I'm here to report that the economy is alive and well. At least in my particular microcosm and within my specific shopping parameters. Neither of which is impressively vast.
Today I saw myself obligated to endure a shopping excursion. My first of the month budgeting plans have delineated what I have funds for, so every weekend I do my weekly grocery shopping for the bag lunches that I like to prepare. Bag lunching doesn't mean that I want to stick to sandwiches, though, so I like to plan out my meals and then get creative about keeping the ingredients to my budget. Some weeks, it's a challenge. With lent underway, I have one more factor to take into account, so it's become more than a one-stop-shopping situation now.
Fresh produce is at the basis of my meals, with varying proteins coming in a close second. I'm not elitist about where my veggies come from, so I look for the bargains, but there's the occasional specialty item for which I have no choice but to visit the hoity-toity stores. The specialized cheeses (I don't screw around about my cheeses), the rarer condiments or fresh snack options (almonds, hummus, blueberries) simply must be fresh.
I actually enjoy grocery shopping. I'm backwards that way. I like looking through the variety of produce and fresh foods that spark new meal planning options for the future. Cooking is like painting. You can make anything, you just have to know how the ingredients will work together.
On the other hand, there is no hell like the shopping mall. I did have to make a trip to Bloomingdale's. I have no problem with Bloomies, in particular, I could just as easily have gone to any department store with the same sense of doom. I'm just not a shopper. My mother says that I was clearly born without the gene. Even as a teenager I never went through the shopping spree phase.
When I shop, I shop on a mission. Go in, get the thing, get out. Cover me. On the phone this morning, even my friend commented, "Uh, you don't strike me as a Bloomingdale's kinda gal..." That's only because I'm not. As in grocery shopping, I'm perfectly content to search out the bargains and be done. But as in grocery shopping there are some deal breakers. In this case it's about the health and well being of my eyes. Seeing as I'm stuck with the same two eyeballs for the balance of my life span, I'd like them to be at their best. And for some inexplicable reason, over the years I've tried the full gamut of mascara options, most of which have the annoying tendency to flake or puddle under my eyes by the end of a work day, or worse are those that have actually caused irritation as they melt and blend into my natural skin oils and then seep into my eyes and burn with a vengeance. One specific line of Lancome is the only brand that does neither of the above. I am a loyal investor. 'Nuff said.
I also had to go to The Container Store to get... well, a container. That's it. Two items, two stores. For this, I had to put up with a parking structure full of chipper shoppers out to prove that the California economy is just waiting for them to upchuck the contents of their wallets, and all will be well. Up and down the aisles, stuck behind every Lexus, Hummer, and BMW in the land, my little anonymous jalopy and I coped by blasting Pat Benetar..."WE ARE YOUNG! Heartache to heartache WE STAND! No promises, no demands... LOVE IS A BATTLEFIELD! No-uo-uo-uoooooooo!......"
True to my mojo, once at Bloomie's, I made a bee-line to the Lancome counter, requested the exact mascara that I needed, paid, turned around and exited the building. Same with The Container Store where I was accosted with an invitation to stay and watch a demo on closet organization. Admittedly, our abode could benefit by such information, but if anyone in my family is going to make that happen, it's likely going to be me, and it's not in my budget at the moment which made the whole point moot, so I paid and exited the building.
I am now home. Most women would be giddy about their new cosmetics or nifty organizational tools. Me, I'm having visions of how I'm going to put that pimento to use.
*Image: studentsoftheworld.info
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