Tuesday, May 1, 2012

"My Day"

This is how it was, today, so far.

After putzing around a bit in the morning, I got myself to St. Curious about 10:30 and then for 2.5 hours polished pieces of estate silver we've been given for a silent-auction fundraising banquet gala THING on Thursday.  Most of the silver wasn't too badly tarnished, but a couple of pieces were fierce.  There were some lovely silver-inlay heavy glass serving bowls -- my mother had a couple, back when, and I admired them then and now.  (She had an amazing cobalt-blue silver-inlaid tea service also...gorgeous.)

Anyhow one of our silver items was a "pie ring" or "pie plate holder" -- see sample photo above!  No pie plate with it, and every single person who came by to offer advice went into panic mode that "something is missing, there is a piece missing, this is BROKEN."  "No," I explained, "this will hold a standard-sized pie dish, that is what it is FOR, supply your own pie dish, all is well." 

When the silver was all done it was time to go to a funeral elsewhere, so I checked in with FabBoss on the advisability of just going and buying a simple, ordinary, everyday, Pyrex glass pie-plate so that bidders at the auction would understand what the pie-plate holder was all about.

The funeral was a BIG one, parking hard to find, they ran out of prayer books, and the homily was egregiously awful.  AWFUL.  Particularly galling because I am/was very fond of the person who died.

I escaped at the end of the service, not staying for the reception, and fled off in search of donations for the silent auction, AND the desired pie plate.  Do not forget the pie plate, Best Beloved.  It is of moment, in the unfolding of the day.

Picked up the donations (gift certificate from an elegant new tea-emporium), and set off to the closest mall, anchored by two major department stores, a LARGE supermarket, and a dollar store, besides kitchen specialty shops, feeling no doubt that it would be child's play to purchase a pie plate (DID you forget the pie plate????).
Department store #1 -- no pie plates of any kind.  Two-hundred-dollar machines to make one meezly cup of coffee, in profusion, ugly and over-priced table china oh yes, but pie dishes, not at all.
Department store #2 -- huzza, one Pyrex pie plate.  One.  Sitting all by itself on a piece of shelving, no box, no tag, no price.  Fall back on cashier's kiosk.  "Oh dear.  There's no price tag on this.  I'll have to take it to Gift Registry to find out its price."

Twenty minutes elapse... "Oh I'm so sorry, here we go, I have the code for this now".  Cllickity-click.  Price comes up on computer screen: one pie plate, cost 99 cents, with tax, $1.04.  "Woo hoo," I say.  "Oh no, that can't be right, I'll just go back and check." ... Ten more minutes... "Oh I'm so sorry, this is part of our EIGHTEEN PIECE SET, so you would have to purchase the EIGHTEEN PIECE SET" (said with bright-eyed hopefulness...).

Back downstairs and to the kitchen specialty shop.  "Pie dishes, who dat."  Leave kitchen specialty shop.

Supermarket... one vastly over-priced odd-sized Pyrex pie-dish.

Dollar store... no pie dishes at all.

So I drove home, with a stop at the closest-to-home mall, thinking, surely in the soon-to-close low-rent department store, or the neighbourhood supermarket, there will be a pie plate?  

Ha.  Nothing in the department store.  And in the supermarket, the same over priced odd-sized specimen I'd seen before.

Remember it was/is 10% Tuesday (first Tuesday of the month), I tottered around to stock up on a few basics, and the upshot of that -- the final, ultimate straw -- was being hit on in the meat department by a lonesome chain-saw mechanic.  (I misplaced my Forbidding Aspect, obviously).

I AM SO TIRED!!!!  So am having my supper, and washing it down with a beer, no remarks from the cheap seats thank you, and then will put groceries away, do some touch-up cleaning on the stubbornest piece of silver, put soup makings in the crock pot for tomorrow.  AND SO TO BED. 

There you have it.  My Day.  Me and Mrs. Roosevelt.  Yeah.

4 comments:

Terri said...

I always worry that I will be one of those horrible funeral preachers - but my desire is always to give a glimpse of the person - their character and life - and help people understand the Christian understanding of life and death, and then connect all that to the scripture selected....sigh

As you were describing the pie plate search I thought of the 5 or 6 pie plates in my kitchen cupboard! Love the idea of silver holder for a pie plate...lovely.

Hope you rested well.

Crimson Rambler said...

I did, Terri, I thank you. The funeral homily was "see how cute I am"...

Good supper last night, good night's sleep, up early this morning and a big pot of soup ready for the slow cooker for Ecumaniacs' meeting at noon... all these things calm the spirit and soothe the soul, TBTG, also my flame red amaryllis is just about to pop into bloom :-D

Amy+ said...

I used the Forbidding Aspect over the weekend!! I must have forgotten to put it back so that you could find it easily...

Jan said...

Pie plates a plenty down here where I am in Sydney in what we call Op shops. Lots of opportunities. I used to pass a Lifeline one on my way to divorce lawyer and bought several pyrex dishes and pie plates for around AUD$1.50.

Sorry about the funeral, I've been to a few like that and don't a ask about wedding sermons done Sydney diocese style. barely a word to th e happy couple and a bible thumping type sermon to the congregation, many of whom complained outside.

(ex)MiL's funeral ws dreadful last Speember. Graveside service was first and we were treated to a full on presentation by ex husband's pastor. Several of those there refused to come to church service afterwards because of him. More of the same but lasting nearly an hour back at the church.

Comment from one of my sons was that the pastor was talking abut someone else to the person he knew as his grandmother.

Hope the auction went well.