The "L" Word

Word of the Day Thursday, January 21, 2010

bibelot

\BEE-buh-loh\ , noun;

1. A small decorative object without practical utility; a trinket.

She wasn't quite sure how she came upon this particular shop, but once she walked inside she just had a visceral feeling that it was the right shop for her purpose. The old dusty furniture, the heavy jewelry, and tarnished brass bibelots tucked into every corner and cranny of space.

She had been agonizing for the past two weeks over this particular Valentine's Day, trying to come up with the perfect gift. She was so nervous, they had only been dating a little over a month, and things were going spectacularly although they hadn't yet used the "L" word. Not that she didn't think they would get there, it was just too soon. Why did she have to start dating him so close to Valentine's Day? How do you get through Valentine's Day without reference to love??

She picked up old, leather bound books pleased with their weight and heft in her hand. A hideous, carved, wooden man statue that was so ugly she immediately fell in love with it leaning on his cane next to a small hand drum. A stuffed iguana peered studiously down from on top of a large wardrobe.

She thought about his sleek downtown loft apartment. Very industrial with the polished concrete floors and the exposed pipes in the ceiling. His spartan furniture and minimalist artwork. The first time she had gone over there all she could imagine was the string of cool, elegant blondes that had paraded through that loft and couldn't imagine why she was there. She had been lost in the middle of figuring out how she was going to politely ditch him that evening when he had come out of his gourmet, stainless steel kitchen with an old chipped mug of mulled wine.

"This was my grandfather's recipe," he said handing her the mug, steaming with the warm smell of cloves and cardamom, "Actually, that was his mug too. He used to sip on a mug of mulled wine every night after dinner and tell me and my little brother wild made up stories. He lived with us for several years after my grandmother passed away."

She had no idea why he had told her the story. The had spent dinner at a trendy, over priced restaurant exchanging playful, witty banter. The usual verbal fencing match that constituted dating. When he had mentioned that he "just lived around the corner" she almost couldn't resist rolling her eyes at how contrived the whole thing seemed to be. Yet here he was, literally holding out his chipped facade for her to hold in her hands.

Maybe that was why the shop and all the old, spiced with life items seemed like the perfect place to find the right gift to express everything she felt without having to use the "L" word on Valentine's Day.