The Fremont Saga
by: E Walk
(© 2009 by the Author)
 

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Chapter 42

The Shopoholic

When Timmy woke Tanner and me on Wednesday morning, he was dressed to go running, “Guys, it’s going to be a nice day to go running and shopping.  Let’s go before the others are up.”

Tanner moaned, “Timmy, I’m too old to go running.”

Timmy pretended to pull something out of his hoodie pocket, “Scratch Tanner from list of people to buy a present for.  He’s too old.”

Tanner jumped out of bed, “I’ll go. I’ll go.”

We had a leisurely run and Timmy was talking a mile a minute.  “We need to get Lauren’s friend a couple of small gifts, so she has some things to open on Christmas.  What if we get Ben and Grant one of those nice pen and pencil sets and have their names engraved on them?  They’ll be easy to carry in our suitcases when we go to Swissland.  Brian, you need to call and tell everyone to be at our house at eight o’clock next Tuesday morning.  We’ll have to ask Derek to spend the night here on Monday, so he doesn’t have to get up so early on Tuesday.  Brian, we’ll have to have some of the stuff that puts people to sleep, so they don’t know how we got to Swissland so fast.”

I stopped running, “Timmy, why do I have to do everything?  Why don’t you tell Tanner to do some things?”

“He’s too old, remember.  He’d probably forget what he’s supposed to do.”

Tanner grabbed his throat, “I think I’m having a heart attack.  I guess I won’t be able to go skiing.  Brian, you’d better call an ambulance.  This old body can’t make it back to the house.”

Timmy stuck out his tongue and started to run.  Tanner looked at me, “Doesn’t his mind ever stop working?  Let's go catch him.”

When we arrived at the house, Mother and Dad were already eating.  Dad looked surprised when we entered from the garage, “We figured you guys were still sleeping.  We’re going to be leaving for Minneapolis, shortly.  Timmy, I put you card on the counter in an envelope.  Don’t, and I repeat, don’t buy anymore presents for the people at the home.”

Timmy looked at me, “Did Daddy just say that I was to buy more gifts for the people at the home?”

Dad sighed, “Becca, I think our youngest needs a hearing aid.”

Morgan came into the room, “Dad and Mother, may I please have some money to do some Christmas shopping.  I only have about fifty bucks saved.”

Dad pointed, “Cat, I put an envelope there on the counter with money, so you could go shopping with the guys so they can make sure you don’t get in trouble.”

“Thanks.  I’ll make sure the guys don’t get into trouble.”

As we were eating breakfast, Morgan asked, “Guys, may I ask Christie to go with us, so I have some company to run around with while you guys are shopping?”

Tanner answered, “She’s welcome to go with us, but make sure her parents know that it is just going to be us guys.”

Dad and Mother departed for Minneapolis and Dad informed us.  “Guys, we should be back about four, tomorrow afternoon.  Call my cell phone if you have any problems.”

We picked Christie up at 9:30 and made our way to Omaha.  I looked at Morgan and Christie, “Would you like to go to Westroads or Oak View?”

Christie answered, “I'd like to go to Westroads.  The things that they have in Von Maur and the other stores are neater than the stores at Oak View.  Oak View is more for the older people.”

The parking lot was crowded when we arrived at Westroads.  When we entered, I looked at the clock  “Morgan and Christie, we’ll meet you at the entrance to the food court, at noon.”

After the two girls took off, I looked at Timmy and Tanner, “After what Christie said, I think we should go to Von Maur’s and get the gift certificates for Lauren and Morgan.” 

We went to the customer service desk and I used my card to purchase two three hundred dollar gift cards.  While I was working with the lady behind the counter, Timmy was looking around.  He came and tapped my arm, “Brian, I think we should get the gifts wrapped here.  Look how neat the packages look.”

I looked at the lady, “Could we get these cards put in a box and wrapped.”

“Of course, but there is a small charge.”

Timmy looked up, “That’s okay, we want to make them special.  Could you put the cards in different size boxes so they wouldn’t look the same.  I want Morgan’s wrapped in the Ho Ho paper and Lauren’s wrapped in that reindeer paper.”

We watched as the young woman wrapped the packages and put special decorations on them.  The wrappings cost me another five bucks, but Timmy was happy.

We started to look around for something for Dad, but Timmy shook his head.  “Brian and Tanner, I don’t see anything special and I don’t want to buy Mother clothes.  What else can we get them?”

I shrugged my shoulders, “Why don’t we go to the first floor and see what’s there?

