh Bear can get on with his assignment.
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Pooh's ears perked up in surprise, a signment. I'm not
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very good at making signs, you know. I'm never quite
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sure I'm using the certain letter that isn't as good
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as using one of the others, And there are so
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very many to choose from it's quite confusing. Rabert pulled
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his ears down as if he were going to tie
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them in a bow beneath his chin. This has nothing
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to do with making signs, Pooh Bear, he said. It
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has to do with foolishness, which is why we need
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your help. Rabbit looked down at Pooh and said, did
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you realize that today is April Fool's Day? Of course,
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laughed Pooh, delighted to know the right answer. For a change,
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It's the one day of the year you can look
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like a fool and not feel unhappy about it. Well,
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I suggest that this year we not be fooled, sniffled Rat,
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looking very determined. Might be nice for a change, said Tigger,
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with a grin. We certainly do a stuperendous job of
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looking pretty silly the rest of the year. You can
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say that again, agreed Eor. But to day is someone
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else's turn by dingy cackled Gopher really asked Pooh, whose
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turn is it? I think Rabbit means he wants us
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to fool the April fool before he fools us. Piglet
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whispered into Pooh's ear. No fooling, Pooh exclaimed, in sudden excitement.
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You don't think that would be impolite, do you, Pooh
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mumbled eero eyor I mean it being this day and
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all my goodness, No, laughed Pooh, who would enjoy being
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fooled more than the April fool, especially on April Fool's Day?
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Pooh leaned close to his friends and whispered, how are
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we going to do it? Rabbit whispered back, You're going
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to find the April Fool and bring him to my house,
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I am asked Pooh in amazement. But be careful, Pooh
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warned Piglet, giving his friend's hand a tight squeeze. I've
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heard that the April Fool can make can look like
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anybody he can, gasped Pooh, absolutely whistled Gopher, that's how
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he fools. You don't worry, Pooh boy, Tigger assured Pooh
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with a slap on his back. You'll find him. Nobody
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knows more about foolishness than you do. As the others
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hurried off to Rabbit's house to prepare their surprise for
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the April Fool, who scratched his head furiously with both hands,
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it didn't help. He hadn't the faintest idea of where
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to start looking for the April Fool, or what to
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do with him if he found it. But it always
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seemed that the best ideas came when Pooh's head was
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at its emptiest all at once. Who recalled that fool
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rhymed with Pool, not one to question sudden inspiration, he
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wouldn't have known what to ask it anyway. Pooh proceeded
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immediately to the largest collection of water in the forest,
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a quiet pond near the river. As Pooh cautiously crossed
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from one side of this pool to the other on
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a series of stepping stones, the one that had happened
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to be a turtle and not a rock, tipped him
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headfirst into the water. Sitting on the bottom of the pool,
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Pooh was, needless to say, thoroughly disappointed. There was not
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a single fool to be found, only fish, who Pooh
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knew were not the least bit foolish because they spent
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so very much of their time in schools. So Pooh
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began to look in places that didn't rhyme with fool.
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All he found in a cave were some pesky echoes
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that loved to make fools of people who were not
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precisely foolish themselves. They were not precisely anything, really, except
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a lot of noise, and Pooh, who was very well
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acquainted with the likes of rabbit and e or an owl,
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knew that a lot of noise didn't make one foolish
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most of the time. And the bats that all this
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noise awakened had any interest in fools, only in chasing
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Pooh away so they could go back to sleep. Pooh
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managed to escape by plunging back into the pool and
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sitting on the bottom until those flying back grumps returned
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to their napping, And when Pooh poked his nose into
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a certain large hollow tree, he was suddenly swamped by
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an avalanche of acorns left over from a squirrel's winter storage.
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Slipping and sliding as the nuts rolled treacherously under his feet,
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Poo suddenly found himself sitting down hard in the pool. Again.
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Exhausted and damp, Pooh scrunched his face up into a
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painful frown because he knew he had some thinking to do,
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and that it wouldn't happen unless his face was pushed
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into the correct shape for it to take place. Pooh
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was positive his friends were right, and thinking that he
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could find the April fool, because foolishness was, after all,
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something with which he had a great deal of experience.
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Besides that, he couldn't remember his friends ever being wrong.
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He also couldn't remember what he'd even had for breakfast,
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but that didn't matter, because it was time to get
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to the bottom of things, which was why he'd sat
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down in the first place. Pooh sighed and unscrewed his face.
