I worked a flea last weekend, selling mostly Magic Worms. The adjacent vendor was very intrigued and kept watching "Willie the Worm" go through his paces.

About halfway through the show, "Nature Called" and I asked the vendor to keep an eye on my spot for a few minutes. As I walked away to go to the bathroom, I turned and said, "Willie says he has to go." He cracked up.

I also sold a worm to a little girl who had one arm in a cast. She came back in a while and showed me how Willie could climb all over her cast -- now that's determination! SETH

Hey Seth:

Funny story. Now you can call him WILLIE WEE WEE HAHA Now the worms I pitch " DON'T EAT OR POO POO SO that's A PLUS" haha

See you down the road !

ROD

Actually Rod, I DO use that line in my pitch. First I explain that the worms are very inexpensive to keep around because "You don't have to feed them, they don't eat anything."

Then I say "And because they don't eat anything -- they never poop, there's nothing to clean up!" The kids love the reference to "poop" (who knows why?) and always think it's hilarious. Must be a 10-year old kind of thing. SETH

HAHA Yes, Seth it always gets a laugh. Working with kids is always a surprise a minute, you just don't know what they are going to do or say during a pitch.

By the way Seth, its good to see that you are out working fleas already this season. My season starts April 18, the 2 feet of snow outside my house is finally melting down, soon the old EZ Up goes up again, and I am back in business.

ROD

Yep, I wanted to get the rust out of my pitches before I do an outdoor show.

And I really WAS rusty; I definitely should have run through things with the cards and the worm in hand once or twice before the show. After doing these pitches a zillion times, you would think I'd know them backwards in my sleep, but that wasn't the case.

Anyway, everything is copasetic now, and I'm ready to hit the road! First big show is an Earth Day Festival in late April, and then I have a couple of Spring Street Fairs in May. These outdoor shows are risky because you are always at the mercy of the weather. But they are definitely where the good money is -- people are in a spending mood and looking for a good time. Plus, there's nothing like freshly made warm kettle corn and a root beer snow cone!!

Best of luck to you Rod, and hope you move those decks! SETH

Seth:

I have the same problem after the winter layover. You would think the small amount of time between the last Christmas Bazaar and the first show in Spring that I wouldn't have any problem, but I always have to get the DL back in order , and get the pitch down in order too. It always helps me to play Don's DVD on the Svengali pitch a few times., just to get the feel of the pitch once again

After a few hours on the joint, it all slips back into place. Thanks Seth, and have a great season.

ROD

Hey Guys,
You have to remember in winter I still worked playing card and boat shows and anything else I found that had people at it for over 30 years.I got to learn the pitch so good that in the middle of the pitch I would be thinking of what I wanted to get for dinner that night and not miss a beat.Now being retired,as much as I want I can't get that pitch out of my mine.Amazing how the mind works.

Later,Don

Although I haven’t had the opportunity to play with worms yet a line that I came up that might get a laugh is the shy move that some do with the worm (the worm sticks out of the fist and curls around back into the fist etc).

Something like: Willies a bit shy, he found out the birds eat worms the other day so his a bit scared. No more Discovery Channel for you Willie!

Magically

Aus

Cute idea, Aus. Anything that you can do to give the worm some personality and get a laugh is good, in my experience.

Ironically, even though people know it's not real, the more you act as if it were real, the better they like it. SETH