Rugrats In Glasgow Part II
In the following days, Stu contacted Craig Ferguson via email and had his guest list approved, which included their Glaswegian relatives Angus and his clan, who would be joining them during their stay at the hotel due to more correspondence between Lou and Angus.
Stu went to Eucaipa Elementary School to speak with Principal Williams about authorization to give Tommy and his pals time off.
Tommy was casually walking down the corridor when he noticed his father approaching the door titled Principle Williams Office. "Hey, Dad, what are you doing here?"
"Hey, Champ, I have a meeting with your Principle, and I'm going to see if I can convince him to give you and your friends time off so you can come to Scotland with me," said Stu, opening his arms, bound and determined that Principle Williams will say yes.
Tommy smiled, looking up to Stu "Good luck with it Dad", leaving for his next class.
Stu smirked as he adjusted his tie, tilted his chin to the side. "Stu Pickles does not need luck, trust me champ, your Dad has got this!"
Stu takes his seat and sits himself down. Mr. Williams appeared serious, and his demeanor suggested that he wanted to have this meeting over within seconds.
"What can I do you for you, Mr. Pickles?" Mr. Williams spoke with a dry, snippy tone.
Stu was unfazed by what was taking place, and he confidently told him what he was about to say.
"I have been invited to an Award's Ceremony for my inventing which will be held overseas, the stay will be from 4th October, lasting seven days" stated Stu.
"Well, congratulations, Mr. Pickles, but could we please cut to the chase? I'm very busy today," replied Mr. Williams, eyebrow arched and uninterested.
"Can my sons Tommy and Dil, and their friends and cousin Angelica take time off from school for that week to join me in Scotland, it wouldn't be the same without them" remarked Stu with a grin, "After all they are my number one supporters" he added.
Angelica's name stood out, and Mr. Williams was perplexed: "Wait a second... Angelica Pickles?! Stories I heard in the faculty lounge... "Who are the other friends you're asking on their behalf?"
As Stu recites their names, he points to each of his fingers, "Yes, and there's Phil and Lil Deville," and then to his middle finger, "Kimi Finster and Chuck..." before being cut off.
"Chuckie Finster!" "The one who keeps putting whoopie cushions on my seat!" exclaimed Mr. Williams, fist striking the desk with a loud fud.
"Whoopie... cushions... I mean, yes..." Stu smirked briefly.
Annoyance suddenly transformed into a discovery that lightened his attitude within seconds. "Say no more! Permission granted; they can catch up on any work when they return," exclaimed Mr. Williams, springing out of his seat, erratically double hand shaking Stu.
As Stu exits the office, Mr. Williams jumps on his desk and performs an impromptu dance to celebrate; once the dancing stops, he returns to his seat and says in the third person, "May mercy be put on Estes, if the kids move to Jim Jr High, he will need all the luck in the world, two more semesters and I won't see them ever again!"
The Deville's and Finster's will accompany them on their vacation to Scotland, and Susie will join them as well, having been invited by Stu and Didi.
The kids took their seats in the taxis that would take them to the airport, and Chas, sitting next to Kira, stated to her, "Okay, Kira, so the temps will be running the Java Lava for the week, door locked, and plants watered".
Kira placed her hand on her mouth, chuckled, and tapped his knee softly, "Chas, honey." "Everything is taken care of; just relax and enjoy our vacation."
Didi was the last to enter the taxi since she needed to check something with Minka.
"Here are the digits for the UK phone number you add before putting my cell phone number, and the number for the hotel where we will be staying," Minka was given a list by Didi.
"Didi, get in your cab before you miss your flight," Minka told Didi, hugging her.
Boris whispered into her ear, making sure Minka didn't overhear, "Lou makes terrible haggis, but it's still better than your mother's borsht!" he joked.
One eyebrow raised. "Boris, what are you whispering into her ear?" asked Minka
"Nothing important, my petal," Boris said with a hesitant smile.
Spike, Fifi, and the puppies Sparky and Spiffy sat like polite dogs next to Randy and Lucy. Didi approached Lucy and hugged her, saying, "Thank you, Lucy and Randy, for looking after the dogs while we are away."
Lucy grinned while stroking Spike. "It's an absolute pleasure, we just love dogs!"
Randy got down on one knee and stroked Spiffy and Sparky at the same time. "We're going to have a great time with the dogs," he said, looking up at Didi. "It's our pleasure."
Didi says her farewell to her beloved dogs, and as the cabs depart, Boris offers to Randy a film they can all watch: "Randell, do you and Lucy want to go to the movies with me and Minka later to watch Combat Gym, I hear it's a hit with the young folk?"
"You read my mind, let's go, I've been wanting to see that film for weeks!" Randy said.
"What happens in the gym is what stays in the gym." Boris grinned and launched several mock punches at Randy, who responded some of his own.
"What is it with boys and their movies?" Lucy laughed "Let's get the dogs settled inside, we can book the tickets for tonight" she added.
"Boris won't stop talking about Combat Gym, so let's go and maybe he'll stop talking about it afterwards," Minka said.
The plane had taken off into the skies, everyone was settled into their seats, and Lou sat between Tommy and Dil, wrapping his arms around his grandson's shoulders, he then stated, "Well boys, we will soon be in our ancestral home, Glasgow, Scotland, here we come!"
Song - I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) By The Proclaimers.
