Do You Remember Me?

These days the Joie blogger spends a lot of the day in the back of the store, sitting at her desk, wrestling with paperwork and orders and computers and things. It's more fun to be out front - but there's stuff to be done. However, she is called out from time to time - for lunch breaks, if it's busy, or a friend drops by, or if no one can find a price or answer a question about a card or item we sold twenty years ago. And sometimes she gets the message - "someone wants to say hello." Intriguing of course . . . but often when she emerges, the person standing there at the desk poses the dreaded question: "Do you remember me?" This question instantly throws the the Joie blogger into a panic. The person is beaming at me expectantly, waiting to be recognized - and sometimes, I just don't recognize them. Of course, sometimes there's a very good reason - like the young man who asked to say hello the other day. He mentioned how this was his very favorite store, and how much he had always loved it while I scrutinized him trying to place him. Then he told me that the last time he had been IN Joie de Vivre, he was - seven years old ! I felt much better after that and we had a lovely conversation. Yesterday, there was another "do you remember me?" - a case where, as it turned out, I hadn't seen the person - the former boyfriend of a former friend - for over twenty five years. On learning his identity, his voice did sound kind of familiar. Anyway, as I have now revealed an excellent way to put me into a panic, I plead with future drop ins - if I look blank - take pity on me - don't make me guess - tell me who you are!