Bruce must have learned how to shop from Pat; he was really good at it. I have several shopping stories where Pat and Bruce played a major role, but this story is all Bruce. As was often the case over Super Bowl weekend Pat was in Las Vegas, so Bruce drove out to Middleton to spend a couple of days with Todd and me. On Saturday we went for lunch at a joint that just happened to be in the same strip mall as Pier One. After eating I took a break from the guys to “walk through the store.” I had no intention of buying anything. I may have had no intention, but that trunk jumped out in front of me and seemed to tell me how nice it would look in the living room behind the sofa. As I continued to walk through the store a console table caught my eye. I thought it would look great on our landing going from the garage to the main level, and the slate table top had the same coloring as the two watercolors already hanging on the landing wall. I didn’t buy either . . . yet. Instead I meandered back to find the guys playing darts. I told them about my finds and Bruce immediately wanted to see them. I had an ally! We entered Pier One and I first led them to the trunk. It would be an easy sell as it offered storage. Todd agreed it would be perfect for us. Bruce said, “Buy it!” Next we went to the console table. I explained where it would go, reminded Todd of the artwork already in place, and he agreed we should buy it, too. Bruce said, “Buy it!” Here’s where his shopping acumen came into play. As we checked out the cashier told us there were several tables still in boxes in the warehouse, just down a few doors. To find out there were tables still protected by boxes was good news; it would certainly help in the transport. A Pier One clerk took us to the warehouse and pointed us to about five boxes. She told us they were all the same table. I would have taken one without looking inside, but not Bruce. He asked the clerk to open a box so we could see the slate. To my surprise the slate had different coloring than the table in the store and it would have looked awful with the watercolors. Bruce asked the clerk to open the next box. The slate was different still and would not work for us. We went through the same process with the other boxes. Bruce kept reminding me that I should get the one I want; not to settle just to save the clerk from opening yet another box. Finally, in the last box, was the perfect coloring of slate. Shopper Bruce saved me from disappointment and the need to pack the table back in the box and make a return. To this day these pieces of furniture are referred to as “Bruce’s trunk” and “Bruce’s table.” We may have bought them anyway, but it was Bruce’s enthusiasm and his focus on the details that made that shopping day so memorable.