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HOW RASPBERRY JAM GOT INVENTED

Book 1, Time Before Color TV series

by

Brian Bakos

cover art: Othoniel Ortiz

Copyright 2013 Brian Bakos / revised 09 - 2016

Table of Contents

Part One: The Last Summer Picnic

Part Two: Mysteries at the State Park

Part Three: Uninvited Guests

Part Four: Desperation

Next Book in the Series

Connect with the Author

Brian’s Other Books

https://www.smashwords.com/books/byseries/7061

http://www.theb2.net/

http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/othoneil

B Bakos RASPBERRY JAM 1

Part One: The Last Summer Picnic

Prolog

Have you ever wondered how raspberry jam got invented?

Just look at a jar of it in the grocery store sometime. All those

seeds staring out like beady little eyes. Somebody at the jam factory

must have smashed the berries and stuffed them into the jar, right?

Maybe that’s how it’s done these days, but the original method was

very different.

1. Mean Preparations

Melissa turns on her twin brother.

“No, Davis, you can’t come with us!” she shouts. “This picnic is

just for me and my friends.”

Davis backs away. He seems about to cry any second.

“All right,” he says in a very small voice.

Melissa jabs a finger at him.

“And you’d better not go crying to Mom. Got that?”

“I won’t,” Davis says.

He speaks so quietly that I can barely hear him.

“Good!” Melissa says.

Davis walks off with his shoulders stooped and his head hanging.

The rest of us – me, Tommy, and Quentin – stand around my back yard

looking at each other. We’re all terribly embarrassed.

“It wouldn’t hurt to bring him along,” I say. “We’ve got plenty of

food.”

Melissa waves her hand.

“Believe me, Amanda,” she says, “we’re better off without him.

He’s such a bore.”

“Even if he is,” I say, “he could have helped carry the stuff.”

“Come on,” Melissa says. “Why are you always so nice when you

don’t have to be? Davis isn’t your brother. I’m the one who’s stuck

with him.”

I shake my head. If I had a brother, I know that I’d be much nicer


to him. Then again, if I did have one, if I had to share things and stuff,

maybe I wouldn’t be so kind after all.

My dad always complains about the ‘arm chair heroes’ who want

everybody else to go fight wars while they stay behind safe watching

TV and drinking beer. Am I just being an ‘arm chair nice person’ trying

to be kind because it doesn’t cost me anything?

Being around Melissa too much can get you thinking in weird

ways like this.

“Are we ready to go – finally?” Melissa says.


2. Becker School

You might get the impression that Melissa can be pretty mean and

stuck up. You’d be right. So why do I keep hanging around with her?

That’s difficult to explain.

Have you ever kept drinking the same soda pop, even though you

can’t stand it anymore, just because you’re used to it? Melissa is kind

of like that. Or maybe I think that she’s got a good side – that if I keep

looking, maybe I’ll find a nice person under all the angry meanness.

Or maybe she’s like my donuts with just an empty hole in the

middle. Who can say? All I know is that she, Quentin, and Tommy are

my oldest friends. I’ve known them all since we first moved to South

Allendale.

Which leads to another question. If we’re in South Allendale,

where is North Allendale? Nobody seems to know that, either.

“So, where are we going – the club?”Quentin asks.

“Not yet,” Melissa says. “We’ll have lunch at Becker School park

first, then we’ll go swimming at the club.”

“That’ll work,” Quentin says.

He pulls a bright red yo-yo out of his pocket.

“How do you like this, Tommy?” he says.

“Cool!” Tommy says.

Quentin throws the yo-yo out to its full length; I duck out of the

way.

“Watch it!” I yell.

“Sorry, Amanda,” Quentin says. “This thing has a mind of its own,

sometimes.”

“It’s probably smarter than you are, Quentin,” Melissa says.

Tommy pulls a similar yo-yo out of his pocket, only this one is

yellow.

“How many tricks in a row can you do?” he asks.

“Let’s find out,” Quentin says.

He runs out my yard, firing the yo-yo in all directions. Tommy

follows him, his own yo-yo swinging and flashing.

“How immature!” Melissa says.

She grabs one end of the picnic basket handles.

“Looks like it’s up to us to lug this thing, Amanda.”

I take the other end of the handles; together, we heft the basket.


“I’ll get back at them for this,” Melissa says. “You can count on

that.”

We leave through my back gate and start walking down the gravel

road.

There were supposed to be more houses built across from us, and a

sidewalk was actually laid out for them. The houses themselves never

got put up because the whole area was turned into a state park last year.

