It's been a year since the global ban on plastic bags. The only people who still have them are hoarders, upcyclers, clean freaks and seniors. The world is a different place. Plastic bags are frowned upon but many folks can't stomach the rising costs...
I had decided to accept Henry's offer and said yes to the crew. My only job was to get more product and fast. I still had over 400 bags available, but we would go through a lot more in a day than I ever have before.
Grandma was looking for me because one of her bridge friends, Bob, identified a bag from a Florida gift shop she frequented and saw me holding it outside of Miracle Mart on Fourth Street.
Yeeahhh. That actually happened.
Old people notice the strangest things. They have astute observations for trivial memories but then forget how to do other kind-of-important things like driving, or what they were just saying.
I wonder how their conversation even came up. I like to imagine it went something like this:
Bob: "Hey Ethel, you know who I saw today down at the Miracle Mart?"
Grandma: "What?"
Bob: "The MIRACLE MART" (now yelling)
Grandma: "Yeah I shop there. They have the best price on milk."
Bob: "Your grandson was there."
Grandma: "No he doesn't have a job. He doesn't work."
Bob: "Jesus Ethel. No, I saw him there! Not working. Just there. He had a Florida Gator Guys Gifts bag. Isn't that your gift shop?"
Ethel: "My bags? I gave him a whole bunch. Some project he's working on."
Bob: (Takes a sip of his Tom Collins) "Well. It looked suspicious."
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I told Grandma I would have tea with her. My plan was to snag another 2 or 3 hundred bags before moving on to her friends and then expanding my search beyond the family circle.
Just as I was leaving the house I noticed a big beefy and somewhat intimidating guy leaning on a car in front of my house with a giant embroidered TM on his hooded sweatshirt (proudly made I'm Afghanistan I suspect). He wore a pair of super White sneakers which looked like they had just been removed from the box.
"Hey! Are you Ari?"
I looked around for a quick exit, but didn't see an easy way out.
"Yeah. I am. Why? Who's asking?"
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