Name recall

Esther thinks she recognizes a woman sitting across the square.

...

Esther: Who’s that?

Abigail: Who?

Esther: That woman sitting near the bootery.

Abigail: Might have seen her, oh, it’s old whatshername.

Esther: So what is it?

Abigail: Hmm. Doris?

Esther: She doesn’t look like a Doris.

Abigail: Shall we go and have a chat?

Esther: Can’t do that. Can’t go and chat without knowing her name. Got to watch what you say so carefully.

Abigail: If you start talking to her, it’ll come to you.

Esther: Oh sure. Like she’s just bound to drop her own name into the conversation.

Abigail: It happens. She looks the type.

Esther: The type.

Abigail: The type who’d say “I was just going down to the shops and I came out without me money and I sez to myself, ‘You’re getting very forgetful these days Shirl, me girl.’”

Esther: Shirley! That’s it. How’d you remember?

...