Witches & Lairds

“Amina” is a fantasy and anime fan, and this Magic & Dragons display was her idea. She gathered most of the stuff, complete with little toys and Tarot cards.
I was happy to set it out for her yesterday:

And happy to be at the store: the energy among coworkers has improved since I left four months ago.
With Amina coming on to replace me, now three store workers are in their twenties:
Amina, whose parents are from Somalia; “Junior”, whose parents are from Mexico; and “Tracy”, a white girl from Wisconsin whose great-grandparents (like my grandparents) were from Sicily.

All three get along with everyone and have sweet natures--it's as if they're out of Studio Ghibli. "Here, I saved this Totoro keychain for you."
I don't know what theme song this trio would choose (I should ask!), but collectively I'd give them Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide":

"Oh, mirror in the sky, what is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changin' ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?"

For a brief time, three workers were white guys in their 40s (Ass't Man, Mr Mushroom, and mattdamon).
Kinda smelled like Teen Spirit in the back room.
They'd happily set up a stereo system for anyone, but they'd get in fights with each other about the correct way to do it.
Tom Petty's "And I Won't Back Down" couldv'e been this group's theme song:

"I know what's right/I got just one life,
In a world that keeps on pushin' me around,
But I'll stand my ground/ And I won't back down."

The configuration could not hold, and now it's just Mr Mushroom. On his own, he's all Jerry Garcia and Bob Marley.
Big Boss is now E.D. (executive director), so he's not around much-- it's mostly Manageress, who is happier on her own (without Ass't Man).

It's a nice place to be--for me as a volunteer, anyway.

Hot Scots!

Yesterday a couple boxes of romance books came in. I was laughing at several lurid covers showing brooding Highland lairds, shirtless in kilts, tattoos banding their bulging biceps.
Ha--here--like this, though more often their dark hair is whipping in the wind.

They are stories of "the mythical men and women who once roamed the Highland moors". Like ptarmigan? Ludicrous!

"Maybe I should read one though," I said.

"I've been thinking the same thing!" Amina said. "But if my mother caught me with something like that..."
(Amina and Jr. both live at home, and Tracy lives with roommates--another feature of modern 20-somethings. How can you afford rent?)
Amina did borrow one of the Highland romances anyway though. 

All for now--bink is on her way for our usual Sunday morning coffee.
Have a good day!