title: The Jelly Bean Crisis
author:  Jolene Stockman 
description: <i>The Jelly Bean Crisis</i> is a heart warming and thought provoking story, especially if you're in the process of figuring out your life!<i> - AJOOP On Books!</i>
zlib_text: Janet Evanovich - Sp10 - Ten Big Ones
  
  Copyright 2004
  
  one
  
  The way I see it, life is a jelly doughnut. You don't really know what it's
  about until you bite into it. And then, just when you decide it's good, you
  drop a big glob of jelly on your best T-shirt.
  
  My name is Stephanie Plum, and I drop a lot of jelly globs, figuratively and
  literally. Like the time I accidentally burned down a funeral home. That was
  the mother of all jelly globs. I got my picture in the paper for that one. I'd
  walk down the street and people would recognize me.
  
  'You're famous now,' my mother said when the paper came out.
  
  'You have to set an example. You have to exercise, eat good food, and be nice
  to old people.'
  
  Okay, so my mother was probably right, but I'm from Jersey and truth is, I
  have a hard time getting a grip on the good example thing. A good example in
  Jersey isn't exactly the national ideal. Not to mention, I inherited a lot of
  unmanageable brown hair and rude hand gestures from my fathers Ital