This is part of a new novel (or story) by Lee Gerstmann, tentatively called "Escaping My Love." The story will be more complex than this one part but this is the first part that I have written so far.
For one week only, Cindy visited her cousin, Shirley, who lived in Washington DC. Shirley worked in the National Building Museum at the information desk, where she informed people about various memorials and museums in the area. She suggested Cindy come to watch her at work so the two cousins could spend more time chatting during slow minutes when nobody asked Shirley for information. Cindy liked the general layout of Washington DC and figured it represented a certain fixed quality of cultural greatness lacking anywhere else in the country.
The National Building Museum was impressive on its own and Cindy noticed all the employees dressed professionally – not that she had not seen professionalism in dressing attire before her visit here – but there was something about where her cousin lived that spoke to Cindy and the message was yes. Shirley either wore dresses or blouses tucked into skirts when behind the counter. Cindy was impressed that Shirley did not change into other clothes when they arrived back at her place. Cindy observed Shirley’s dressing habits as one might observe a bird in flight before one went to pilot’s school. Cindy wanted to become more like Shirley. After all, Shirley was her cousin so there was a connection already.
However, Cindy’s reasons had more to do with how Shirley was the cousin from Washington DC. Her other cousins, scattered throughout other states, were not as interesting. Cindy wanted to mimic Shirley in some way as soon as Cindy came back to California. She did not wear dresses or skirts but she did wear shirts, perhaps not blouses like Shirley wore but shirts were close enough to being blouses for both to qualify in the shirt department. Cindy wanted to buy some T-shirts representing Washington DC so she could wear them in California and still feel like she was visiting her cousin. Also, she wanted to tuck in the T-shirts so she could pretend she worked for a place as prestigious as the places where Shirley worked. On Saturday, when Shirley did not have to go to work so she and Cindy could visit more of the city, Cindy said, “I want to shop.”
Shirley said, “You can shop anytime. Would you like to see the Potomac River? How about the Washington National Cathedral? You’re leaving Sunday night and I have been mostly at work these past five days so now I figure we can have fun.”
Cindy said, “The town itself is fun. I’m having fun talking to you in your room because your room is in Washington DC. This is nothing like Oakland, California. I want to get some souvenirs that I can wear so I’ll still feel I am here even though I’ll be there.”
Shirley asked, “What type of souvenirs can you wear?”
Cindy said, “T-shirts.”
“You can buy T-shirts in Oakland.”
“I want to buy something that represents Washington DC.”
“You can still do that in Oakland.”
Cindy sighed. “I guess I could buy a Washington DC shirt in Oakland but it will have that Oakland city air on it from being on a hanger in a store in Oakland. The T-shirts here have the Washington DC air and that air will stay on it even after I bring it back home.”
Shirley looked puzzled. “What do you mean by air staying on a shirt? You sound like you were listening to a warped guru in the Berkeley hills.”
Cindy laughed. “You see? You can talk bad about Berkeley because you’re not there so you haven’t been brainwashed by the Berkeley vibe. You’re in a better place. You’re in Washington DC. Right now, I am here and I can feel the difference right away. I want to buy a T-shirt that represents this place and I want to wear it tucked in.”