Just the overgrown sidewalk remains, running to nowhere along the

edge of the woods.

This is pretty cool, actually. The other side of town has plenty of

new houses and a strip mall. But here is more like woodsy countryside.

You can have the best of both worlds without going too far. There have

been various problems at the park, though, and it’s been shut down a

couple times, according to the Clarion newspaper.

After trudging along the gravel road for a while, we turn onto

paved streets.

“This thing weighs a ton!” Melissa complains.

“Yeah,” I say, “too bad there isn’t anybody else to help – like

Davis, maybe.”

She ignores my remark.

We really have too much food, especially heavy fruit. Worst of all,

a big metal jug of lemonade hogs up much of the picnic basket space.

The handle is broken off the jug, so you can’t carry it very easy by itself.

I brought powdered donuts, but didn’t put them in the basket for

fear they’d get crushed. I tote them in my backpack along with my

towel and a few other things.

The backpack isn’t bad, but the darned picnic basket gets heavier

with every step. And it’s so awkward! Who designed these stupid

things, anyway?

Finally, we arrive at Becker Elementary school. As we pass the

main doorway, a cold shadow falls across our path. The building looms

over us like some cheap horror movie monster. The windows are all

dark and empty; the entryway looks like a big, hungry mouth. You can

almost hear it talking:

Just one more week, kids, and then you’ll be back in my power!

“You don’t scare us,” I say.

Even so, we start walking faster. Soon we are running, jostling the

basket between us. Ka-slosh! Ka-slosh! goes the lemonade with each

step.


3. Playground Mayhem

Finally, we outdistance the doorway and stop running – out of breath,

arms aching. I never thought that I could hate a picnic basket so much.

Now that the ‘danger’ is past, I feel a bit ridiculous. Melissa

probably feels silly, too. As is her style, she covers it up by getting

angry.

“Tommy, Quentin!” she shouts. “Carry this for us. Now!”

“Yeah!” I yell. “Or we’re gonna stay right here and eat by

ourselves.”

The boys hurry back.

“Don’t do that,” Tommy says. “We’ll help.”

“What’s the matter?” Quentin says. “Don’t you like my yo-yo

tricks?”

“They’re just wonderful,” Melissa says. “Now start carrying!”

Quentin picks up the basket, leaning to one side to balance it as he

walks. Tommy goes with him while Melissa and I bring up the rear,

shaking the stiffness out of our carrying arms.

“Here’s a good spot,” Quentin says, after he’s gone only a short

distance into the park.

“Yeah, it’s nice and shady,” Tommy says, “ground’s flat, too.

Good work, Quentin.”

“Thank you, Tommy,” Quentin says, all modest like.

The boys look proud of themselves, as if they’ve just climbed

Mount Everest or something.

“This is very convenient,” I say. “Don’t want to wear out your yo-

yo hand lugging that thing, eh?”

“That’s right,” Quentin says. “I’d hate to disappoint my fans.”

Melissa rolls her eyes.

“If he can find any,” she mutters. “Look at him, Amanda, he must

think he’s President Eisenhower.”

“Yeah,” I say, “and that’s Vice President Nixon standing next to

him.”

This is an interesting comparison. Quentin kind of reminds me of

the president – always smiling and confident, a leader type. Tommy is

darker and less outgoing, like Nixon.

“We heard that!” Quentin says. “Just remember this:”

He and Tommy recite the little chant that made the rounds for the


election:

Ike is in the White House,

ready to get elected!

Stevenson’s in the trash can,

ready to get collected!

“Oh, please,” Melissa says.

I make no comment. I mean, I like Ike as much as the next person,

but I’m not interested in discussing politics just now.

We spread the food out on the checkered picnic cloth. We have

sandwiches galore – some lunch meat, others peanut butter and jelly –

bags of chips and pretzels, fruit, pickles. Not to mention the lemonade

and doughnuts. It all looks delicious.

“This is sure worth all the trouble getting it here, eh Tommy?”

Quentin says.

“Yeah,” Tommy says.

Everything seems right with the world. Warm sunshine speckles

through the shade gaps of the elm trees. The smell of fresh-cut grass

fills the air. Even the whirs of cicada bugs sound rather pleasant.

But before we can eat a bite, a hoard of boys in bright uniforms

starts flooding into the playground. They toss around black and white

balls, bouncing them off their heads and kicking them along the

ground.

“Soccer!” Quentin cries.

