My Gran is a little bit camera shy, but she let me take a picture of her shoes. She wears the coolest little-old-lady shoes! Oh, and here is a picture of a seedling tray of herbs. Gotta admit those shoes get me in the mood for some thrifting. Plan to scope out Goodwill and some vintage shops. This is all new territory, after all. The Midwest—prairie chic? OMG, how I loved Little House on the Prairie. Laura Ingalls Wilder, here I come. I’m envisioning a kind of sass-meets-power look. No briefcases puleeze! Mom never carried one and she was named top Realtor in the Philadelphia area twice. She had an adorable flowered backpack she found in Back to the Future, our favorite thrift shop.

Chapter 9

Thrifting

“Old Souls,” Rose said. “What a great name for a vintage shop!”

“Yeah, I thought you’d like it,” Susan said. “I’ve been in here a lot, but I don’t have the knack, really.”

“What do you mean, the knack?”

“Style. You’ve got style, Rose. I don’t exactly know how to put things together. I wind up looking . . . schlubby.”

“Schlubby?”

“You know, kind of a mess, unattractive, clumsy. That was Carrie’s nickname for me last year. Susan the Schlub.”

Rose was shocked. There was nothing new about bullies calling kids cruel names, but it was as if Susan was accepting Carrie’s word on this. She was letting herself be defined. Thinking of herself as a schlub. That was really sad.

“Look, you’re not schlubby in the least. I’ll find something for you.”

“But you put things together so well, like lace and plaid and that sweater skirt you wear a lot.”

“The sweater was my mom’s. I just—how shall I put it—reconfigured it and sewed it up.”

“I need a lot of reconfiguring, Rose.” Susan’s shoulders drooped, and it seemed as if she were sinking into the sidewalk. Low self-esteem, Rose’s mother would have said. Poor Susan was drowning in it.

“Don’t be ridiculous. You don’t need to change. We just need something that fits you. Not your size, necessarily; your personality.”

“I . . . I don’t really have a personality.”

“Yes you do. You’re just shy, quiet. Stand right there. Let me study you.”

Susan froze. She looked as if she were in a lineup at a police station. Rose sensed it was useless telling her to relax.

“Okay, you have very pale skin.”

“Almost translucent, my mom says.”

“And you have very black hair. The glasses are a terrific fashion choice for you with those frames. Now does all this suggest anything to you?”

“I’m kind of black-and-white?”

“Yes, and with your pale skin, silky, chiffonlike fabrics in pastels might work. But ice blue would be great too, and LACE. You are made for lace with your hair.”