When Dave and I were restoring Victorian homes in Downtown Colorado Springs, we had a crew of homeless ‘tramps’ (their preferred moniker – aka ‘hobos’ or ‘vagabonds’) that would come thru town regularly and help us on our remodeling projects. Our favorite tramp was Skip. Whenever he was low on cash, Skip would fly a sign on any street corner, and within hours would have made several hundred dollars.
One day while flying a sign in Denver, a charitable soul stopped and gave Skip $5,000 in cash. Without going into the social and moral aspects of such a generous gesture, Skip hired a limo, went around to several City parks collecting some of his homeless friends, and headed down to Colorado Springs to treat his mates to a few nights on the town.
While driving on Tejon, Skip spied a beautifully decorated basket of cookies in the window of Mrs. Field’s Cookies at the corner of Kiowa, and instructed the limo driver to stop immediately. Upon entering the store and telling the cashier that he wanted the basket of cookies, he was informed that they were for display only and not for sale. He said he wanted a gift for his friend Mimi, and how much would the basket cost? He was again informed that it was not for sale.
Not to be thwarted, he pulled out a $100 bill, put it on the counter, and politely asked that it be packaged so that he could deliver it to Mimi. SOLD . . . back in the limo, over to my house, delivered into my hands, and then he drove off into the sunset to enjoy a few days of revelry with his friends.
After 23 years of running Mrs. Field’s, very centrally located in Downtown Colorado Springs at 32 North Tejon, the owner (Bill Ross) has seen a lot of strange things in his time, a lot of changes take place, and a lot of businesses come and go.
A wonderful store to get dessert or to purchase gifts for special occasions (or special people), Mrs. Field’s offers many varieties of cookies (chocolate chip, macadamia nut, oatmeal, peanut butter, Scotchy, just to name a few) and brownies to indulge even the most picky of sweet-tooths. Big Cookies, large orders, special adornments, you name it, they can do it.
Were you aware that you can get coffee, specialty coffees, drinks, smoothies, and other refreshments at Mrs. Field’s? Unfortunately, because it is not considered a restaurant by the City, they are not allowed to put tables in for you to sit and enjoy your treats. But you CAN sit in one of their bistro chairs if you so desire, and eat and drink to your heart’s content. Another long-established company that is being hit by the current economy, let’s remember these small business owners in Downtown Colorado Springs when we are thinking about where to parcel out our hard-earned funds.