“Soccer?” Melissa says.

“Yeah, it’s popular all around the world,” Tommy says. “Now it’s

starting to catch on here.”

Tommy’s family is from Guatemala originally, although he was

born here. Still, we generally accept his opinion about things that

happen around the world.

“Why don’t they play baseball like normal boys?” Melissa asks.

“It’s the coming thing,” Quentin says.

The thing that comes next is a soccer ball, right into the middle of

our picnic lunch, knocking over the lemonade jug.

“Hey, watch it!” Melissa cries.

Two boys dressed like human bumble bees in yellow and black

striped uniforms dash over.

“Sorry,” one them says, holding out his hands for the ball.

Melissa kicks the ball hard, sending it flying to the far reaches of

the playground.


“Wow!” says one of the boys.

“Don’t mess with her,” the other one says.

They dash off.


4. More Intruders

Quentin jumps up. “Come on, Tommy, let’s see if they need a couple

more players.”

“Yeah!” Tommy gets up, too.

“Just a minute,” Melissa says. “You guys agreed to come on a

picnic with us. Now you’re planning to run off ?”

“It’ll just be for a little while,” Quentin says.

“I know how that works,” Melissa says, “first it’s ‘a little while,’

then it’s ‘just a few more minutes’ and then the whole day is gone.”

“Oh, all right.” Quentin looks sadly out towards the hustling teams.

“We’ll stay.”

That’s Quentin for you, always keeping his word. Though I

certainly can’t blame him for wanting to get away from Melissa, as she

is being more than the usual crab today.

Then some really unwelcome intruders arrive.

“Euu, Ants!” Melissa cries.

While we were busy with the soccer players, a whole army of big

red ants has invaded our picnic. They are crossing the checkered picnic

cloth like columns of infantry.

“Quick, put the food away!” I yell.

The picnic lunch we so recently spread out just as quickly returns

to the basket, leaving the ants clueless. They wave their antennae and

snap their pincers with frustration.

“They don’t look too happy,” Tommy says.

“An endless terror – a nameless horror!” Quentin intones as we

whisk the food away. “Kill one and two take its place.”

“The Sci-Fi Classic of the Atomic Age!” Tommy chimes in.

“What are you two babbling about now?” Melissa demands.

“Them!” Quentin says. “We saw it at the Saturday Matinee a

couple weeks ago.”

“You know, the movie about the giant ants,” Tommy says.

“That sounds just great,” Melissa says.

By this time we have the food safely packed away again. The boys

stand together and chant:

“Terror Horror Excitement Mystery – Them!”

“Oh, please!” Melissa says.

“No, it’s really cool,” Quentin says. “After the atomic bomb tests


in New Mexico, these ants mutate and grew to like twelve feet long.”

“Yeah,” Tommy says. “They wreck this grocery store and kill a

bunch of people just to get at the sugar!”

“How charming,” Melissa says. “These ones are bad enough, thank

you.”

I’d have to agree. I’m certainly no ant expert, but these things are

nasty looking, and quite large – for ants, though not nearly 12 feet.

They don’t look happy that they’ve been robbed of their lunch, either.

We watch the scrambling around the now empty picnic clothe.

“This has been a really bad summer for bugs of all kinds,” Quentin

says. “Ants, flies, you name it.”

“You don’t suppose radiation has drifted here from New Mexico?”

Tommy says.

“Could be,” Quentin says. “Or maybe the Russians have sent

them.”

“That’s ridiculous!” Melissa says.

Tommy keeps the topic alive. “You know, I saw this ant show on

TV and – ”

A soccer ball bounces by us. Tommy kicks it back.

“We can’t stay here,” I say, “or we’ll be eating soccer ball

sandwiches along with our ant snacks.”


5. A Fateful Decision

“Let’s pack up and go to the club,” Quentin says. “We can eat

there, then go for a swim.”

Melissa rolls her eyes again. “That would be so uncool. Besides,

there’s a big tennis tournament going on today. All the picnic tables

will be taken.”

Quentin shoves his hands into his pockets and looks at the ground.

He’s found something interesting there and nudges it with his toe.

“That’s why I thought we could swim for a while,” Melissa says.

“We’d have the whole pool almost to ourselves. Everybody else will be

watching the tennis matches.”

Right, I think, that way you won’t have to worry about your fancy

club friends meeting a bunch of low class types like us.

I say nothing out loud, though.

A sly little smile spreads across Melissa’s face.

“I know,” she says, “the state park!”

