Pillow

Here's one for you Coupling fans: Today I spent $38 on a pillow. Why would I do such a thing, seeing that I come from frugal stock, and indeed the futon this pillow graces cost a mere $100? Well, I went to a three-story department store today after work that was in the final stages of its closing sale. It's called Hecht's, and it must have been pretty upscale until very recently, but it was kind of eerie by the time I found it. The first floor had nothing but store fixtures left, and some 70%-off rugs (originally priced in the $3,000-$9,000 range). Upstairs the selection was only slightly better. It looked like most of the affordable things had been carted off long ago, leaving, for example, a wide choice of dyed-pink foxfur coats.

But it seemed there must be something for me in this going-out-of-business sale. Wandering through the bedding section I spotted this pillow. It didn't have a price tag, but it was 70% off and I thought, how much can a pillow be?

$170, that's how much. By the time I found this out, though, I felt invested in buying the pillow. I'd been wandering around the store with it for awhile, having a last phone conversation with Nell before she disappears into Siberia, trying to find a cashier willing to ring me up... and after all if the pillow used to be $170 there must be something special about it, right?

I think it adds a lot to the futon. Unfortunately it makes the other two pillows feel bad--I think they cost $5 each at BigLots. I'm going to have to go donate some money toward stopping genocide in Darfur to atone for this.