I tell Madeleine's class the story of Scrooge answering the question: How did he get here? This in line with the class's focus on The Victorians, so we begin describing the London of then : dirty, rancid, gross. In my world, Scrooge from a rich family and sent to boarding school where he is bullied but no more than most. So far, so good. By midlife, he owns a successful manufacturing company which provides for hundreds of families. He is beloved. He is generous. But calamity strikes: his accountant , Santa Cruz Capitola (Yes, both Norcal surfing locations) cooks the books and soon Scrooge .. destitute. He must remake himself at the road's fork: wealth and bitterness or love and redemption. We know how the story ends .. as . . I sink . into.. . . the floor . .. the old Scrooge in ruin. The kids' eyes bugged.
