"The meter man?" asked Joe blankly.
"Yes. He'll want to read the meter...."
Joe clapped his hand to his head. "It's in the basement!" he exclaimed. "How come he didn't ask to read it last month!"
"I told him we were fumigating the basement for termites," said Pearl. "So he said he'd make our reading out for the same amount of power we used the month before. But what'll I tell him this time?"
"Tell him we're fumigating again—that the first time didn't take! He can't go down into that basement!"
"All right. But what'll I tell him the third time?"
"That's a good question. But maybe by that time he won't need to go into the basement."
"Why won't he?"
"Because I haven't paid the bill for two months. One more and they'll cut us off at the pole."
"Then you'd better not pay the bill," said Pearl.