When we got off the escalator, Timmy stopped to watch the pianist who was playing Christmas songs.  He saw the jewelry department and started to look around, but couldn’t find anything that struck his fancy.  He looked at us, “Brian and Tanner, I don’t see anything here that I want to buy.  Let’s go look at some other stores.” 

We were passing the cosmetic department on our way to the mall when Timmy stopped at the perfume counter and picked up a scent card and smelled it.  “Hey guys, this is something that we could get Lauren’s friend Meredith.  It really smells good.”

Timmy looked at the sales lady, “Ma’am, could the person we gave this to return it if she didn’t like it.”

“Yes sir, we could give you a gift receipt and the person could return it.  That is a new fragrance that was just put on the market for the holidays.  It comes in an nice gift set with everything a lady would want.  Let me show you what the set looks like.”

The lady returned with a basket that had five different items in it including a small vial of perfume, a bottle of eau de cologne, a container of body powder, a container of bath salts and a box of bubble bath marbles or whatever they’re called.  Timmy looked at the lady, “How much would the set cost?”

“It’s rather expensive.  It costs ninety seven dollars and ninety nine cents.”

Tanner shook his head, “Timmy, that’s a lot of money to spend on someone we don’t know.”

Timmy wasn’t to be deterred, “Tanner, if we don’t like Meredith we can bring it back and get our money back.  What else can we get her?  We need to go look for things for Dad, Mother, Ben and Grant.  We’ll take a set, ma’am.  Brian, please give me my card.”

I took a deep breath, “Timmy, I’ll pay for it, so we can keep track of what we spent.”

The lady went to get a new gift set and returned with a beautifully wrapped box with a Christmas bow on it.  “Here you go, young man.  All you need to do is put a tag on it.”

We walked into the mall and Timmy spotted a store that had pen and pencil sets in the window.  We veered in and he went to the counter.  We’d like to see some nice pen and pencil sets.”

The gentleman behind the counter didn’t seem too interested in taking care of us.  He went and got several sets, “These are some nice sets.”

Timmy took a deep breath, “These look like what we could buy at someplace like Target.  We want to see some sets that are for special people.”

The man looked affronted, but went and came back with some better sets.  Timmy looked at them and shook his head, “These don’t look special.  Don’t you have anything nicer?”

The other people in the store were watching what was happening.  The man returned with four sets, “Young man, these are the best we have; they‘re very expensive.”

Timmy looked at them and looked at Tanner and me and pointed to two sets, “Guys, do you think that Ben and Grant would like these?”

I looked at them and shook my head in the affirmative, “Timmy, I’m sure they would.”

Timmy looked at the man, “Could you make it so the sets would have the peoples’ names on them?”

 

“We can.  But it would be Saturday before they would be ready because we would have to send them out to be engraved.”

Timmy backed up, “We can’t come on Saturday to pick them up.  Thanks for your time.  Guys, we need to go meet Morgan and Christie.”

The guy was standing there with his mouth open and I saw an older man approach him and it didn’t look like a pleasant conversation.  Morgan and Christie were waiting for us so there wasn’t much time to talk.  Timmy decided to have a hot dog from Hot Dog Heaven but he just picked at it and the fries.  “Brian and Tanner, I’m not very hungry.  These things taste greasy.  Is there anywhere else we can go to find something special for Daddy and Mother and the brothers?”

I stopped eating the sandwich I had, “You’ve been to Oak View and the stores are pretty much the same as here.  The only other place I know is Regency Court, but everyone says it's very expensive.”

“Can we go there if it’s not too far away?  I just want to see if we can find something really special for Daddy and Mother.  We know what we want to get Ben and Grant, but I didn’t like that man who was helping us.  He thought we couldn’t pay for what we wanted.”

Morgan looked at Timmy and started to say something, but I shook my head no.  “Ladies, we’ll meet you outside the Penney’s main entrance at three thirty.  Don’t be late.  We don’t want to have to come looking for you.”

Morgan and Christie handed us the bags they had and Morgan glared, “Put these in the trunk and don’t look in them.  We’ll see you at three thirty two and a half.”

I directed Tanner to the Regency Court Mall and we parked outside of Borsheim’s.  When we walked into the entrance a security guard was standing there.  Timmy looked us, “Did we do something wrong?  Why is the policeman watching us?”

I put my hand on Timmy’s shoulder, “The policeman isn’t watching us.  This store has a lot of valuable things and they watch everyone coming and going.  There is probably a security person at the other door, as well.”

Timmy looked around, “Brian, there’s nothing here that I want to get Daddy.  Is this the only store in the mall?” 

