Cookie Memories from NE Georgia

Growing up, my troop was the #1 top seller in our council for 7 years 5 years straight (as confirmed by Mrs. Vickers).  As I mentioned in a previous post, we had two ringers in our troop that were always neck and neck with each other as to whom was going to be the top seller in the council.  I think one year there was a girl in a different troop that actually sold more cookies than Caroline or Jenny.  It was as if we entered into an alternate universe for that whole year.  Craziness!  But I guess the other girl couldn’t deal with the pressure, because the next year, Caroline and Jenny were back to switching off for the #1 and #2 top seller and order was restored in the world.  WHEW! 

At the end of the year, the Northeast Georgia council always had a party to give out incentives and recognize the top three troops in sales.  Was this the year someone was going to knock Troop 20 from the top spot?  Mary Lee Flanagan, the council’s director, always got up and announced #3 first.  Everybody clapped when she announced the #3 winner, especially if it was a brand new troop or one with a lot of younger girls in it.

Then there was a hush from the crowd.  Who was going to be #2?  It was like the Miss America contest – as soon as #2 is announced, everybody knows who #1 is.  #2 just gets shoved to the side and doesn’t get any recognition whatsoever.  Poor #2.  WHO DOES #2 WORK FOR??*  And you know, there’s #2 standing there, trying to look all happy for who’s about to be announced #1 and telling herself,  “Hey, being #2 is pretty good!” but the whole time she’s really trying not to cry or grab ahold of #1’s hair and yank it back.

Anyway, Mary Lee Flanagan announces #2 – and everybody groans in unison, ’cause you know who’s #1, baby!  TROOP 20!  We all get up and scream and high five each other.  Then Mary Lee Flanagan rolls her eyes and says, “And for the ___ year in a row, #1 is Troop 20!”  I think one year I jumped up, pointed at everyone else and yelled, “IN YOUR FACE!”  I got in trouble for that comment.  Because yelling IN YOUR FACE! is not being a sister to every Girl Scout.

And then everybody got their cookie incentives and patches and ate a ton of ice cream, and all was well in the world.

*WHO DOES #2 WORK FOR?