After a long flight, the airplane had finally landed on Scottish soil. Walking through the departure lounge, they were greeted by Craig Ferguson, backed by a band of bagpipers playing a rendition of "Scotland The Brave" behind him.
Of course, Stu was the first to shake his hand. "Welcome to Glasgow, everyone; I hope you had a good flight?" Craig inquired.
"I couldn't sleep; I was so excited before we even left the states," laughed Stu, leaning on his suitcase trolley.
Charlotte, true to herself, snatched her cell phone from her pocket and, seeing two bars on the screen, instantly called her assistant, "Jonathan, I need those invoices done by today!"
Drew scowled but tried to reason with her, "Charlotte, you know you are now in Scotland!"
Charlotte covered her phone with her palm. "Relax, Drew, I'm the CEO of Megacorp, I'll just put the long distance bill as a buisiness expense"
Continued her phone call, "I don't care if you're still in your bed, I want them done now!" shouted Charlotte.
Stu introduced Craig to everyone else as they all boarded the stagecoach leaving the airport en-route to their hotel, where they will be staying.
Craig takes his microphone and says "I hope you all make the most of your stay here in Glasgow, from the vibrant Botanic Gardens to the Kelvingrove Art Gallery which has many wonderful exhibits for art lovers alike"
"I would also like to mention, a landmark you kids would be interested in is the Duke of Wellington statue located in the city centre which has a cone on its head, a cultural icon of Glasgow" stated Craig.
"I want to find Nessy; is there any chance we can go to the location where the Loch Ness Monster is?" Dil said, leaping from his seat.
"Keep telling you bro, the Loch Ness monster is a myth!" Tommy nudged Dil's elbow.
"Aye, of course Laddie, there will be plenty of opportunities to travel outside of Glasgow and I highly recommend you all visit Loch Lomond!" Craig mentioned.
The anticipated reunion was only a few miles away, on Glasgow's M8 highway or the motorway, Lou says to Lulu, scratching his scruffy moustache with his finger, "I am so excited to finally visit Angus after nearly sixty years"
Lulu smiles and says, "It will be lovely to see your cousin and his family, and I'm looking forward to meeting Ste, Isla, Bonnie, Grant, and Callum."
Kimi lifted her head above Tommy's seat and remarked to them, "It won't be long until we get to meet your cousins"
Tommy leaned over slightly, glanced up, and exclaimed, "It sure will, Kimi!"
Continuing to speak, "there are many places to explore which will no doubt fill out your week, and I hope by the end of this trip you will get to know our heritage and culture, bringing home many fonds memories and I certainly hope we will leave you with an excellent impression of this city" stated Craig.
The stagecoach is now moving into a tunnel, inside was darker as the lights travelling down from above illuminated the inside of the bus, eager to go over another bit of facts about Glasgow.
"Okay, folks, we are now driving through the Clyde Tunnel. A popular game among children and, of course, some adults is a game, attempting to hold one's breath all the way down the Clyde tunnel until the vehicle exits," Craig explained.
"Sounds fun; let's play," Tommy remarked, holding his beath.
"Me too," murmured Lil, holding her breath. Phil, Chuckie, Susie, and Dil participate by holding their breaths too.
"I'm not playing such a silly game..." murmured Angelica, folding her arms.
"Looks like someone's a wee bit crabbit" glancing at Angelica, "it's Glaswegian slang for being in a bad mood" Craig chuckled
Everyone laughed, but Angelica didn't find it very funny.
"It looks like the traffic is slowing us down," Craig commented, glancing out the window next to him.
"I've lost..." muttered Kimi, exhaling.
"Same here," said Lil, exhaling.
Chuckie, Phil, and Susie couldn't take it any longer, and Tommy, gritting his teeth, couldn't outlast Dil.
Dil raises his arms in the air and says, "Yay!" "I am the winner!"
Looking at Dil's nostrils, Tommy can see he was inhaling through his nose. "Wait a second... you were breathing through your nose... Dil!"
"Well, it appears Tommy is the last person to release their breath, so you are the winner!" stated Craig, pointing his microphone at Tommy.
Tommy would wind Dil up by shouting "Nice, try D" and pointing his thumb to himself, "The T Man does it again!"
Dil looks through the window next to him, trying to avoid his brothers' taunting; meanwhile, a few rows down. Stu says to Didi, "Well, Deed, I have my speech written down which is in the suitcase in case I win the award."
Didi couldn't help but smile, but she also wanted to keep him grounded; after all, he'd be competing against two other inventors, so the chances were stacked in all their favour each sharing the same probability of success.
Didi replied, "Stu, don't get your hopes up too high, I don't want you to be upset if you didn't win"
Didi found it hard to argue such a case, "Well, Didi, let's just enjoy the next couple of days"
Stu laughed and replied, "Oh Deed, I have a good feeling I'm going to win, something inside tells me I will win this award and it will be taking pride of place in the house when I bring that trophy home"
Betty couldn't help but overhear and hurried over to give him some words of support "Didi, 'that's the fighting talk and the confidence Stu needs"
Chas and Kira also joined in the chat, with Chas telling them, "I want to get my picture taken next to the Duke of Wellington statue; a cone on a statue, that's unheard of!"
Kira put her hands together and enthusiastically remarked, "We have the opportunity to sample some Scottish cuisine and immerse ourselves in the culture."
End of Part II