The Pink Airplane

First, The Natalie News: Never let it be said Maddie gives up on her niece. I met with a customer in San Francisco yesterday and Michael came in to join me for dinner in the city, which is always a treat. Natalie babysat for the first time since the crash and I expected no problems. However, we arrived home to find no Natalie, Delia or Andrew. Instead, there was a note from the neighbors saying the kids were with them (!!) Natalie had left them “briefly” to go on a motorcycle ride with Stefan. Can you believe it – leaving an eight and five year old alone?! She thought they’d be fine! And they were, until the popcorn was gone and they realized they were missing two things: adults and dinner. That’s when Delia took her brother by the hand and asked the neighbors if they could come in! Fortunately, the neighbors had a sense of humor about the whole thing, and I’m hoping they don’t think Michael and I are the worst parents in Napa County. Natalie seems genuinely sorry and promises better judgment. (And I think next time I’ll hire a sitter for all three of them!)

This “Home Alone” incident made me vow to make it up to the kids by being there for them as much as possible. But there is a little problem: a truly irritating mom at Andrew’s preschool who I’m constantly running into at pick-up, drop-off, school teas and mommy & me craft days. She rapid-fires questions at me, pretending to be interested in the answers, only to set me up for an insult or an undermining. (New Yorkers have nothing on Madame X!) She constantly asks me about Red House. How did I get there? What if I fail? (!) Curiosity is one thing, but a vein of insincerity is just below the surface. What was she getting at?! Finally she told me – she was introducing her own line of wine country-inspired clothing and starting a retail store in St. Helena. Weeks ago I had mentioned (foolishly) that a store was in my own five year plan for Red House! Ordinarily, I welcome the competition, as I know no one can touch us on the stellar combination of quality and customer service. And knowing there’s someone nipping at my heels keeps me on my toes, but please let it not be this woman! Red House is the culmination of dreams - my carefully considered passion. Mme. X thinks what I do is easy, a hobby! And get this – she’s calling her shop the Pink Airplane. Red House, Pink Airplane. Coincidence? You tell me.

I had to know more so I called my new friend Denise (from the nutritional business seminar), herself a boutique owner in St. Helena. She had heard of Mme. X and her retail intentions but laughed when I said “Pink Airplane”. That, she said, was a joke on me. The shop’s name will translate as “L’Avion Rose”, also a play on mournful songstress Edith Piaf’s La Vie en Rose, and get this – she is not competing with Red House at all – hers will be a “French-inspired travel accessories shop”. Will be?Apparently Mme. X’s retail venture is at least a year away from taking off, and Denise says she’s scouting for Francophile backers. Bonne chance, madame! I no longer dread our encounters. Maybe her brashness is just insecurity and we’ll even find some common ground while gluing macaroni to cigar boxes!

P.S. Thank you, guardian angels of Red House for protecting the integrity of our brand, and for making me laugh at myself for taking it all too seriously. I will light a candle in your honor and listen to as much of an Edith Piaf record as I can without getting depressed.