“Is it Halloween?” Otis asked when I handed him the candy. “No,” I said. “Why?” “Well, you’re giving me candy.” “It’s just a gift,” I told him. “For today.” “Oh,” said Otis. He unwrapped the Littmus Lozenge and put it in his mouth. And after a minute, tears started rolling down his face. “Thank you,” he said. “Do you like it?” I asked him. He nodded his head. “It tastes good, but it also tastes a little bit like being in jail.” “Gertrude,” Gertrude squawked. She picked up the Littmus Lozenge wrapper in her beak and then dropped it and looked around. “Gertrude!” she screamed again. “You can’t have any,” I told her. “It’s not for birds.” Then, real quick, before I lost my nerve, I said, “Otis, what were you in jail for?
