Our Town – April 2023

The Soupster attempts to go shopping.

The Soupster edged his tiny car into the space marked “compact only.” He was looking forward to picking up a few varied things he needed at home. Fortunately, he’d made a list, and had room at home, since he’d just taken a load of equally varied things to the secondhand store.

He’d heard about The Transition that was happening at Our Town’s local “get-whatever-you-need” store. Would there be many changes? Transitions can be good things. His bank had transitioned recently.

Okay, first to the pet section for those treats his neighbor’s cat loved. Whoops, where was animal stuff?? Well, move on – fresh washers for his garden hose since things were warming up. Gardening should be right over here… whoa, where had that gone?? Hmmnn, small bags of seedling soil & veggie seeds to start in small peat pots? There were the pots, but where had the soil gone to??

Better shift to indoor needs. The Soupster had moved some furniture lately – what he needed now was those non-skid pads to put on the bottom. Furniture feet tips should be over here. Nope.

Well, how about a quart of off-white eggshell, to touch up that molding? And a 2-inch sash brush?? Where had the paint section gone to?? All right, let’s go upstairs. Two pillowcases and a soap dish. And colored pencils and a pad of drawing paper for when his great nephew came to visit. None of them where he expected, though.

All right, enough of trying to do it on his own – he’d better ask someone. Maybe one of those helpful, sharp-as-a-tack young associates.

So, the Soupster handed his list over to Ronnie. She’d grown up in Kake but now lived in Sitka and had helped him find lots of things over the years. Ronnie smiled, took him to all the new locations, filled his basket and even carried it for him! The two of them headed to the back cash register – also re-located.

But… just as they reached the register, the entire store went DARK!!

The Soupster was hungry and there was no use moping around here. He should get some lunch. Better leave the basket by the cash register and come back in a couple of hours. And that is exactly what he did.

When he got back two hours later, the door was locked and there was a sign that said, “Closed Due to Power Outage.”

So, the Soupster went home, had a good dinner of Black Cod from his freezer, walked to the church down the road and saw a free film about Ukrainian refugees. He slept the night solidly.

Bright and early the next morning, he returned to the “get-whatever-you-need” store.

Doors were open, lights were on, and there was a deliciously chaotic hum around the ground floor. Associates were hustling, moving, stacking. But, incredibly, there behind the back cash register was his lovely bright red plastic basket with all his items!! They had saved it for him!

Oh-oh, he still needed a slotted screwdriver. In his “miscellaneous drawer” the previous night, all he could find was a Phillips. Would they have the right size slotted screwdriver? Oh, would they?? And would it be where he remembered??

Hallelujah! There it was. Right where he expected!!