10:19 p.m. | 2005-04-28 Accidental Thievery. I went to lunch today with two of my colleagues, Fargo and well� NewGirl. I think that�s the moniker I threw upon her rather recklessly a while back. Frankly, she needs a new one. For background, she replaced UA (UnitAssistant) so I could call her NUA (NewUnitAssistant), but I might as well step out of my box and call her Nuance. Mostly because it�s fits her � she�s been to charm school and all that so she�s very well turned out and is quite socially graceful. In other words, she�s well versed in social nuances. She can even curtsey properly which is a skill I appreciate amongst youngsters. Anyway, Fargo and I took Nuance to a local delicatessen/snack store. One Nuance had never been to before. (Just to note, Fargo and I have frequented this establishment � separately � for years.) We went, we ordered, we sat and we ate. While we were eating, we � Fargo and I � noticed that a woman walked in, went to the refrigerated drinks area and then left rather quickly. Here�s that. (Fargo:) Did you see that CI? (CI:) Yeah, I did. She just lifted a drink. I think. (Watching her walk down the street.) Yup, she did. Just pulled it out of her purse and took a swig. Looking at her? Yeah, she could pay for a soda. She�s good. Heh. (Fargo:) That was smooth. (Nuance:) What? (Fargo:) Did you see that girl walk by our table? (Nuance:) Yes. (CI:) She shoplifted. (Nuance:) What? (Fargo:) Yeah, she stole a soda. (Nuance:) Really? Who would just walk into a place and steal? Wow. Really? Why would anyone think they could just do that? We continued with our lunch and eventually left to go back to work. That�s when I noticed that I forgot my purse in the deli. I told Fargo and Nuance that I�d catch up with them as I headed back. As soon as I walked into the store, this happened. (DeliOwner:) Hi. Your pretty friend didn�t pay for her lunch. You paid, he paid� she didn�t pay. (CI:) Yeah, you�re right. She went straight from the sandwich counter to our table. I�ll go tell her. (DeliOwner:) Please tell her next time to pay. Please. Next time� please pay. I caught up with Nuance and Fargo and here�s what went down. (CI:) Hey Nuance, did you pay for your lunch? (Nuance:) (Thinking.) Oh. My. Gosh. No, I didn�t. I kept thinking they were going to ask for my money but they never did. Oh no. I have to go back. (CI:) It�s a little different there; I can see why you got confused. See, you get your food in one spot and have to pay at a different counter. (Nuance:) I didn�t do that. (CI:) Yes, I know. As does the owner. We went back and she paid. The owner told her that he knew she didn�t pay for because �the gorgeous girl hadn�t come to his counter�. (Sidenote: She�s quite pretty.) And, the owner loves the pretty girls. Yet, he also loves money. It�s difficult to know exactly what was behind his scrutiny. (I think it�s both but I think her looks drove him to suggest that she pay �next time�.) Of course, after we caught up with Fargo and explained our delay, I couldn�t resist pointing out the irony. To wit: (CI:) So Nuance, what�s it like just to walk into a place and steal, say, a sandwich? (Nuance:) Heh. I�m just glad you left your purse so this was all settled. Otherwise, the next time I went back� (CI:) Yeah� sandwich stealer. (Nuance:) Exactly. I�m sure they�d tell me they couldn�t serve me and I wouldn�t even know why. One thing, amongst others, that I love about Nuance is that she knows that such incidences are filed away in the story telling archives. Hence, as soon as we got back to the office, she made the first joke about it. Stranger though, and perhaps even more ironic? After I recovered my purse, I caught up with Fargo and Nuance at the coffee place down the street. And the cashier? Yeah, the lady who shoplifted the soda. your thoughts? seed flower