- Back to Mrs. O.
- Turn out, not only did Margaret Draper (Ethan's grandma) used to live in Epiphany, she used to be a principal at the school where Mrs. Olinski had her very first job.
- That was back in the days when things were different, yo. Kids were polite and respectful, not like brats these day. (Hey, we didn't write it.)
- Sixth grade was the best, because sixth graders could get past just learning to read the words and the page and "get inside the print and to the meaning" (3.3). (You know, just like Shmoop does.)
- But these days, sixth graders are way more interested in their iPhones than in memorizing poetry.
- Okay, enough about how in our time we had to walk two miles uphill both ways in the snow in bare feet. Back to Mrs. O.
- After Margaret retires, she and Mrs. O keep in touch on Facebook.
- J/K. Both Mrs. O and Mrs. D probably think that Facebook is one of the many things responsible for the decline of Western Civilization. They send each other holiday cards, just like real grown-ups.
- Unfortunately, one of these holiday cards probably contained the grim news that Mrs. O had been in a car accident that killed her husband and left her paralyzed.
- It also means that Mrs. O knows that Ethan is Margaret's grandkid.
- She doesn't say she knows, but she keeps a close eye on him, anyway. Teacher's pet.
- Well, not really. But she does see something she likes in him. He still asks "Now what?" instead of "So what?" (3.9).
- So what? So obviously, Ethan becomes member #3 of Team Victory.
- And now it's time for the next question. New York state history.
- Ethan is all over it.