...Yesterday DH and I and the kids went shopping. We were originally going to Target to just pick up a couple of extra controllers for the PS2 (because software conflicts will exist and you'll drift left on one controller and fall off the cliff *every* time), and ended up wandering through the heart of this little mini-mall shopping center sort of place to get to our next destination.

When we exited, we happened to pass one of my favorite stores in the whole area: HomeChef. I noticed that there was a complete mess in the classroom (because they have a beautiful big viewing window so people wandering by can see the classes in action) and wondered aloud if they'd taken the class on a field trip, because they always clean up after class is over. On the way back in, I took a closer look and saw that the place was nearly cleaned out.

So, naturally, we went in. And that's when I almost started to cry, because on the blackboard behind the counter it said "All Sales Are Final" and "6 Days Left" and "Closing Jan 21". Apparently, people just weren't buying enough. Myself Included. Oh, sure, I went in there often, and 1 out of 5 times I would pick a little something up - a canister of sea salt, or a couple of boxes of the wonderful dried pasta they had, more rarely would a new gadget come home with me. But it was a heavenly store... especially for the classes taught there.

Oh yes, classes. It was a learning store. I took quite a few too - there were the free demonstrations where I learned about peeling things properly (but still haven't mastered it because I don't like knife blades near my fingers), and properly managing the heat and movement of risotto while it cooks. And then there were the not-so-free classes I took.

They taught me how to bake a light fluffy cake, and how to make buttercream frosting. They taught me the differences between using buttercream and creme fraiche. They taught me how to use decorating tools, the proper way to slice layers out of a tall cake, and serving techniques. And how to properly color things using icing paste. They reminded me of working with fresh pasta and how wonderful that can be. And various ways to fill it. And sauces that I can use for it.

My big regret is that I never did take that knife skills class that I always meant to take - they apparently had the best teachers in the area for that sort of thing, and now I won't get to take it. Or I'll have to find another cooking shop that does have it.

I learned how to strip rosemary off it's stalk though, and the proper way of chopping basil versus chopping something like sage or rosemary. And the stages of when to add something to a sauce so that you can get the flavor that you're after (because there *is* a difference when you add something in the saute with the butter and onion as opposed to adding something after all the liquids are in). They woke up my love of the alchemy that is involved in cooking something.

A love that I still carry today as I watch 'Good Eats' on the Food Network, and read through my cookbooks looking for a new way to do something that marries the practical that I learned and the imaginative that I want to try.

But HomeChef is no more. They're closing all the locations in my area, except for one that's well over an hour's drive away, in a location where parking is a true challenge. Oh, and there are other HomeChef's in a couple of other states, but I hear that they might be closing too. That's not definite yet though.

DH and I wandered through what was left (which was hardly anything), and I remembered all the time that I'd spent in that store previously. They had a couple of bundt pans left, and every time I saw them at Sur La Table I promised myself that I'd go to HomeChef and get one, but I never did. And they had a few roasting pans left - just like the one that I'd bought there years ago. All the cake decorating items were gone, as was all the salts, but they still had some of the pasta, so I bought that.

I pondered the cookbooks, and the chefs shirts, but didn't bother with any of them. We looked at the knives that were left, because they carried our brand, but there wasn't anything that was compelling us to take it home.

I clutched my paper bag with the pasta in it, and started to tear up outside the store. It's like the loss of a good friend to some unforeseen and totally unexpected situation - it hits you upside the head, and you don't recover from it that quickly. I am sad. What's worse is that I didn't know - they didn't send a notice out to customers about this, and that really hurts - it's like they were trying to sneak off into the night without telling anyone.

Moral of the story: if you have a favorite cooking shop that you visit from time to time, go visit them this week. Or even a favorite stitching shop, because the same thing happens to LNS' too - some of my favorite places to buy things locally either went out of business or stopped selling stitching supplies. It happens in every industry - a favorite record shop, a favorite clothing boutique, the best place to have your kids' pictures taken... Buy a little something. Or buy a lot of something. Help your favorite store stay in business even if it's just for a little while longer. I did a little here and a little there, and I know it's not all my fault that it's going away. There were lots of other customers that could have bought things that would have helped the bottom line. There were lots of other classes that could have been filled but weren't...

...but that doesn't make it hurt any less.