Claire’s mother Emily said after considering it for a moment. “ I’m up for it!”
“Me too,” agreed Joanna. “And Shane needs summer clothes too.”
“We could shop for everyone’s summer wardrobe,” Claire said excitedly. “We’ll make a day of it at Mary’s resale shop….cocktails before we go, and then shopping.”
“Then, lunch back here prepared and served by the men,” I offered. “That is, if you all aren’t too busy?” I said, looking around at the rest of the guys.
“ Ooh ,” the girl’s cooed.
“Sounds delightful,” said Emily.
“I never pass up a free meal that I don’t have to make,” said Pam.
“Then it’s a plan,” said Claire. “We’ll meet here at say…eleven tomorrow morning?” she asked the other ladies.
They all agreed that eleven would work.
And so it was a date.
Claire’s spur-of-the-moment idea actually ended up being a wonderful time for all involved. The next day broke bright and beautiful and stayed that way. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and the high temperature for the day touched 80 degrees according to the old thermometer nailed to the storefront.
The gals – with exception of Pam – each had pumpkin-spice ale before they left for the resale shop, giving them a nice “shopping buzz” as Emily termed it. Pam’s beer was set aside for after her pregnancy, giving her something to looking forward to. Ray said that her share of the booze that he would collect by the time she gave birth would serve as her eventual “push” present.
After their beers, the girls all headed over to Mary’s, taking young Sarah with them, where they spent almost two hours sorting through the variety of clothing left inside the resale shop.
As soon as the ladies left, the men got to work. Ray and I drove the pickup and trailer to a nearby home, bringing back a big picnic table we’d seen behind the house. We drove it back, unloaded it, and hauled it up onto the store’s front porch. Then I left Ray with Will and Shane to get the table set and ready. Paul offered to watch Jason while we worked, and I let him. They stayed inside the store’s first floor area, zooming around playing tag or pushing toy cars upon chalk-drawn outlines of racetracks on the old wood-plank flooring.
Meanwhile, dad and I worked in the kitchen. I had laid out our menu the night before and was ready to start work as soon as the girls were gone. I got the gas grill fired up to cook on and had left water on to boil while we’d gone to pick up the picnic table. I also got much of my dessert – an apple crisp – ready ahead of time since the apples were already cooked and canned – one of the last vestiges from Wilma’s food stocks brought along from the farm. I used granola cereal drizzled in honey as my “crisp” topping, and since we didn’t have ice cream or whipped cream, I made a powdered milk and honey glaze and left it in a pitcher from which the gals could drizzle it over their dessert as desired.
Dad worked on the hors d’oeuvres and appetizer. The hors d’oeuvres included a mixture of olives, pickles, and little canapé-like items that dad created using potato chips, and toppings formed from the various condiments, spices, olives, and relish we’d found at Mary’s diner.
Our appetizer was simple but soothing. We served grits lightly topped with maple syrup.
My main course was a pasta dish with a sauce created from a can of stewed tomatoes and seasonings also from Mary’s.
The women came back with bags loaded full of shorts, t-shirts, shoes, and more. Some clothing was more suitable for fall wear, but it could be converted to fit the rising summer temperatures with a few scissor snips.
The men nearly fell over when they saw Joanna. We’d never seen her bare skinned before. I mean, we could tell she had a great body hidden somewhere below all that winter clothing, but I
“Me too,” agreed Joanna. “And Shane needs summer clothes too.”
“We could shop for everyone’s summer wardrobe,” Claire said excitedly. “We’ll make a day of it at Mary’s resale shop….cocktails before we go, and then shopping.”
“Then, lunch back here prepared and served by the men,” I offered. “That is, if you all aren’t too busy?” I said, looking around at the rest of the guys.
“ Ooh ,” the girl’s cooed.
“Sounds delightful,” said Emily.
“I never pass up a free meal that I don’t have to make,” said Pam.
“Then it’s a plan,” said Claire. “We’ll meet here at say…eleven tomorrow morning?” she asked the other ladies.
They all agreed that eleven would work.
And so it was a date.
Claire’s spur-of-the-moment idea actually ended up being a wonderful time for all involved. The next day broke bright and beautiful and stayed that way. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and the high temperature for the day touched 80 degrees according to the old thermometer nailed to the storefront.
The gals – with exception of Pam – each had pumpkin-spice ale before they left for the resale shop, giving them a nice “shopping buzz” as Emily termed it. Pam’s beer was set aside for after her pregnancy, giving her something to looking forward to. Ray said that her share of the booze that he would collect by the time she gave birth would serve as her eventual “push” present.
After their beers, the girls all headed over to Mary’s, taking young Sarah with them, where they spent almost two hours sorting through the variety of clothing left inside the resale shop.
As soon as the ladies left, the men got to work. Ray and I drove the pickup and trailer to a nearby home, bringing back a big picnic table we’d seen behind the house. We drove it back, unloaded it, and hauled it up onto the store’s front porch. Then I left Ray with Will and Shane to get the table set and ready. Paul offered to watch Jason while we worked, and I let him. They stayed inside the store’s first floor area, zooming around playing tag or pushing toy cars upon chalk-drawn outlines of racetracks on the old wood-plank flooring.
Meanwhile, dad and I worked in the kitchen. I had laid out our menu the night before and was ready to start work as soon as the girls were gone. I got the gas grill fired up to cook on and had left water on to boil while we’d gone to pick up the picnic table. I also got much of my dessert – an apple crisp – ready ahead of time since the apples were already cooked and canned – one of the last vestiges from Wilma’s food stocks brought along from the farm. I used granola cereal drizzled in honey as my “crisp” topping, and since we didn’t have ice cream or whipped cream, I made a powdered milk and honey glaze and left it in a pitcher from which the gals could drizzle it over their dessert as desired.
Dad worked on the hors d’oeuvres and appetizer. The hors d’oeuvres included a mixture of olives, pickles, and little canapé-like items that dad created using potato chips, and toppings formed from the various condiments, spices, olives, and relish we’d found at Mary’s diner.
Our appetizer was simple but soothing. We served grits lightly topped with maple syrup.
My main course was a pasta dish with a sauce created from a can of stewed tomatoes and seasonings also from Mary’s.
The women came back with bags loaded full of shorts, t-shirts, shoes, and more. Some clothing was more suitable for fall wear, but it could be converted to fit the rising summer temperatures with a few scissor snips.
The men nearly fell over when they saw Joanna. We’d never seen her bare skinned before. I mean, we could tell she had a great body hidden somewhere below all that winter clothing, but I
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