[D5 LA] Tiff's Tiff and other Miscellany

[Tiffani]

"Oh, well ... my condolences, then." Tiffani giggles again. "You've never been dragged through endless clothing stores by a wife or girlfriend with nothing for you to do." Then she shrugs. "Hey, maybe you can tell me if things look good on me. And no, I promise I will not ask you the question every guy dreads - does this dress make me look fat?"

"Because I know nothing makes me look fat - I mean - look at me, right?" And she gestures down at her small frame. "Well, the good news is I don't plan on buying everything at once so I won't be all night. Plus there's the festival, so ..."

[Jack Doyle]

"My mother might have, but dress shops were different then." he explained. Jack listened to Tiffani talk with a smile.

[Tiffani]

"Yeah, my mother used to take me to her stores. Uch ..." Tiffani makes a sour face, "talk about boring. At the time, I used to think she bought old lady clothes. I still remember hearing tha nightmare sound of hangers sliding across these polished metal pipes they hung the clothing from. Squeak! Squeak! I would hide in the midst of the long dresses and listen to my mother have a panic attack when I wasn't obediently standing by her side."

"Does this town have a mall, d'ya think? It seems big enough. That's where the best shopping is - at least for girls my age. They usually have a plethora of trendy stores."

"Sorry, I hope I'm not boring you and stuff. I haven't had the most interesting life." Her tone grows more hesitant at this point. "Uh, Jack ... do you mind if I ask you any questions about your life before ... well, you know. Like, how were dress shops different? I don't want to accidentally open up painful memories."

[Jack Doyle]

"I don't mind." he shook his head. "But, my memories are vague. There were a few larger dress shops, I think, but I remember mama going to smaller ones. She would look at what few they had. They'd measure her and drape cloth over her. Then, we'd go get beignets."

"What's a mall?"

[Tiffani]

Tiffani looked confused for a moment upon hearing Jack's last question, but simply went with it. She was unaware that Jack was even further behind the times than she was.

"Well ... a mall is this huge building with a bunch of stores all under one roof. There's like a big, wide hallway in the middle with all kinds of stores on the sides. Usually, though, malls have mostly novelty stores, boutiques - stores you won't find anywhere else but inside a mall. Those places can be kind of expensive but if you want any kind of real style, that's where you have to go."

She heads up to the front of the store where she converses with staff about when and where to deliver the furniture. She took the computer, however, the box about half as big as she was. She had to peer at Jack over the top of it. She set it down and pulled out a rather thick wad of cash, all hundred dollar bills. The cashier widened her eyes, obviously expecting a check or a debit card - neither of which Tiffani possessed. She waited patiently as the cashier counted out the money and gave her back a few dollars in change.

"So ... you ready? They're going to deliver all the stuff tomorrow. Free local delivery, too."

She hefted the computer box and nearly fell over backward having to take several steps behind her to avoid an embarrassing accident. "Whoops, thing is heavier than it looks. Actually, here ..." She put the computer back down. "Can you deliver this with the rest of the stuff? No way I'm carrying that around town."

[Jack Doyle]

Jack reached up to steady her. "Careful. I'm sure they can deliver it."

[Tiffani]

"Thanks," She says to Jack, slightly embarrassed. "Yeah I was hoping to at least take the computer home but, silly me, I forgot that I don't have a car."

After instructing the staff to add the computer to the rest of the items to be delivered, she headed for the exit. "Well, I hope this town has a bus service. I hadn't really paid much attention to that ... excuse me, excuse me ..." she said to an otherwise idle employee.

She asked the cashier about the bus service in Minuit, where the closest stop was, and if this town had a mall. To her excitement and relief, there was both. Once done, she holds the door open for Jack.

"What ... I mean ... when ..." She scratched her forehead in thought. "When were you ... I mean, what year do you come from?"

[Jack Doyle]

"A hundred years ago." he said. "That's our best estimate."

[Tiffani]

"Damn, you mean like ... 1909?" She whistles appreciatively. "Well, I can help you get acclimated, but only up until 1985, I'm afraid. The rest will have to come from Chantelle, I guess."

Tiffani leads Jack back out onto the sidewalk, to all the world looking like a teenage girl and her younger brother out doing a little shopping. "Ever take the bus before? Can't remember if they had those back in your day. It's not exciting or anything."

[Jack Doyle]

"One of my memories is of my mother crying over the burning of Théâtre de l'Opéra in New Orleans." he explained. "That was in 1919. I've ridden the bus a few times since I returned. Back then, however, we had streetcars."