6. Meet Mr. Slug

Chapter 6 Meet Mr. Slug The next day was Friday. After we pledged the allegiance, it was time for science class. Our science teacher is Mr. Docker. He has a car that runs on potatoes. Mr. Docker is off his rocker. When we got to the science room, Mr. Docker was talking to a guy I never saw before. "I'd like you to meet Mr. Harrison," Mr. Docker told us. "He's the new tech guy for our school." "Tech guy?" we all asked. "What's a tech guy?" "I fix things that are broken," said Mr. Harrison. "Computers, copy machines, telephones. I build things, too." Mr. Harrison was tall and skinny. He had

weird hair and one of those plastic pocket protectors on his shirt with a bunch of pens sticking out of it. His pants were too short. What a nerd! "Mr. Harrison and I built something together," said Mr. Docker. Mr. Harrison took a remote control out of his pocket and pushed a button. And you'll never believe what happened next. A robot came walking out of the closet! "We want to introduce you to Mr. Slug," said Mr. Docker. Mr. Slug walked to the front of the class, bumping into a few desks along the way. He didn't look like any robot I ever saw. He had a cigarette hanging out of his mouth, a can of beer in one hand, and a bag of potato chips in his other hand. His eyes were crossed. Mr. Slug was a mess. "You shouldn't have cigarettes and beer

in school," said Andrea. "It's a bad influence on children." "Yes, we know," said Mr. Docker. "Ms. Leakey inspired us to build Mr. Slug. We wanted to show what happens to people who smoke and drink and eat poorly." "Does Mr. Slug talk?" I asked. "Sure," said Mr. Harrison. "Mr. Slug, how… are… you… feeling… today?"

Mr. Slug had a speaker on the side of his head. He made a sound like a cough. Then he coughed again. Then he had a coughing

fit. "OH… I… FEEL… LOUSY," Mr. Slug said in a computery voice. "I… AM… SO… TIRED. NEED… TO… LIE… DOWN. WHAT… DAY… IS… IT?" Mr. Slug stumbled around the front of the room. Then he let out a burp. "He doesn't sound very good," I said. "He sounds like he's gonna die." "Does Mr. Slug run on batteries?" asked Michael. "No," said Mr. Docker. "He runs on potatoes." That figured. "Check this out," said Mr. Harrison. He opened a door in Mr. Slug's chest. You could look right into his body and see his insides. It was cool. "Here's Mr. Slug's heart," said Mr. Harrison, "and here are his lungs. See how

black they are? That's what happens when you smoke cigarettes." Mr. Slug stumbled around the front of the room some more and then bumped into the whiteboard. "OH… MY… HEAD." Mr. Slug moaned. "So," said Mr. Docker. "Did you kids learn anything from Mr. Slug?" "Yeah," I said, "robots are cool!"