I was about to title this post “A Visit from the Closet Fairy” but thought that might be misleading.

The Closet Fairy you see is not someone who is LGBT in hiding, it is one of the “Small Gods” (a la Terry Pratchett) that bestows gifts twice a year to frugal and thrifty women who shop end-of-season sales.

I lead a bi-polar shopping life swinging wildly between being cheap and buying expensive. I once visited a pair of $100+ shoes at Nordstrom over several months waiting for the magic moment when they would be marked down. Even a little bit. Or earn double-rewards points or some such thing that might justify the purchase. Wait and see is a gamble for me because I wear a size 10 shoe. Manufacturers make a small number of shoes at the ends of the size curve where I live. Sizes 6, 7, and 8 rule the world. I did manage to snag those particular shoes on sale. I remember my mother-in-law was with me that day and was shocked at the price. Please. They were marked down.

My recent visit by the Closet Fairy happened one evening when we were minutes from leaving the house, my husband completely dressed and jangling the car keys in a not-so-subtle reminder that the clock was ticking, and I went back to my closet and said ‘I just need a light jacket or blazer so I don’t have to wear a coat’ – and behold.

My hand reached out and touched a lightweight blazer. Gray, casual for wearing with jeans. Tags still on. Marked down.

I swear I looked in that closet a dozen times earlier that day and the blazer wasn’t there. And then it was. The Closet Fairy rewarding the frugal, thrifty and desperate.

I have to remember to fulfill my seasonal religious obligations at the after-Christmas sales.