The existence of a shop like the Clever Caterpillar, now brightening up Pine Bush's Main Street, brings up a question that is fundamental to the way we live now.

How do we want to shop? Do we like to shop the same way all the time? And always in huge malls with huge parking lots and huge box stores with 400,000 items on 29 aisles spread over two football fields?

Or are there occasions when we'd rather have a really pleasant experience, shopping along a street dotted with eclectic businesses and an assortment of restaurants, ice cream parlors and so on? Part of that pleasant experience can come from popping into a store like the Clever Caterpillar to hunt for something unusual for a kid's birthday, or for a kid to take to a birthday party, or to pick up art supplies, or just to look around and see what might catch our fancy.

Most of today's shopping is kind of industrial. You really feel like a consumer, not a customer. Harried and underpaid staff do their best in that environment, but oftentimes you can't find the lady who specializes in Aisle 14, or the guy who knows all about drills.

But if you step into the Clever Caterpillar, you're entering a very different kind of experience. This is shopping as fun, with a whimsically decorated store filled with brightly colored and interesting items that really span a wide spectrum from Art Supplies to Dollhouses.

I spoke with Doug Drossel, co-owner with his wife Kirsten of the Clever Caterpillar, which they opened in December 2005.

"We have two girls, and like most parents, we found that we were always rushing down to Middletown at the last minute for a present for a birthday party. It was always really stressful, and we thought to ourselves, wouldn't it be nice if there was a toy shop right here in Pine Bush?"

Both Drossels have careers. Doug works full time at IBM, but as he admits, "I was looking for something fun to do in what's left of my spare time." Kirsten is a graphic designer. "My wife's experience in design was invaluable when it came to setting up a shop."

The result?

"It's been good, a great experience, and today was a perfect example. Every sale I made today was somebody rushing off to a birthday party. In a way, that's the model for the store: gifts for all, newborns to age twelve or so. Right up to Melissa & Doug Dollhouses, the selection available at Clever Caterpillar is always smart and attractive.

"For boys, for instance, we have science kits, chemistry sets, fire engines and ant-farms."

But there's more. "Our other idea initially was to have teacher materials in the store, because we were aware that there are a lot of teachers living in this area, because there are so many schools. So we have lots of things for teachers, like materials for decorating classrooms. It all kind of expands in the summer, too. We get name stickers, charts; all sorts of stuff for teachers."

And then there's the pottery. "Well, yeah, when we opened, people really liked the look of the store, and we added Woodstock Chimes and Bennington Pottery, and those have both been a success."

Shopping this way has the feel of another era — a gentler, less hurried time.

"People have been very patient with us. If we don't have something they want, we take the details and go out and get it. In fact, that's how we filled our shop. People asking for things and when we didn't have them we ordered them in. So, a lot of our stock is mostly down to customer requests."

That's a brilliant marketing strategy, if you ask me. It's very efficient, as long as people don't mind waiting a week or so for a store to order something. Another result is that the look and feel of the Clever Caterpillar, is, well, clever.

"What we offer tends to be creative, and we cover a lot of areas, but we have very few electronics. We feel that other places can do that a lot better than we could possibly do. Plus, we try to be an alternative to what you see at Toys R Us and so on. You don't find this stuff in those big stores."

So what's new?

"The most exciting thing this year," said Drossel, "was that I rented the space right next door to the main shop. We've made that into a party and play-room. So when kids come in with parents, they can go in there and draw, or play. The Boys and Girls Club has been coming in to hold Story Time in there. Turnout has been so good. I think it's because people really like to go out and have fun with their kids in their own town. We also rent it as a party room, and it can handle up to twelve kids that way." Doug Drossel plainly enjoys his store, and he explained why in a way that re-emphasized the point of the whole exercise.

"One thing I really love about being a 'Mom and Pop' store is that we can really treat our customers well. I just had a customer who had bought something that didn't work when she got it home. She came back, but she forgot to bring the defective item back with her. Now, in a chain store, that would be that. She'd have to make the trip again. But we just said, 'take another one, and bring the broken one back another time.' We have that flexibility as proprietors of the store. And I think people really like that level of customer service, which as we all know, is rare in the modern world."

So, how does Drossel feel about Pine Bush?

"We've lived here for twelve years and we think it's a great community. That was one reason we wanted to add another good store to Main Street. I think the Chamber of Commerce is doing a good job; it helps the business community connect with each other. If it wasn't for the Chamber, we wouldn't know each other nearly as well as we do, and it helps build a sort of solidarity."

What would he like to see happen in the town?

"Eventually there'll be a sidewalk all the way down to Boniface Drive, which has a lot of businesses. So connecting Main Street and Boniface Drive that way will produce the best of both worlds."

Opening times for the Clever Caterpillar are 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day, except Sunday, when it's 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Requests can be made on their website, theclevercaterpillar.com, or by phone, 845-744-2505.

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