I don't need anything, but when I see this page of goods online I "need" everything. I go from content to feeling empty in a flash. So is this "retail therapy" not like an emergency doctor who drums up business by slashing folks who are otherwise healthy?
...Jake got a bunch of news footage and doctored it and sent it direct to each sister’s computer so it would look like the real news. Anyway, sister one’s news was all positive, heroic firefighters and such. The sister two got a multiple murder, footage of terrorists, complex financial information and a story of a talking budgie who made the elderly happy. The third sister got news full of only war, terrorism and grisly murders. All of them had been followed by make-up and clothing commercials. Then Jake arranged to take all of us for lunch. Sister one was in a very positive mood, she was reflecting on how her life could be improved and some community work the news had inspired her to think about. Sister three wanted to talk about the state of the world, she was upset, depressed even, hardly touching her coffee. Sister two was quite flat, smiling, but in that way that told you her mind was elsewhere. She ordered more than she normally would, a sweet dessert too. Then she wanted to go shopping. She’d seen some advert for a new make-up and she wanted some. It wasn’t in her budget this week but what the hell, she could get blown up tomorrow so why not spend it all now? I asked sister two what was wrong and she rounded on me angrily. Even Jake was surprised. He had expected her to talk about what she’d seen and then he was going to confess and they’d laugh about it. But the second sister didn’t even know what was wrong with her. Her mind had been traumatized, but surrounded by such trivia she wasn’t able to process it appropriately. So instead her confused mind had latched on to the adverts, at least they made sense - she could buy things to be happy...
Found in Are you awake yet? - first draft, authored by Daisy.
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