Social Conventions

Here in Smalltown it's after Labor Day. Come to think of it, it's after Labor Day everywhere else too. In cosmopolitan places like New York and Dallas, that means no more white shoes or purses or pastel colored dresses from Macy's. Dark jackets, slacks and pumps appear. Smalltown is near the coast and it's still humid and summer-hot. So we're a little more informal about the after-Labor Day rule. For instance, I only wear black shorts and flip flops now.

A Surprise from My Substitute

When I left town for the family reunion, Frank Flushpoole filled in for me. Frank, needless to say, is a preacher and Lola's husband. He was the pastor of this church for several years. When he retired he stayed nearby because he loves these people so much. On the Sunday I was gone, he wore a salmon-colored leisure suit in the pulpit. Unbeknownst to most of the congregation, Frank had fished the suit out of a cardboard box 30 years ago during a men's clothing drive for the needy. Stan Essofigus had donated it in the 1970s when leisure suits were in vogue. Sue Cantu, one of our younger women members--a dark-haired, dark-eyed fashionable
dresser--noted to Myra MacDonald how good that suit looked on Frank. Stan Essofigus overheard her and said, "Yes, and I have two more suits at home just like it!"