Rod was outside in his new Miata, parked where Sylvia could see him immediately.

Of course, Sylvia thought, of course it was red. What other color could it be? Certainly not blue, like the old sedan they had when they were still married. Blue wasn't for a crazy man-of-the-world like Rod.

"Hey, Sylvia!" The super was peeking out of his apartment. "Hey, I got a box for you!"

"I'm just going out, Nestoras, can I pick it up later?"

"Sure, sure!" But the super was already holding it in his hands. "It looks like a Ginsu Shoku 8-pc Magnetic Strip Set. Guess they put the wrong address on it or something."

Sylvia walked over. "Did I order that? I don't remember ordering that."

From outside, a Miata's horn. Sylvia sighed and closed her eyes. The super laughed.

"That your fella? He ain't got time for you to be checking out all these knives, I guess."

Sylvia lit a cigarette and nodded at the box. "You got scissors? I don't feel like I'm in a hurry."

Inside the box Sylvia found a long magnetic strip, designed to hold knives up on the wall, rather than taking up precious counter space. She barely noticed the sound of her ex-husband's horn. She also found an 8-inch Chef's Knife, an 8-inch bread knife, a 7-inch Santoku, a 5-inch boning knife, a 4 1/2 inch utility knife and a 3 1/2 inch paring knife. She lifted each knife, very carefully, feeling their precision balance. The handles were all elegant; so elegant, in fact, they completely distracted her from going outside. She read the box carefully: Japanese steel (and there was a honk) Limited lifetime warranty (and there was a honk) stain and rust resistant (and there was an impatient "Shave And A Haircut" in honk form) A unique anodizing process on the handle brings color into your cooking environment (and there was a long, long honk that turned into four small, frustrated honks of varying lengths.)

Sylvia put the various knives away and tucked the box lid back into place. "Thank you, Nestoras! I'll take this back up to my apartment right now."

"Hey, glad to help, Sylvia! And I figure you'll want to go upstairs and install that magnetic strip right now."

"You figure right," smiled Sylvia. "It's so easy, I shouldn't have any trouble at all… but it wouldn't hurt to spent a lot of time measuring my kitchen, just to be sure."

The super got the message. "Should I go tell Chet Baker out there to give it a rest?"

"No need, Nestoras," Sylvia called back as she prepared to take the stairs instead of the elevator, "I think I'm starting to enjoy that tune."

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