When Country Folk Visit the Shoestore

Inspired by a visit from our cousin, Rita, visiting from New York City, we planned a small window shopping trip to the nearby town. After visiting our old favorites - the consignment shop and the five and dime store - we decided to explore the shoe store. Rebecca quickly found a bair of boots that she liked. They cost over $100 and because of the price she wasn't planning on trying them on until I whispered, "You could try them on and find get them off of the Internet for your Christmas gift." She took me up on my suggestion.

Upon asking the shoekeeper if she could try on the boots, he asked, "What size are you?" Not exactly sure, the shoekeeper kindly measured her feet and trecked upstairs to find the matching size. He came down the stairs with the boots, fitted them on her feet and she began to walk around.

"Do you like them?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Are they comfortable?"

"Yes."

"Well, good, we don't like to sell boots that are uncomfortable. The way I do business, I say if they don't feel good from the start, don't buy them. Some people try to say that you will eventually break into them, but not me."

"So, you like them?"

"Yes," Rebecca happily replied again.

"Do you want to buy them?" The shoekeeper asked, getting to the point.

"No," Rebecca said. "They are too expensive."

The shoekeeper asked with a laugh, "Then why did you have me go all of the way upstairs so that you could try them on?"

"I want to buy them off of the Internet. They're cheaper."

A good business man, the shoekeeper said, "You won't find them on the Internet for cheaper."

Not convinced, Rebecca replied, "Yes, I will find them on eBay."

Ever the salesman, the shoekeeper says, "These boots are made in Australia. The only boots that you can find on the Internet are from China."

"That's okay," Rebecca said.

At this point, Mom is overwhelmed with embarrassment and has made a beeline for the door. She hides beyond the vantage point of the window. Quite embarrassed myself, I decided that a quick exit was desirable.

However, given that I was the one who suggested that Rebecca try on the boots so that she could purchase them later, I decided that to leave her stranded with the shoekeeper was not kind. I casually glanced around the remainder of the store, turned around and came to Rebecca, embarrased to look at much beside the door, lest I catch the eye of the shoekeeper.

And in the end we calmly left the store, as if it were perfectly normal to have a shoekeeper go to a lot of effort only to tell him, "No thanks, because eBay is cheaper."