My aunt Annie owns a gift store on 42nd Street and Minnehaha. It's been in business for over 12 years, and it's going to close. It's for the best, as I think the struggle of keeping it open has been weighing very heavily on Annie, but I'm still very sad about the whole thing. I always loved driving past it at night, when there were just the twinkle lights on in the windows, looking all warm and safe and happy. I loved working there, surrounded by friends and family, and happy people buying gifts for loved ones. I loved knowing I could stop in and see a friendly face any time. I'll miss all that.
Even my bad memories of that place are pretty spectacular. I was held up at gun point on Christmas Eve many years ago. That was terrifying, but I think I learned a lot about myself going through that. Mainly I'm terrific in a crisis, right up to the point where I know everyone is safe and the crisis has passed and someone else has shown up who can take over. Then I break down.
I developed a deep hatred for Beanie Baby collectors over one year working there (especially the woman who thought it would be funny to point her finger like a gun at me and say "give me all the beanie babies". It was creepy enough on it's own, but adding in that I had just been actually held up at gun point only a few weeks earlier made it completely awful).
But those things don't begin to overshadow the great stuff about that store and the people who work there. It doesn't close until mid-January, but today is the first day of the ending, and I'm sad to see it go.
2 comments:
Hold ups are no fun - I am glad that you walked away.
I was held up once too - actually it was my mom who was held up when she was 8mnths pregnant - needless to say I came out two days later - something told me I was better out on my own.
Yikes! What kind of a**hole holds up a pregnant woman? Hmm...maybe the same kind who holds up a store and it's customers on Christmas Eve. I hate a**holes.
Although, as a way to induce labor...
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