“The state park?” Quentin says. “The entrance is over a mile away,

then another long walk to the picnic area.”

“So, what’s your point?” Melissa says. “A couple of strong boys

like you can carry a little picnic lunch that far, can’t you? There’s

supposed to be good swimming, too, by the Willow Creek picnic

ground.”

“I heard there was a problem at the park,” Tommy says. “The

natural resources people are checking it out. The place is supposed to

be closed for a while.”

“You don’t believe everything you hear, do you?” Melissa says.

“Well ... no,” Tommy says.

We stand around looking doubtful – everyone except Melissa. We

aren’t supposed to go to the state park without adults. I’m not supposed

to, anyway. Nobody is willing to be the first to chicken out, though. So,

Melissa gets her way, as usual.

“It’s settled, then,” she says, “let’s go.”


6. To the State Park

Soon we are on our way. The boys carry the stuff now, and it irritates

them a lot. First Tommy lugs the basket, then Quentin, then Tommy

again. They don’t want to do the sensible thing and carry it between

them ‘like a couple of girls.’

Finally, they take out the lemonade jug. One carries it while the

other takes the basket, then they switch. Both get lemonade streaks

dripping down their T-shirts.

“I told you I’d get back at them,” Melissa says.

Things get really bad for Tommy and Quentin when three other

boys show up on bikes. I don’t like the looks of them. They seem mean

– hood types.

“Looks like the girls have really got you under control,” one of

them says.

“Yeah,” another one says. “When you’re finished with this, stop by

my place and take out the trash.”

Tommy tries to joke back with them, but Quentin is doing a slow

burn.

“That’s real funny guys,” he says.

He flips open the picnic basket and begins rummaging around in it.

“What are you looking for, man?” one of the boys asks.

“A knuckle sandwich,” Quentin says. “I think you need one.”

The boy seem to turn a shade paler. Kidding time is obviously

over.

“OK ... well ... see you around, Quentin,” he says.

The three boys take off in a hurry.

This is so cool! Even Melissa seems to be impressed.

“Quentin’s quite a diplomat, all right,” she says.

“I like a man of few words,” I say.

We start walking again. The nonstop sound of the cicada bugs is

getting on my nerves, though. When you hear their whirring, you know

that summer is almost over. Another year of school with all its changes

and insecurities will soon begin.

What teacher will I have? Who else will be in my class? Will

another war break out someplace in the world – what will the Russians

try next?

Also, I have the oddest feeling that we are being watched as we


walk along.

Don’t be silly, I tell myself, who would bother watching us – why

would anybody waste the time?

But the feeling won’t go away. Now and then I glance back over

my shoulder, but I never see anyone.

“What’s the problem?” Melissa asks.

“Oh, nothing,” I say.

But a few minutes later, I’m looking over my shoulder again. Once

I think I spot somebody ducking behind a big elm tree, but I can’t be

sure. It’s probably just my ‘overactive imagination,’ like my mom says.

As far as I can tell, it’s just the four of us and our picnic basket

moving slowly through the hot air and the cloud of cicada noise.

We leave the residential streets and move along the dirt road

toward the park entrance. Quentin and Tommy get quieter and quieter.

Their laughing and joking is replaced with the misery of lugging the

stuff. And not a yo-yo in sight.

Out here, the cicada droning isn’t quite so bad. Maybe the ugly

things like the city trees better than the natural forest. But then a new

sound begins – an odd scrabbling noise coming from the underbrush. I

step away toward the middle of road.

“Did you hear that, Melissa?” I say.

She flashes me a bored look.

“No, Amanda, I didn’t. How long have you had this ‘hearing

things’ problem?”

That’s a snotty thing to say, even for Melissa. The noise comes

again, but I say nothing this time. I can’t be certain, but Melissa might

have heard it, too, judging by the way her ears perk up.

Good, let her figure it out!

Finally we reach the park entrance. The boys drop their loads and

rub their sore hands. A chain blocks the road before us, and a sign on

the empty toll booth reads:

Park Closed Until Further Notice

Thanks for reading! Please purchase a full copy of the book to continue.


Next Book in the Series

First Ring Rainbow the next book in the Time Before Color TV series.

If it sounds interesting, Please Click Here to obtain a copy or to read a

passage.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/byseries/7061

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/313316


Connect with the Author

I hope you enjoyed the story.

