The photographer
On the day the proxy father was to arrive, Mr. Robinson kissed his wife and said, “I’m off. The man should be here soon.”
Half an hour later, just by chance, a door-to-door baby photographer rang the doorbell, hoping to make a sale. ......
“Good morning madam. I’ve come to......”
“Oh, no need to explain. I’ve been expecting you,” Mrs. Robinson
cut in.
“Really?” the photographer asked. “Well, good! I’ve
made a specialty of babies.”
“That’s what my husband and I had hoped. Please come in and have
a seat.”
After a moment she asked, blushing, “Well, where do we start?”
“Leave everything to me. I usually try two in the bathtub, one on the
couch and perhaps a couple on the bed. Sometimes the living room
floor is fun too....you can really spread out!”
“Bathtub, living room floor? No wonder it didn’t work for Harry
and me.”
“Well, madam, none of us can guarantee a good one every time. But if we
try several different positions and I shoot from six or seven angles, I’m
sure you’ll be pleased with the results.”
“My, that’s a lot of ...” gasped Mrs. Robinson.
“Madam, in my line of work, a man must take his time. I’d love to
be in and out in five minutes, but you’d be disappointed with that, I’m
sure.”
“Don’t I know it,” Mrs. Robinson said quietly.
The photographer opened his briefcase and pulled out a portfolio of his baby
pictures. “This was done on the top of a bus.”
“Oh my gosh!!” Mrs. Robinson exclaimed, tugging at her handkerchief.
“And these twins turned out exceptionally well-when you consider... Well,
the Mother.”
“She was difficult?” asked Mrs. Robinson.
“Yes, I’m afraid so. I finally had to take her to the park to get
the job done right. People were crowding around four and five deep, pushing
to get a good look.”
“ Four and five deep?” asked Mrs. Robinson, eyes widened in amazement.
“Yes”, the photographer said. “And for more than three hours,
too. The mother was constantly squealing and yelling - I could hardly concentrate.
Then darkness approached and I began to rush my shots. Finally, when the squirrels
began nibbling on my equipment, I just packed it all in.”
Mrs. Robinson leaned forward. “You mean they actually chewed on your um...equipment?”
“That’s right. Well madam, if you’re ready, I’ll set
up my tripod so that we can get to work.”
“Tripod??”
“Oh yes, I have to use a tripod to rest my Canon on. It’s much too
big for me to hold very long. Madam? Madam?.....Good Lord, I think she’s
fainted!”
