Advantage

I love going to the hardware shop around the corner. No, it is not one of those big, impersonal stores, Praxis, Gamma, whatever... It is a smallish shop, with two men who'll always ask: "How can I help you?" as soon as they see you.

When I was younger, I felt patronised by them, and I did my best to show I knew what I was talking about. I also would have liked to look around a bit before having to tell what I needed or wanted or was looking for.

Now that I'm older, I do my damsell-in-distress act. Could you explain this, could you tell me how to do that.... They love it, and so do I. Sometimes, when I need something and don't know the name (and can't take it with me to show), I take a picture of it and show it on my smartphone. That works quite well. (And it allows me to show off my smartphone-literacy....)

Thanks to these shopkeepers, I have a nice shower now (yes, I fixed it myself!), and very pretty
new kitchen curtains. Well, new... Some of you may recognise them. And no, I didn't fix the curtain rail myself. I got help... Still, I did buy the hardware all on my own! And (afterwards) I could tell exactly which was what and felt quite proud...


That, at least, is one of the advantages of getting older. So our national soccer hero Cruyff again is proved right, when he stated his famous words 'Every inconvenient has its advantage... (elk nadeel hep z'n voordeel).'