Becky Bloomwood redux

I took my long time pal out for lunch for her birthday. After we had lunch we walked around a town square browsing around at the shops since it was such a nice spring day.
We went into a shoe store, LLCoombs. Despite my shoe addiction I figured I'd be safe in this store since most of the shoes in this shop are high end practical shoes like dansko clogs and teva running sandels.
Basically, it's shit I wouldn't be caught dead wearing.
My friend has problems with her feet so she needs well-made comfortable flats so that is why we were in there.
They added a new section in the back. They carried a collection of Stuart Weitzman shoes. That brand is very stylish.
I casually wandered over to that display. I picked up a pair of black leather high heel bootie with a shiny silver spiked heel.
I tried it on "just for the heck of it".
OMG they were gorgeous!
They fit perfectly and made my legs look long and lean.
My eyes started to dilate and I began to drool.
I looked at the price.
$435.00!
It's no wonder I liked them.
The sales-lady walked over and chirped, "those booties are half price!"
$217.50!
I still couldn't justify spending that kind of money on a pair of shoes.
Besides my husband had accompanied us and was now staring at me with those "take those shoes off now and we are leaving" look.
Can you imagine splashing out even the half price amount of $217.50 for a pair of shoes?
Sadly, I can, but I wouldn't, since I was figuring that would equate to 3 weeks worth of grocery money.
I looked down at the shoes I was wearing. These shoes were black leather whip-stitched Brazilian made shoes I bought last year at a boutique in Hampton. These shoes were 70% off but still cost $100.00. They are gorgeous as well and superbly made.
My friend started laughing when she saw my transfixed gaze looking at those Stuart Weitzman shoes.
She said, "maybe you should work part-time in a shoe store so you can get the employee discount".
She had worked in (the now defunct) Filenes. She is a hand-bag addict and she worked (you guessed it) in the hand-bag department.
As an employee, she got first dibs on the new collections coming in as well as first pick of sales, plus her employee discount.
I seriously, don't think she ever brought a (intact) pay-check home.
She would call me up imforming me of their shoe sales and save discount coupons for me.
It was a scary scene with the both of us carrying shopping bags filled with shoes and hand-bags.
We would be exhausted from our frenzy and top off the day with coffee and donuts.
God.. it was heaven...
When my friend suggested I get a part-time job in a high-end shoe store (to feed my addiction) I had thoughts of Becky Bloomwood.
Becky Bloomwood is the main character in the novel "Confessions of a shopaholic". She too, got a part-time job to feed her clothing addiction in a high-end department store. She would end up hiding and hoarding clothes she "couldn't live without" behind the cash register out of view of other workers AND customers.
She ended up getting fired the next day.