Pitching In and Helping Out

Pitching in and Helping Out is the 4th episode of "Shining Time Station."

Summary
Stacy is up on a ladder trying to fix the ticket counter’s clock, while Schemer is dusting off the Jukebox with his tie. When Stacy asks for his help, he claims he’s too busy. Stacy protests that the clock must be fixed so the passengers can board their trains on time. Schemer thinks that it’s better for the clock to be broken; this means the passengers can spend more money in the arcade. Schemer then tries to sell Stacy a “brand new, antique teapot” for five dollars. Stacy thinks it’s too dirty, causing him to lower the price to four dollars, then three. Stacy points out that the teapot has a hole in the bottom. Schemer claims that that is for pouring two cups of tea at once, and drops the price down to two dollars. Stacy still says no, so Schemer leaves the teapot on the information desk so she can think it over.

Matt and Tanya arrive from the platform. Schemer greets them then trips over his shoelaces as he walks away. Tanya asks Stacy if she can climb up to help, but Stacy says no: she wants her to keep an eye on the ladder. Matt is asked to grab a screwdriver. Tanya asks Stacy what’s wrong with the clock. Stacy demonstrates by spinning the hands, which makes a springing sound. Both Stacy and Tanya like the sound, but the clock is needed to keep everyone on time. Matt asks Stacy if he can keep a ball of red string he found with the screwdriver. Tanya wonders what you can do with just string, prompting Stacy to recall something her grandmother once said: “Let my life be like a piece of string: long, strong and soft at the end.”

Mr. Conductor appears on top of the clock wearing a chef hat and a long red apron, carrying two wooden spoons. He protests that Stacy’s grandmother never said such a thing. Stacy admits that she made up the saying herself. “Not bad, for a beginner,” replies Mr. Conductor. Stacy thanks him and then leaves to find some oil. Mr. Conductor drums on the side of the clock with the wooden spoons, disappears, and then reappears on top of the information desk.

Matt asks Mr. Conductor if he actually knew Stacy’s grandmother. He reveals that she ran Shining Time Station years ago, which is when he first met her. She used to know which train was coming just by the sound of its whistle, and took good care of both her trains and her passengers. She always knew how to have fun better than anyone else. Tanya protests that everyone knows how to have fun. Mr. Conductor replies that that idea isn’t true, and explains that everybody likes to have fun, but not everyone knows how to go about it. Stacy does, and so did her grandmother. Matt asks if Stacy’s grandmother ever played with string. Mr. Conductor replies she used to play Cat’s Cradle. Tanya tries demonstrating, but only gets her fingers tangled up. Matt quickly helps her out. Mr. Conductor congratulates him, saying that it always feels good to help someone out. To the engines on the Island of Sodor, this is called feeling “Really Useful.” Clicking his spoons together, he tells them the story of how Thomas felt really useful when he used the breakdown train to rescue James the Red Engine.

Tanya thinks that Thomas must have felt important when pulling The Breakdown Train, but Mr. Conductor points out that he was more concerned about helping James. Matt wishes that someone could help them figure out what to do with the string. Mr. Conductor replies that they’ll have to help each other out with that one, because he has to go home to feed his parrot a carrot and stretch out some spaghetti. Matt remembers that Stacy taught him how to make flowers out of string, and proceeds to show Tanya using only a fork and some drinking straws. Mr. Conductor, now dressed in his usual attire, appears by his front door to compliment them on their progress. He claims that string can do a lot with itself. When Tanya complains that that doesn’t make sense, he proceeds to show them a magic bubble about shapes made out of string. This gives the kids some new ideas, and they run off to gather some supplies.

Harry comes out of his workshop and puts a nickel the Jukebox. He’s had a song in his head since this morning, and wants to hear it played. The nickel drops inside the slot, but no one in the band wants to go pick it up, being comfortable where they are. They play the song “Railroad Corral.” Matt and Tanya come into the workshop, where Harry is fixing a sign with a broken chain. The sign used to hang on the ticket booth long ago and reads: “Shining Time Station: Trains from here… to Everywhere!” Harry is using a soldering iron to fix the chain. Tanya tells him all about their day so far, from their adventures with string to Mr. Conductor’s story. Harry tests the chain by hanging the sign on a hook, but the chain breaks. Matt offers him some string instead, which proves to be just the ticket.

Mr. Conductor appears on the Information Desk again, complimenting them on how busy they were. Matt only has a little bit of string left, and Tanya wants to do something really special with it. Mr. Conductor says that string can be a great problem solver as well, which reminds him of James the red engine. Tanya doesn’t think that a train can be fixed with only string. Mr. Conductor agrees, explaining that people are very clever on the Island of Sodor, and tells them the story of how a bootlace and a newspaper once helped James take a train.

Stacy is searching by the lost and found for something. Mr. Conductor asks if he can help, but Stacy says she has to learn how to fix the clock on her own. She suddenly remembers where she left the oil, but when she looks in one of the trunks, she comes up empty handed. She finally asks Mr. Conductor to tell her where the oil is. He replies she had left it on the floor in the ticket booth yesterday. He complains that the clock has made him late to his appointments for nine years, three months, eight hours, two minutes and twenty-three seconds. Stacy teasingly smiles at him, and Mr. Conductor admits that he made that one up. Stacy thanks Mr. Conductor, who disappears just as Schemer walks in.

Stacy’s goodbye makes Schemer think she’s talking to furniture. He once again trips over his shoelaces, as he’s too busy to even tie them. When he tries, he accidentally pulls the laces out of his shoe completely. He angrily pulls out the laces from his other shoe too, claiming he doesn’t need them. When he tries walking, the shoes fall off his feet altogether. Stacy whispers to Matt and Tanya that they should give the last of their string to Schemer. Tanya and Matt protest, as they wanted to do something special with it. Stacy replies that helping someone out is special.

A woman wearing a wetsuit, scuba gear and flippers flops into the station carrying a bowl of goldfish, asking when the next train to Lucky Lake is leaving. Stacy replies that it’s twenty minutes, and the woman leaves for the platform. Schemer points out that the woman wasn’t wearing shoes either, claiming some people know how to live. Stacy asks the kids if they will give Schemer the string, because otherwise he’ll be complaining about his shoes all day.

Grudgingly, Tanya hands it over to an excited Schemer. He again tries selling the teapot to Stacy for $1, then Fifty cents, and then decides to give it to the kids as a present. Matt wonders what they can do with it. Stacy provides the solution: she puts the string flowers the kids made inside the teapot, making it into a nice flower pot for the Information Desk. Harry comes in with his repaired sign for the kids to hang up, and then proceeds to help Stacy fix the clock. The episode ends with the repaired clock ticking away, while everyone cheers at a job well done.

Train Stories

 * 1) Thomas and the Breakdown Train
 * 2) James and the Coaches