{"id":813,"date":"2020-06-27T10:37:59","date_gmt":"2020-06-27T17:37:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/?p=813"},"modified":"2020-07-09T16:28:58","modified_gmt":"2020-07-09T23:28:58","slug":"sheltering-in-place-at-the-magdalena-arms-episode-vii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/2020\/06\/27\/sheltering-in-place-at-the-magdalena-arms-episode-vii\/","title":{"rendered":"Sheltering in Place at the Magdalena Arms: Episode VII"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Missed the earlier episodes? You can find them all\u00a0<\/i>here<\/a>. Or start from the beginning with <\/em>Episode I<\/em> <\/a>and use the “next” button at the top the screen to move between episodes.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In our previous episodes, nervous Lois and newly-shorn Pam have arrived to help Dolly clean out dead Mrs. DeWitt’s apartment. Health code conscious Lois has sent the more casual Dolly to retrieve her mask while she and her depressed girlfriend begin the sorting process.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sorting Spat<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Back in Mrs. De Witt’s rooms, Lois and Pam were hard at work. With her usual organizational acumen, Lois had set Pam to sorting figurines and framed photos into separate boxes, while she stacked scrapbooks and clippings on the carved walnut breakfront that stood against one wall.  She’d clustered the potted ferns in front of one of the whatnots and it was marginally easier to move through Mrs. DeWitt’s salon<\/em>, as the deceased had referred to it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“What should I do?” Dolly queried. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Why don’t you tackle Mrs. DeWitt’s wardrobe?” Lois asked. “We’re sorting everything into three piles: discards, charity, and possible mementos or items of value.” She gestured at the already full box of figurines. “I thought we’d put those in the hall for the girls to look through and take what they want.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dolly glanced at the box and stiffened. “That’s her Theatre Guild award,” she pointed at a gold statuette of a woman in grecian robes holding a lamp. “You think anybody should just grab it?” Her hackles rose at the idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Well–no, not if you want it–“<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I don’t want it, but\u2014\u201d Dolly\u2019s eyes fell on a stack of old theater programs. \u201cWhat, you\u2019re putting her old shows into the discard pile?\u201d Her voice rose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t think anyone would be interested\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s her history<\/em>!\u201d Dolly flung her arms out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNothing’s set in stone,\u201d Lois said, her patience wearing thin. \u201cThese are just piles, Dolly. Would you rather Pam and I came back another day?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDon\u2019t get me wrong,\u201d Dolly tried to rein in her irritation. \u201cI appreciate you\u2019re coming over and helping. But there\u2019s not such a rush to clear out that we need to throw every memento into the trash!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lois stiffened at the criticism. \u201cI\u2019m not throwing everything into the trash, Dolly, I\u2019m simply applying the scientific sorting techniques I\u2019ve developed in years of managing the paperwork left over from hundreds of ad campaigns! In my experience, the more you brood over decisions\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m not saying we should brood<\/em>, I just want a little\u2014a little\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGirls, calm down.\u201d Pamela, who\u2019d been standing by lethargically, holding the disputed theater guild award, roused herself at last. \u201cThere’s no need to turn a simple cleaning session into World War III. We\u2019ll just leave the piles as is. Dolly can decide what to do with them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why, she doesn\u2019t even care<\/em>, Dolly realized. Pamela seemed to be in another world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m only here to help Dolly,\u201d Lois said huffily. \u201cIf she\u2019s not interested in my expertise\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOf course I am, Lois,\u201d Dolly caved. She could never stay mad long. \u201cI\u2019m sorry I got a little bent out of shape. It\u2019s just\u2026shouldn\u2019t we put a little thought <\/em>into this, and not go putting everything up for grabs or in the trash like so much junk?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI never meant to treat Mrs. DeWitt\u2019s treasures like junk,\u201d Lois said earnestly. \u201cBut with the price of storage space what it is today, there simply has to be some judicious sifting for what\u2019s truly worth saving!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pam had absentmindedly set the golden theater trophy on top of the programs. Her eyes stared unseeingly into the distance. If Dolly hadn\u2019t known Pamela\u2019s was violently opposed to drug use, she would have suspected the erstwhile retailer was nodding off on dope!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPam, are you feeling all right?\u201d She asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWho, me?\u201d Pam\u2019s eyes focused again. \u201cI\u2019m fine.\u201d But she turned in a circle, as if she\u2019d lost her way. \u201cSo\u2026we\u2019re sorting still?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes,\u201d said Dolly, staring. \u201cLet\u2019s keep sorting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPam, you can keep working on that whatnot,\u201d Lois instructed her older girlfriend as if Pam was a small child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dolly wished she could pull Lois aside, whisper in her ear, \u201cWhat\u2019s up with Pam?\u201d but the masks, the distance\u2026the smallest social exchange seemed impossibly difficult suddenly. Just thinking about it overwhelmed the normally lively landlady.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI guess I\u2019ll have a go at Mrs. DeWitt\u2019s wardrobe,\u201d she muttered, picking up a box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next: A Shocking Secret!<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As Lois, Pam, and Dolly sift through the detritus of their ex-landlady\u2019s life, they make a startling discovery that has unexpected consequences for all the Magdalena Arms girls<\/em>!
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check back often this weekend for bonus episodes! We’re posting once or twice a day in honor of LGBTQ+ Pride.<\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Find all the previous episodes here<\/a>; or start reading from the first episode<\/a>.<\/em><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Missed the earlier episodes? You can find them all\u00a0here. Or start from the beginning with Episode I and use the “next” button at the top the screen to move between episodes. In our previous episodes, nervous Lois and newly-shorn Pam … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[210],"tags":[218,212,215,220,214,211,230,228,231],"class_list":["post-813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-serial-siping-at-the-magdalena-arms","tag-dolly","tag-dolly-dingle","tag-lesbian-career-girls","tag-lois","tag-lois-lenz","tag-magdalena-arms","tag-pam","tag-pamela-prendergast","tag-sheltering-in-place"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=813"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/813\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":881,"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/813\/revisions\/881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monicanolan.com\/pulppep\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}