Please visit my website and blog at: “The B2”

Also, my Smashwords author page, Amazon author page, and

Goodreads author profile

http://www.theb2.net/

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/theb2

http://www.amazon.com/Brian-Bakos/e/B001K93EJY/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1460759658&sr=1-2-ent

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1683579.Brian_Bakos


Brian’s Other Books

Here are brief descriptions of my other books for young readers. They

are available at all major online retailers in ebook format.

Captive in Terror Orchard

Book 1 of the Terror Orchard series

To the authorities, Billy Conner is just a rebellious and defiant juvenile

delinquent. To his foster parents, he’s a pawn in a fiendish drug plot.

He’s much more than anyone realizes, though – he’d better be, or the

consequences will be unspeakable. Assisted by unlikely allies, one of

them literally “dug up” from the orange orchard, Billy struggles for his

freedom and for the lives of countless other potential victims.

light horror / action adventure

The Bulb People

Sequel to Captive in Terror Orchard

Book 2 of the Terror Orchard series

What’s going on in the awful little town of Bridgestock? Why did the

English teacher’s husband race his truck down the streets screaming his

head off, and why are people vanishing? Of course, only nasty types

have disappeared so far, but that could change at any time.

Ryan Keppen, a 13-year-old newcomer, must tackle these mysteries,

along with the issue of his “happy blended family” which he

desperately wants to disappear as well. Maybe everything is related,

and one problem can help solve another.

light horror / action adventure / humor

Disaster Productions

Matt’s struggle to win media fame by his 14th birthday leads to

escalating disasters. Matt knows that he is too much of an impractical

dreamer achieve this goal on his own. He needs help from a smart

collaborator. Enter manipulative genius and borderline frenemy

Stephan “Duals” Chrono.


The resulting power struggles and unexpected consequences drive the

story. Throughout the chaos, Matt develops the focus and leadership

skills necessary for true success and, incidentally, does become famous

in a totally unpredictable way.

humor / satire

The Lost Country

Crown Prince Rupert struggles against ignorance and superstition to

rally his countrymen against a dire threat coming from the mysterious

Eastlands. When disaster finally strikes, it’s up to Rupert and his band

of often questionable allies to win through or face destruction of his

kingdom and everything he holds dear.

Young adult action / adventure fantasy

A Hurricane in Your Suitcase

Brett’s constant lying is getting him into serious trouble. Can big

brother Joe stop admiring himself long enough to help turn things

around? A strange mixture of cautionary tales leads to a showdown

with the Giant Hill.

Children’s humor / satire

The Daring Rooftop Rescue

“Coming up in the world” can bring unexpected problems as Johnny

Badger learns the hard way. Despite his new-found wealth, Johnny is

no match for the complicated political situation in Forest Towne. His

own bumbling arrogance adds to his woes.

Children’s humor / satire

TIME BEFORE COLOR TV SERIES

Follow the adventures of Amanda Searles and her friends as they make

astonishing discoveries, invent new stuff, and generally save the world.

Based in 1950’s USA, they branch out into strange realms of the wider

universe to set things right. It’s all in a day’s work.

Middle grade – Young Adult humor / adventure / fantasy


How Raspberry Jam got Invented

Book 1 of the Time before Color TV series

The last summer picnic turns into an astonishing disaster! Melissa’s

snotty arrogance involves the friends in a situation they may not

survive, but maybe they will.

Middle grade humor / adventure / fantasy

The First Ring Rainbow


1950’s cold war tension at it’s scariest. Anything can happen during the

Atomic Summer. Amanda struggles to deal with the era’s sexist

restraints, her fugitive Russian communist grandparents, and the

appearance of a bizarre creature at Secret Pond. Somehow, everything

ties together.


Adventure Bike Club& the Tire Giant


The huge tire on the freeway outside town is not an advertisement, as

people think, but a vessel from another universe on a sinister mission.

Can Amanda and her friends make it back out alive? The fate of the

world might hinge on the outcome. Not only that, but the town mayor

stands to lose a fair amount of money.


The Great Flying Adventure


Amanda and Quentin fly to an alien universe where Quentin competes

in a brutal sports tournament to determine the fate of the Earth and of

human civilization. Amanda falls for the enemy team captain, and

things become terribly complicated.

Tween humor / adventure / fantasy


Return of Mr. Badpenny


Tommy gets more than he expected from a mysterious two-headed

coin. The power it gives him goes rapidly to his own head, setting him

on a course to moral decay. Solution? Hand it off to Melissa, who also

goes off the rails with her new found power. Eventually, they team up

to battle the danger.

Tween humor / adventure / fantasy

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