Remember the Rules, Part II
A Few Days Later…
Shopping with Mom. Three days of the Batan Shopping March. (However, my mom doesn’t quite think that my nickname for the endless pre-Christmas shopping is really that funny.)

Remember the Rules

A week or so ago, S and I headed to Home Depot to look at paint swatches. We picked out a whole slew, and then S bought some painting supplies for her new house. We hopped back in the car, and as I sped through the yellow light, I said, “I thought we’d stop to look at shower curtains.”
“But I made a purchase!” she wailed. “I want a drink.”

Travel Trials and Tribulations

Monday morning, I hit the button on the side of my cell thinking it would let me snooze until 4:55 a.m. as I had a 6:30 flight. I unfortunately learned that doing that on my phone cancels the alarm. Imagine my surprise as I opened my eyes with super-human effort to discover that it was 5:25 a.m. Mind racing. 20-minute drive to airport. Rental car needs gas. Rental car to return. I didn’t even know where to begin. Well, getting dressed, putting on some make-up (um, can we say no coffee means no brain) and then running out the door was the start of the race. I did, however, forget to turn off both the water and the heat. Gas station. Arrive at the airport’s rental car return. 6:10 a.m. As the attendant came toward me, I was running toward the airport yelling, “I’m about to miss my flight. Charge it on my credit card.” I ran to the airport and up to security where I cut in front of everyone. No one said anything to me, so they must have seen the crazed look in my eyes. Once through the checkpoint, I ran barefoot to my gate. I did make the plane. Golden girl.

Thursday morning, Tribulations Take II. Golden girl, not so much.
I wake up and wonder what time it is since I am not nearly as tired as I think I should be. My cell alarm is set for 4:15 a.m. since we have a 6:25 a.m. flight. I check my cell. 6:25 a.m. I am sitting in IAH still wondering how all this happened. I never did hear the alarm, and that’s just not like me. We got on a 9 a.m. flight to Houston, but our next flight doesn’t leave until 6:20 p.m. CST. Thank goodness for the President’s Club. Killing time in style with free wireless and free drinks.

Tis The Season
To Be Shopping
Fa La La La La La La La La

Shopping With Mom
This is shopping as a mission. You have goals, and you get out early. You spend all day going from store to store. You don’t need lunch; sugarless gum will do. At the end of the day, you can say, “Veni, vidi, visa.” (I came, I saw, I shopped.)

Shopping with S
This is shopping as an adventure, as a game. The game usually starts around noon and is played something like this: You go to a store. If someone makes a purchase, the next stop is a bar for a drink. After a few rounds, the entire game becomes more interesting. At the end of the day, you don’t need to say much, you usually end up somewhere singing karaoke.

T-shirts seen in NE Iowa

You say “alcoholic” like it’s a bad thing.
It may be just a six-pack for you, but for me it’s group therapy.