Mercky Shellback

Mercky and Trudy Patricia Shellback run Boat Around the Square, which features rides in Mercky's latest boat purchase, dragged by truck around the town square in Murfreesboro. Mercky is known locally for purchasing a new boat seemingly every week and dragging it around town to show off (though no one knows how he affords these boats or whether he ever actually puts them in the water), while his wife, Trudy Patricia, is popularly known for wearing a bikini and having a real talent for pointing at things. The Shellbacks are currently taking care of the baby of Trudy Patricia's sister, though as Dunlap notes, "She don't let that baby call her 'mama.'" With Dilly Mulerider's operation and the new Boat Around the Square, the town square of Murfreesboro became congested. This resulted in an apparent collision that killed Dilly Mulerider's horses. Feeling bad, Mercky Shellback invited her to become part of his touring around the square. He bought a double decker bus which featured a petting zoo on ground level, with the top being taken up with Wesley Press's Lessons 'Round the Square; the bus pulled Mercky's boat, which itself pulled Dilly's old carriage, which became the repository for animal feed and waste. The caravan is so long now that no one can get in or out of the square, which has complicated efforts to hold the new Murfreesboro City Fair, now located on land just off the square following the "troubles" of 2014. Jackie Broyles himself has complained about his inability to visit his favorite Chinese restaurant, Golden Monster, located in the area. However, the 2015 Murfreesboro City Fair was incorporated into the 'Round the Square operation