“I don’t mean you should try to fit your friends with glasses. I mean you should ask them to help you. For instance, I bet there are dozens of girls at school who need glasses. Talk to Casey and Staci. See if they’ll let you examine their students.”
“They’d never let me take the girls out of school to bring them to my office,” Ursula protested.
“They might, if they felt the girls might benefit, but what about just using an eye chart and doing a simple screening test at the school? If you find any girls need glasses you can let Casey or Staci know and they can contact the parents recommending a proper examination and the purchase of prescription glasses.
“You could also offer to give the students a little talk about the different problems people can have with their eyes and how important properly fitted glasses are. Dad and Dr. Shipley would certainly approve of that.”
Ursula thought about Cathy’s suggestions. Dr. Shipley and Mr. McNally, the Grantville optometrist and optician who trained her, would definitely approve of her educating people about eye health. And Casey and Staci were, well, more than just teachers at the new Duchess Elisabeth Sofie Secondary School for Girls. They were part owners and could talk to Lady Beth Haygood, the principal. “How much can I charge though?”
“Well, just to get them interested, I’d suggest doing a screening test of the current pupils for free,” Cathy suggested.
“Free? Dr. Shipley said I should charge for examinations.”
“Hey, it’s not as if you have a lot of paying customers. And you might want to prepare a handout for those little talks. Those girls all have families, you know. The more people know, the more likely they are to want to do something. Think of it as preparing the ground for seed. Anyway, it’s a way to get your foot in the door. I know of at least a dozen girls who wear those funny down-time glasses, and I bet they would benefit from a decent pair.”
Cathy certainly had that bit right. Her father was pretty scathing of the quality of the glasses the local spectacle sellers peddled. At best they had lenses of equal power, when very few people who needed glasses needed the same prescription in each eye. At the worst, well, Jim McNally considered them more damaging than going without.
“Okay, I’ll talk to Casey or Staci.”
“Tonight! After class.”
Ursula glared down at Cathy. “Yes, tonight.”
“Don’t forget.”
Ursula had a feeling that if she did forget, Cathy wouldn’t. “I won’t forget.”
Karickhoff’s Gym
The dancers were pulling on their outdoor clothes after a hard session under the eyes of Bitty Matowski. Ursula was pulling a brush through her hair when she felt Cathy’s eyes boring into her. In the mirror she could see Cathy nodding suggestively toward Casey Stevenson who was just about to leave the changing room. She glared back at Cathy before thrusting her hairbrush into her bag and scrambling to her feet.
“Casey, could I have a word?”
Casey turned from the door and smiled. “Sure. Can you talk while we walk? I’m supposed to be going to the American Kitchen with Carl.”
“Thanks.” Ursula took a deep breath. “I was wondering if I could do screening eye tests on the pupils at your school?”
“What does that entail? We can’t afford the time to take them to your office.”
“I was just thinking of using a room at the school and doing a simple test using an eye chart. For most of the children it wouldn’t take more than five minutes.”
Casey nodded. “And how much were you planning on charging?”
“Cathy suggested doing the tests for free.”
“Can you afford to do them for free? I hear you haven’t had many customers since you opened your office.”
“What? Where did you hear…Oh. Cathy’s been talking?”
“Yes, Cathy’s been talking. You really should have spoken up earlier. Come on, there’s Carl. I bet Kelly Construction would be interested in having their work force screened for vision problems.”
Ursula skipped home with a new spring to her step, and after an hour and a half of barre and center work under Miz Bitty’s eye, that was saying something. She might not have any guaranteed customers, but Carl had promised to talk to the guy who doubled, or tripled, as health officer at Kelly Construction about scheduling screening tests, and Casey had promised to bring up the idea of screening tests and talks on eye health with Lady Beth. Surely some of the tests would result in customers.
She used her key to open the door of the boarding house where she had a room and made for the kitchen. Everyone knew she went to dance class after work, so there was usually something left simmering on the range for her.
She bounced into the kitchen, and froze. Sitting back at the kitchen table working her way through a bowl of stew was the landlady. “Hi, Elisabetha. It’s been a fantastic day, hasn’t it?”
Elisabetha Schmelzer smiled. “Did you get a customer?”
Ursula flushed. Did everyone know that she’d barely had any customers? “Not yet, but I’ve arranged to do screening tests at Kelly Construction and the new girls’ school.”
“What are screening tests?”
“It’s just a quick and dirty way of determining whether or not someone needs a proper examination. I can give you one now if you like. I just need to get a chart and tape measure from my room.”
Elisabeth shook her head. “No need to rush. Get something to eat, and then have a soak. There’s still plenty of hot water. How much are you charging for these screening tests?”
Ursula found a clean bowl and, after filling it with stew, collected some bread and joined Elisabeth at the table. “I was planning on doing them free.”
“Have you thought about offering free tests at your office?”
“No.”
“You might want to try it. A lot of people see the fancy office and think they can’t afford to see you. If you put out a sign offering free examinations…well, it’ll be a foot in the door.”
Ursula blinked. There was that phrase again. “Have you been talking to Cathy McNally?”
“No. Should I have been?”
“It’s just she used that exact same phrase when she suggested I talk to Casey about screening the girls at Duchess Elisabeth Sofie.”
“Ah, well, it’s probably a common up-timer phrase. My Tommy uses it a lot.”
Ursula grinned. “And which door is your Tommy talking about putting his foot in?”
Elisabeth waved her finger at Ursula. “That’s enough of that, young lady. Just you finish your dinner and I’ll run you a bath.”
Glowing inside, Ursula set to cleaning her plate. She’d do what Elisabeth suggested and advertise free examinations. It would, as everyone seemed to be saying, get her foot in the door.
Two weeks later
It was after noon before Ursula returned from the latest series of screening tests at Duchess Elisabeth Sofie. She walked up to the reception desk to check if any mail or messages had arrived while she was out.
“Two parents called about you seeing their daughters. They were on the list you provided me and I’ve scheduled their appointments.” Thomas smiled. “At this rate you’ll be able to afford to pay your receptionist this week.”
Ursula poked her tongue out at him before copying the appointments into her appointment book. Thomas’ services as receptionist were provided to the tenants as part of their rent. “Thank you. I’ll be in for the rest of the day.”
“Do you want me to put your ‘Free Examinations’ sign out?”
Ursula checked her schedule for the rest of the day. There were just three appointments over the next five hours. “Yes, please.”
The sign caught Juliane Lortz’s eye. The enormous glasses showed the shop sold glasses, but it was the word “free” that held her attention. She wasn’t sure exactly what was being offered, but it wouldn’t cost her
