busy lately.
“What do you think of this look?” CeeCee said turning around so we could all see what her stylist had come up with now. The linen pants and long shirt were pale shades of peach. Rhoda shook her head. “It’s better than the mint outfit you had on the other day, but it still looks kind of blah. I wish I could say the same for the makeup.”
“What do you mean, dear?” CeeCee said, pulling out a small mirror. When she caught sight of herself, she looked a little stunned. “My, it is a little heavy isn’t it.” A little heavy was an understatement. What the outfit lacked in color had been more than made up by the makeup. The foundation made her face look too flawless, which didn’t go with the color or condition of her neck. The eyeliner was too thick and the eye shadow too much for daytime. The red lipstick was the final blow. CeeCee pulled out a tissue and wiped off the lipstick. Then she thanked the group. “What would I do without this group to keep me real. Now to get back on topic, I suppose we could ask Kelly’s husband for the things she made.” She glanced over the rest of us. “Or would that be bad form under the circumstances?”
I looked at Dinah and we both turned toward Adele expecting her to jump into the middle of the conversation and insist she had it under control and already had Kelly’s things. But Adele avoided our gazes and was strangely silent until Rhoda stepped in.
“Adele, you were making such a fuss about her being a crochet pretender. Didn’t you go over to her house to see if she had really made anything?” All eyes turned to Adele. She set down the ring of apricot yarn she was working on, took out a stack of completed cotton cowls in a rainbow of colors, and pushed them across the table toward CeeCee.
“Don’t worry about Kelly’s pieces,” Adele said. “I have more of these at home.” Adele’s response reminded me of a politician who ignored a question they didn’t want to answer and simply spoke about something else.
Rhoda picked one up and tried it on. The ring of lacy stitches hung loosely around her neck. “It’s August, Adele. Nobody is going to want to buy these. Who wants to put something around their neck in all this heat?” Rhoda pulled it off and added it back to the pile. Adele seemed unmoved and kept stitching.
“You should have asked me if you thought Kelly was a crochet pretender,” Sheila said. She seemed a little surprised at her own voice. Sheila always got tense when she said something to the group. Her remedy was to pick up her hook and start to crochet. It didn’t matter what it was or if she’d have to rip it later, the rhythmic movement helped her get over her tense moment. “I could have cleared that up right away.” Sheila’s finger kept moving as she spoke. “She saw that we were selling some of the things I make at Luxe and wanted to know if we’d be interested in selling some of her crocheted items.” Luxe was just down the street from the bookstore and was considered a lifestyle store, which meant everything they sold was stylish.
“Kelly brought a piece in to give me an idea of what she made,” Sheila continued. “You should have seen it.” Sheila looked up at the group. “She’d crocheted a long tunic with hand-dyed yarn. It was a one-of-a-kind item. I told her I’d tell my boss about it. I think she was selling things some other way, too.”
“It sounds like she was looking for ways to bring in money.” Dinah said. “With the dollar store just starting out, I suppose she was trying to help out. That’s probably why she rented out her yard to the production and signed her house up to be used in the future.”
Sheila’s eyes darted around the group and she cleared her throat. She seemed to hesitate, but finally she spoke up. “When she came in the store, she bought a silver ruler.”
“That doesn’t sound like somebody who is trying to bring in money to help her family,” Rhoda
“What do you think of this look?” CeeCee said turning around so we could all see what her stylist had come up with now. The linen pants and long shirt were pale shades of peach. Rhoda shook her head. “It’s better than the mint outfit you had on the other day, but it still looks kind of blah. I wish I could say the same for the makeup.”
“What do you mean, dear?” CeeCee said, pulling out a small mirror. When she caught sight of herself, she looked a little stunned. “My, it is a little heavy isn’t it.” A little heavy was an understatement. What the outfit lacked in color had been more than made up by the makeup. The foundation made her face look too flawless, which didn’t go with the color or condition of her neck. The eyeliner was too thick and the eye shadow too much for daytime. The red lipstick was the final blow. CeeCee pulled out a tissue and wiped off the lipstick. Then she thanked the group. “What would I do without this group to keep me real. Now to get back on topic, I suppose we could ask Kelly’s husband for the things she made.” She glanced over the rest of us. “Or would that be bad form under the circumstances?”
I looked at Dinah and we both turned toward Adele expecting her to jump into the middle of the conversation and insist she had it under control and already had Kelly’s things. But Adele avoided our gazes and was strangely silent until Rhoda stepped in.
“Adele, you were making such a fuss about her being a crochet pretender. Didn’t you go over to her house to see if she had really made anything?” All eyes turned to Adele. She set down the ring of apricot yarn she was working on, took out a stack of completed cotton cowls in a rainbow of colors, and pushed them across the table toward CeeCee.
“Don’t worry about Kelly’s pieces,” Adele said. “I have more of these at home.” Adele’s response reminded me of a politician who ignored a question they didn’t want to answer and simply spoke about something else.
Rhoda picked one up and tried it on. The ring of lacy stitches hung loosely around her neck. “It’s August, Adele. Nobody is going to want to buy these. Who wants to put something around their neck in all this heat?” Rhoda pulled it off and added it back to the pile. Adele seemed unmoved and kept stitching.
“You should have asked me if you thought Kelly was a crochet pretender,” Sheila said. She seemed a little surprised at her own voice. Sheila always got tense when she said something to the group. Her remedy was to pick up her hook and start to crochet. It didn’t matter what it was or if she’d have to rip it later, the rhythmic movement helped her get over her tense moment. “I could have cleared that up right away.” Sheila’s finger kept moving as she spoke. “She saw that we were selling some of the things I make at Luxe and wanted to know if we’d be interested in selling some of her crocheted items.” Luxe was just down the street from the bookstore and was considered a lifestyle store, which meant everything they sold was stylish.
“Kelly brought a piece in to give me an idea of what she made,” Sheila continued. “You should have seen it.” Sheila looked up at the group. “She’d crocheted a long tunic with hand-dyed yarn. It was a one-of-a-kind item. I told her I’d tell my boss about it. I think she was selling things some other way, too.”
“It sounds like she was looking for ways to bring in money.” Dinah said. “With the dollar store just starting out, I suppose she was trying to help out. That’s probably why she rented out her yard to the production and signed her house up to be used in the future.”
Sheila’s eyes darted around the group and she cleared her throat. She seemed to hesitate, but finally she spoke up. “When she came in the store, she bought a silver ruler.”
“That doesn’t sound like somebody who is trying to bring in money to help her family,” Rhoda
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