The offer was mighty tempting, but with Thanksgiving only a few days away, there was too much work to be done. I convinced Rosie to stay home and let me work by telling her I was finishing the decorations for the store’s Christmas tree, and I wanted them to be a surprise for her. The folks on Main Street had decided they were tired of waving the white flag in the battle to bring in shoppers. The time had come for them to give the malls a little competition for some holiday customers. On Wednesday, Pete and a couple of other guys would set a bare tree in front of each business on Main Street, and every shop would decorate their own tree. On the Friday and Saturday following Thanksgiving, customers could vote for their favorite tree. I didn’t know if it really would bring in more customers, but I was having fun making the decorations. It worried me some when Rosie didn’t even put up a fight the next morning when I suggested she stay home again. I decided I would come home at lunch to check on her and make sure she ate something.
