Recently at the grocery store I noticed that even at this time of year you can buy half of lots of fruits, like watermelon and cantaloupe. This helps you judge something about the ripeness of the fruit, if not the taste.

That reminds me of a woman who went to a grocery store and asked to buy half a great fruit. The clerk asked her to wait while he checked on that possibility. He went to the back of the store and said to the manager, “There is some nut here who wants to buy half a great fruit.” Then he glanced over his shoulder and noticed that this woman had followed him to the back of the store, so he said, “And this gracious lady is willing to buy the other half.” The manager was much impressed by the quick wit of this young clerk. So, later he said to him, “You could have a bright futu…