(no subject)

Usually, it takes serious browbeating to convince Mom to buy herself a friggin' Baby Ruth bar. But Sunday she did me proud and bought pearls. (Yeah, I don't get the whole jewelry thing either. We'll just go with it, okay?)

The store is unbelievably crowded and awful, and I'm wandering around to look at stuff like cigar-box purses and character watches in little gift tins* while she chooses a necklace. I come back to the counter. Extremely harried sales guy gives me a Who the fuck are you? look (the American Gothic crew jacket and skeleton-hand gloves tend to put people off) but carries on.

Mom: What do you think?
Me: Nice. Pearly.
Mom: Or this one?
Me: Again, made from pearls, and in string form. Lovely.
Mom: They're cultured pearls, though.
Me: I know.
Mom: Not like the ones we used to get. They open the oyster and make a cut and put in a little...
Me: I know. I watched the same episode of Nova that you did. When will the clams stop screaming, Clarice?
Salesguy: Ahahahayeah. Anyway, ma'am, let me find you a pouch...

Lessons learned:
1. If you buy pearls, you get a little drawstring bag.
2. Salespeople in December? Stretched waaaaaay thin. Not up for the banter.


*The tins have windows cut into them so you can see the watch inside. This pretty much defeats the purpose of the tin. I'm just saying.

(no subject)

Mom is working on the Nutcracker Queen's cloak - specifically, attaching the beaded ribbon tie and getting the sumbitch to hang right.

Me: That's really keen! She's got this Billie Holliday thing going on.
Mom: Um...what?
Me: Judy Holliday. Judy.
Mom: Oh. Yes.

(no subject)

New dolly yesterday. Tarzhey has all the LOTR toys on sale, so I got 12" Arrowroot, son of Arrowshirt Aragorn. Not much resemblance to the Viggo, but he looks like Gorno always did in my head, so I'm pleased. Arwen-from-two-years-ago is also pleased, 'cause she can finally get some.

Except he's got black velveteen trousers. At first I thought they'd flocked the poor bastard. His legs feel like a 1960s Christmas ornament, but without any rickrack.