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Perhaps I should go to Rabbit's house and ask for help,
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he said to himself, But he immediately shook his head. No,
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that would be foolish. They're busy getting ready to fool
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the April fool. All at once, Pooh sat up straight
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and smile lit up his face. If it's foolish to
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go to Rabbit's pool, exclaimed, then that's where the April
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fool must be. Poo jumped to his feet and waited
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to shore. And I'm sure to be right, because if
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I do say so myself, that's a pretty foolish idea,
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so foolish in fact, I don't even know what I'm
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talking about. Without wasting another moment, Pooh sat off as
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fast as his dripping legs would carry him. At Rabbit's house,
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everyone was ready for the arrival of the April fool.
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Rabbit had set a huge bucket of water over his
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front door to spill onto the fool's head when he entered.
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Piglet was nearby with a very small, yet very tasteful
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cream pie he'd made from his favorite recipe to toss
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into the fool's face. Off to one side stood Tigger
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with a huge pepper shaker to sprinkle on the fool's
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nose and make him sneeze. The small rag rug and
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the entryway was clamped firmly in Eore's mouth to be
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yanked out from under the fool's feet. Finally, Gopher was
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prepared to spill a bag of fluffy feathers that would
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cling to the damp fool and cause him to resemble
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a giant chicken. The gang was ready for everything, except
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for what happened next. The front door flew open, and
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there stood Winnie the Boo, shouting April fall at the
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top of his voice. The horrified rabbit tried to save
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Pooh from the falling bucket of water, but succeeded only
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in getting it jammed over his own head, which caused
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him to stumble about blindly. He bumped into Tigger, who
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staggered backward and sat in Piglet's pie, accidentally sprinkling his
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pepper into Eore's nose. Eyor, still hanging on to the rug,
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emitted such a powerful sneeze that it propelled him backward
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into Gopher, who spilled his feathers all over Piglet as
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the rug jerked out from under Pooh's feet and set
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the bear down in the entryway with a loud thump.
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After a moment of shocked silence, during which the disheveled
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friends looked at one another in amazement, who finally managed
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to blurt out, I was right, the April the fool
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is here. Then he looked down at his still dripping shirt,
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but he did seem to be very much out there too.
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Then the laughter began, and it was quite a while
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before anyone could speak. Finally, Rabbit, wiping his tears of
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mirth from his eyes, put his arm around Pooh's shoulders
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and said, I think you've discovered the fool's secret, Pooh Bear.
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Pooh managed to look quite pleased with himself and puzzled
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at the same time. I have what is it? It
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seems the April fool is everywhere, buddy Bear, hooted Tigger,
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and he looks just like us, and a good thing too,
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sighed Pooh. Why is that? Pooh Bear demanded Piglet, trying
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to remove a particularly large feather from his very small
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all ear, because then we can all laugh with one another,
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and not at anyone, said Pooh, Or am I being foolish? No, Pooh,
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said Piglet with a smile, not this time. And the
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laughter began again, and went on and on for a
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very long time. And now we have a little time
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left for a part of a book called Unfunny Bunny,
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read by Keenan Thompson with Brian Tucker, art by Tony Neil,
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published by Firewell and Friends in twenty twenty six. Bunny
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is excited for tomorrow, his ears twitching, his nose tap
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as he steps out his clothes, brushes his teeth, and
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hops into bed. Tomorrow is Bunny's first day of school,
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and everything's going to be perfect. The next morning, Bunny
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springs out of bed and starts trying on different persons
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the way other kids try on different outfits. I'm a
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cool bunny. No, I'm a sporty bunny. No, I'm a
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funny bunny. Boom. Bunny confidently heads to school and starts
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telling jokes to his whole class. It does not go well.
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What does a shoe like to eat for dinner? Spaghetti
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and feet balls? Why are socks so good at golf?
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Because there's always a hole in one. No one is laughing.
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Bunny starts feeling nervous, but tries again, why should you
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buy a boat? Many of them are on sale. Bunny
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frantically calls out joke after joke. What town does milk
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come from? Milk Walkee? What do you call a snowman
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at the beach? A poddle? No one is laughing. He
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keeps trying. What do you get when you cross a
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goat with a pickle? A dilly billy? What do you
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get when you cross a goat with a pickle during winter?
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A chilly dilly billy. What do you get when you
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cross a goat with a pickle during winter and let
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it out of its pin? A chilly dilly billy running
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round willy nilly. Well, that's where we'll stop for today.
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This concludes the Children's Story Hour. Please join us next
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time as we'll read more stories, fables and fairy tales.
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And thank you for listening, and please stay tuned for
28:49
continued programming on Radio I