We walked through the store and out the mall exit.  Timmy was looking to see what was in the stores as we walked through.  We encountered an exclusive men’s store.  Timmy was looking at the display windows.  “Brian and Tanner, can we go in and see if they have anything that Daddy might like?”

When we walked into the store, an older gentleman with a suit and tie on met us, “Good afternoon, gentlemen, how may I assist you?”

Timmy answered, “We’re looking for a special Christmas gift for our Dad.”

The gentleman looked a little skeptical, “What kind of clothes does your Dad wear?”

I answered since Timmy looked as if he wasn’t sure what the man was asking.  “Dad, is a businessman and he and Mother have a  business.  He tends to dress less formally than you’re dressed.  About the only time he wears a tie is for church.  He always looks like he came out of Gentleman’s Quarterly, though.”

The gentleman laughed, “Let’s see what you think this man might like.”

He took us through the room with the suits and formal wear.  When we entered the second room, the man announced, “This is our in between room.  The back room is more casual than anything I think you’re looking for, especially at this time of year.”

Timmy started to look around and was touching the things that were on the manikins. The gentleman looked at Tanner and me, “ Aren’t you gentleman going to look around?”

Tanner answered, “Sir, if we tried to convince Timmy to buy something, he would walk out.  He doesn’t know what he wants, but he’ll know it when he sees it.”

Timmy interrupted us, “Mister, where are the sweaters like that one on the dummy over there?  I think Daddy might like one of them.”

The gentleman nodded, “If you will follow me, I’ll show what we have available in that sweater.”

The gentleman whispered, “That young man has a discerning eye for quality.  That sweater is cashmere and is very expensive.”

We walked to the counter and the man pointed, “Timmy, that’s the selection we have left in that sweater.”

“How did you know my name was Timmy?”

The man was taken back by Timmy’s question, “I was talking to your brothers and they called you Timmy.  Would you like me to call you something else?”

“No, that’s okay.  Do you have that sweater in a dark blue?”

The gentleman looked at us, “Do you have any idea what size you would need?”

I nodded, “Dad wears a large.”

The man went and pulled two sweaters from a stack, “Which of these two blue sweaters would look best on your Dad.  One is navy and the other is royal blue.”

Timmy instantly responded, “The lighter one; it almost looks like the color of Daddy’s eyes.”

The man held the sweater up and Timmy asked, “Sir, could you make it so it was really special and put Daddy’s initials on it?”

The gentleman nodded, “We certainly can have his initials put on it, but it won’t be ready until about one o’clock tomorrow.”

Timmy shook his head, “His initials are BB.  Could you make them so they can hardly be seen?”

The gentleman looked at Tanner and me as if asking for help.  We both shrugged.  “Timmy, we can do that.”

The gentleman wrote a note and asked, “Is there anything else you would like to look at, Timmy?”

Timmy looked around, “Do you have one of those shirts that looks like it’s choking you that would go with the sweater.  Daddy wears them with his jacket, sometimes.”

The gentleman had to stop and think, “Are you talking about a turtle neck shirt?”

Timmy looked at me and I nodded in the affirmative.  The man went and pulled a stack of turtle neck shirts and Timmy finally decided on one that was just a few shades lighter than the sweater and made a nice contrast.  Again, it had to be monogrammed on the collar.”

The man took us to the check point and rang up the two purchases and Tanner gasped.  I handed the man my card and the man handed the receipt to Timmy.  Mr. Benson, we’ll have your purchases ready for you after noon tomorrow.  It’s been a pleasure serving you.”

As we were walking out of the store, Timmy muttered, “One down, three to go.”

We went back into Borsheim’s and Timmy went to look at the pen and pencil sets.  A young man approached us, “Good afternoon, gentlemen, can I offer you some assistance?”

Timmy looked up, “If we were to buy some pen and pencil sets, how long would it take for them to make so they had the peoples’ names on them.”

The young man answered, “We could have them done by noon tomorrow.  We have our own engravers who work here.”

Timmy grinned, “Good, we’d like to see that black set on the end and the silver set next to it.”

The man handed Timmy the pencil from each set.  “These are the same sets only in different colors.  They are an excellent quality and they come with extra lead and ink cartridges.  They have a ten year guarantee.”

Timmy turned to Tanner and me, “What do think?  Why don’t we get the silver one for Ben and the black one for Grant?”

I grinned, “Timmy, you decide.  I’m just paying the bill.”

Timmy had a determined look on his face, “Mister, we’d like the black one engraved with the name 'Grant' and the silver one with the name 'Ben'.”

