Gown shopping

This Sat, the Sister is going to be one of the bridesmaids walking down the church aisle with 3 flower girls, 2 ring bearers, 5 other bridesmaids and 1 maid-of-honor, in dainty steps in line with 5-minutes worth of Colin Raye's "Butterfly Kisses".

So this morning, puffy-eyed with just a couple of hours' sleep, I accompanied her to search for the perfect day and dinner gowns for the wedding. While shopping I liked to see how the sales girls scrutinized her from top to bottom right down to the brand of paper bag she was carrying, for assessment of the grade of customer service they would dish out to her.

'Do you have this dress in champagne color?'

'No.'

'How about...'

(before she could finish) 'All the gowns are already here.'

This kind of sales behavior is most common. Part and parcel of a shopping experience. It's like, if you want service with a smile (at the high end boutiques), dress like you've got a deep purse with ten platinum credit cards. Alternatively, you can dye blond, talk funny and pretend to be a foreigner. It seems to work every time.