A Morning Stroll Includes an Unanticipated Stop at a Store

I took this photo today of two of my fellow shoppers.

Went for a walk this morning and found myself near a Target so popped in to buy a few things — been craving Cool Ranch Doritos recently, don’t know why.

It brought back old times to be in a store again. Shelves were full of items, there were people walking about and I have a bank account sizable enough to support a bit of shopping on a whim. Nice.

Last week I went to one of my two favorite Berkeley book stores (hello Pegasus downtown.) That was exhilarating. Rows and rows of books. Browsing. A discovery. A purchase. A satisfied walk home. Very nice.

Anyhoo (as they say at MIT) I found a few items and shuffled over to the check out area. I was at the end of a medium length queue. Given how long it's been since I've had to stand in line, I wasn’t at all bothered by having to wait. Well, not at first. Then I was made quite aware of the downside of public spaces and the presence of my fellow human beings who are not relations or of close acquaintance. First there was the sight of an obese woman checking out who had procured three six-packs of 16 oz. Diet Cokes. It’s akin, really, to seeing an obviously intoxicated person buying bottles of scotch. We see the cause of the problem and that it's not getting better anytime soon. Wasn’t for me to worry about however. There were self checkout “stations” but I eschew them believing they lead to fewer jobs for people who are most in need of employment. One gent in line was not so averse and he asked if he could “squeeze past” me. God, I hate this. There was — never is — any “squeezing” going on. Cousin to this phrase is “can I sneak past you?” No of course you can’t because you just announced that you’re trying to get past me so you won’t be "sneaking" at all. Let's all agree on, "excuse me" from now on.

Back to queueing…..I was soon reminded of one aspect of being in public spaces that I’ve come to hate the most — and goodness me I’ve written about this a million times here before — people yakking on their cell phones. Yes, a seemingly pleasant woman got in line behind me chattering away saying that she was now “into drinking cocoanut water.” I’ll never accustom myself to people blathering on phones while in close proximity of others.

The line moved quickly until a 200 year-old-woman got to the checkout stand. Bless her heart for being so self-sufficient. However…She dutifully waited until her purchase had been rung up before bothering to get her wallet out of her purse. A purse, mind you, that was the size of a 1956 Buick. This took awhile as evidently her wallet was buried beneath debris from the demolition of a high rise. Once the wallet was found it took an inordinate time for her to pull the required bills out of it. She closely inspected several before deciding which to offer the clerk. When her change and receipt were presented Mrs. Methuselah required our further patience as she painstakingly put everything where it belonged. At last she was ready to mosey along and free the checkout stand for the next customer.

The last person before me was dispatched post haste and yours truly had the great thrill of saying yes I needed a bag, then sticking my card into the machine, rejecting the kind offer of cash back, then entering my pin. Approved, the machine told me. Like I said, I'm not utterly destitute. I was on my way.

When I entered the store there was an employee at the door who — I presume accidentally — good morning’d me twice. Rather than point out the superfluous good morning I had responded in kind both times. She made up for it by not good byeing me at all as I exited.

I very much enjoyed my walk. After an overly long heat spell here (one day is overly long for me) we are now ensconced in fog. There is — as so often in these trying times — a however to accompany this news. The many fires raging around the area continue to send smoke our way making breathing hazardous to one’s health. The air was clean enough -- according to the Air Quality Index -- when I left the house but by the time I returned home it was as though one were at a campfire. Glad I got some time in the great outdoors.

Thus concludes the dramatic tale of my morning walk that included an unplanned trip to a store. Am now the proud owner of a bag of Dorito's Cool Ranch chips. Huzzah!