We all return to work tomorrow...ah!—blessed routine! As a sort of send off to our time away from work, Brenda and I hit the mall this afternoon.

We are hardcore shoppers. The purpose was to find a specific item from Bath and Body Works. We are hardcore skincare, fragrance, beauty line freaks. Forty-five minutes and $200 later, we headed back through the mall, and made stops in this store in that. My last dive, as Bren purchased frilly things elsewhere, was into a department store with several racks herded beneath bright "CLEARENCE!" signs.

I knew time was tight. I knew Brenda could swipe that MasterCard of hers faster than Wyatt Earp could draw. With hiccuping breath and quick hands, I clawed through the flocks to find my size. Brenda came to me as my hair escaped strand-by-strand from my ponytail and my collected drool made the descent toward the floor. Frenzied and sounding very much like Scooby Doo, I marched to the cash registers and made my purchase. Three dress shirts. Twenty dollars. I saved $75.

Leaving the store, Brenda chuckled, "Your Mom's up there loving this. You did her proud." Now my mother! SHE was a hardcore shopper! Neither Brenda nor I could stand opposite to her skills of shopping prowess, and nothing thrilled her more than a good sale...well maybe a peanut m&m with the chocolate sucked off. This was indeed a tribute. The torch has been passed.

Getting into it, I punched my bag into the air with a power-to-the-people fist and cried, "I did it all for you, Momma!"