I had to interjected, “Timmy, I think it would be more meaningful if they were engraved Grant G. and Ben B.”

Timmy looked at the man.  “Did you hear what my brother said?”

“Yep, I heard him.  Is there anything else I can help you with?”

Timmy turned to Tanner and me, “Do you think Mother would like a nice set of earrings?  I haven’t seen anything else that I like.”

The young man looked at Timmy, “I’ll be glad to show you what we have.  Does your Mother have pierced ears?”
 

Timmy looked at me and I answered.  “She has pierced ears and she usually only wears earrings that aren’t big and dangly.”

The man took us to a row of display cases, “Why don’t you gentlemen look to see if there is anything that you like?”

Timmy didn’t waste any time.  He pointed, “Brian, these are sort of the color of Mother’s hair and eyes.”

The young man pulled out a pair of the earrings, “These are genuine garnets.  They come with a certificate of authenticity.  They’re birth stone for people born in January.”

I patted Timmy on the shoulder, “Mothers birthday is January the 17^th.  They would be perfect.  Do you see any that you like?”

Timmy pointed to a pair of heart shaped earrings only they had little diamond chips around them. The gentleman pulled them out,  “Timmy, you just selected the most expensive pair of garnet earrings we have.  Are you sure you want them?”

Timmy looked miffed, “We’re sure.  Brian, are you going to pay for our purchases or am I?”

“Timmy, these are gifts for the family, so I’ll pay for them and the three of us can settle up later.”

We followed the man to the cashier's cage and I swiped my card and it cleared like I knew it would.  Timmy followed the gentleman to the free gift wrapping counter and Timmy dictated how he wanted Mother’s earrings to be wrapped. The man led Timmy to the engraving counter window and there was another animated conversation.  The attendant handed Timmy a receipt.

Timmy came to where Tanner and I were standing, “You two stay here and get Mother’s gift when they call our number.  Mr. Shellenberg and I have a couple of things we need to take care of.  It won’t take us long.  Don’t come and try to see what I’m doing.”

Tanner and I were sitting for almost forty minutes, before Mr. Shellenberg and Timmy returned.  We could see that the man was carrying something, but we couldn’t tell what it was.  We watched as Timmy pulled out his card and swiped it.  The cashier handed a receipt to Timmy and the two of them went to the engraving window where Timmy received another receipt and then to the gift wrapping section and Timmy had two more receipts. 

Tanner looked at me, “Brian, what is Timmy doing?”

“Beats me.”

Timmy shook hands with Mr. Shellenberg who came and said, “Gentlemen, this has been an experience serving you that I won’t soon forget.  Timmy, I’ll see you tomorrow, after lunch.”

When we arrived at the mall, it was a little after three thirty.  Morgan, Christie and two guys were sitting outside on a planter, talking.  Tanner beeped his horn and the two girls climbed into the car with a couple of packages.  Morgan started on us, “Guys, you’re ten minutes late.”

Tanner looked around, “Blame Timmy.  It’s his fault.”

The ride home was the start of another fun adventure.  Morgan started to pry, “Guys, what did you buy me for Christmas?”

Timmy sighed, “We couldn’t find anything we could afford so we only got Mother something and we’re broke.  I guess this is going to be the year without Christmas presents.  I can’t believe how much like Scrooge Brian and Tanner are.  They almost choked when I wanted to buy anything that cost over a dollar.”

Christie laughed, “That sounds like my brothers.  I’ll probably get a cheap bottle of perfume or bubble bath from the dollar store.”

I thought to myself, ‘How can anything be further from the truth?  I need to go home and see how much damage Timmy hath wrought to my checking account.’ 

To be continued...

Editor's Notes:  Timmy is quite a shopper.  I am certain he will be a good businessman someday.

I wonder what it is about some people who always want to know what presents they are going to get. 

Even when I was a little boy, I never snooped around looking for presents that my parents had hidden.  I think I enjoyed the surprise almost as much as whatever the present was.  I am also sure that there was no way that I could have pulled off acting surprised, if I already knew what the present had been. 

My mother, especially, but to some extent, my dad, as well, had a knack for seeing guilt on me, whenever I had done something wrong.  I apparently radiated guilt like a light bulb.

I also couldn't lie worth twiddly spit. I figured out how to do that, later on, once I became the cynical person that I am today. Grin.

I wonder what will happen in the next chapter.

Actually, I will find out in a couple of minutes, since I have it right here.  I'm afraid that you might have to wait a little longer than I will.  Those are the perks of being an editor. Grin.

Darryl AKA The Radio Rancher

Posted: 10/08/10