The Computer Store: A Character Study

Soooooo, my computer has been very sketchy lately - randomly popping off in the middle of my work and such. At first it just turned itself off if I moved it, but then it started doing it with disturbing regularity whether I moved it or not. So I decided it was time for drastic measures. I drove it to the computer store in Keene. Katie (oh joy! oh delight!) accompanied me (I'm really glad she's home from Israel!).

We walked in and found ourselves in a small, dark room, strewn with computers and partial-computers. The walls had various computer articles, comic strips, and strange cartoon/anime type figures.

As our eyes adjusted to the dim interior we discovered two men to be present. The one closest to the door boomed out a greeting of some kind. He did not stop booming for the next 20 minutes or so, until we had safely retreated to our car. He was a large man, with a large mouth, and very large opinions that he largely expressed to the world. He should live in Brooklyn, methinks. He bellowed on about hating Mondays (due to how well the margaritas went down the night before...), his wife's finally being off crutches, his tomato wine recipe, and a little about computers and how honest he is.

The other man took a little noticing, because he was, in comparison, small. He was a little shorter than I am, and much, much quieter. He puttered about looking for parts for Katie's computer while the large man roared about how much more cheaply he could sell it than other people. The small man couldn't find the part, and retired to the corner of the shop to quietly see what he could discover online.

Meanwhile, the large man got a phone call. Ahhh, a reprieve, thought Katie and I. Not so. It was a telemarketer, and our large subject is not a fan of telemarketers. I have never heard a person so very abused by another person. Sworn at, yes. Yelled at, yes. But thoroughly scalded in such a manner? Wow. Katie and I vainly pretended to be carrying on a conversation about Turkey, but there was still a very awkward pause when the large man ceased his venomous attack and slammed the phone down.

The quiet man, reluctant to break into our pretend conversation, for fear of asserting himself where he was not wanted, waited for a pause in our discourse to let us know the approximate price of the part she needed.

The large man then burst in with his opinion on the part, and of the allusion to ebay, and we thanked everyone (several times, because they were loath to let us go - the large man sad to lose his captive audience, the small man sad to lose anyone who free him from being the captive audience), and sidled out the door as fast as we could without being too abrupt.

We got back to the car laughing to ourselves, and I thought, "This would be great to blog about." Thank goodness for small men, no matter what their size, is what I have to say!

And I need to blog soon about how Gretchen is the HERO OF THE UNIVERSE! (Or at least of my universe!)