There are two stores on the street near my office with Going Out of Business, Everything Must Go! signs in their windows, which means two empty storefronts within the week, which means two new retail ventures will be swooping down in their places.
This is akin to the high hopes I used to have whenever a new neighbor moved in. A SOLD sign would go up outside and I would start wondering if the incoming family would have a kid my age and if it would be a girl and if she would sit with me on the school bus and if she would like to play pretend village in the woods (I did) and if she would own Mall Madness (I didn’t) and if we would be Best Friends Forever.
For now, I’m trying to be inconspicuous while I play out in the front yard and peer across the street, looking for a new friend. I hope it works out. Because Kate Spade just moved in a few blocks away and though I’ve been over to play dress-up, the new girl hasn’t invited me to a slumber party yet.
