There’s a little store along the 101 in Encinitas, California that only yesterday became a favorite. And that is due to the lively banter I enjoyed with an employee who helped me look around. It was the experience that made me return today on a date with my wife. I took a picture of one birdbath and texted to my spouse. She was in a meeting and after a few moments responded, “Pretty”. The lady at The Mad Potter, when I relayed Sheri’s comment, asked, “Did she say “Pretty”, or ‘that’s pretty’? The difference is significant. If a woman says “that’s pretty”, it means, ‘well, you apparently like it’. But simply ‘pretty’, is a sign she likes it.” Text messages with pictures may suggest something, but it was the date today which built on the experience – and dug into my wallet.
Did she say “Pretty”, or “That’s pretty”? The difference is significant.
The Mad Potter is one of the little shops along the El Camino Real in northern San Diego County that I may have seen over several years when I worked in Carlsbad and took creative detours homeward during the agonizing traffic commutes. However, it is in this post-pandemic, semi-retirement that I am making a total overhaul of our home’s landscaping. I have been looking at little mom n’ pop shops and nurseries to find specific low-water need and heat-tolerant California plants, pottery, bird baths and today, a fountain that will tie the hummingbird, butterfly and bee garden and (human) guest-friendly design.
Though my wife has given me the task of deciding the layout and features in our yard, any prudent husband always seeks his wife’s opinion. And with a stop at a favorite coffee house, just down the street, it was both date and a shopping trip. And a plant caught her eye as we were getting assistance loading our treasures of birdbath, fountain, and ceramic tortoise. There is a saying that is as true today as it was when I held a retail sales job a lifetime ago: people do not like being “sold”; however, people love to “buy”. The other truth that is worth repeating is when an employee loves their work the shop prospers. I joked that I may open an account with them. There are a few more tortoises the Mrs has her eye on.
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