...it's Christmastime in the city

Stemshul and I did all of our Christmas shopping last night (mostly). It was a great date...we started out at Costco (a mistake) where we looked around for an hour and a half, and left with 3 presents for 2 people, and one present for us (Jurassic Park Trilogy with free King Kong ticket for $17.49). Then, feeling that we needed to step it up a little, we headed over to Barnes and Noble for a hot cocoa and a cheese pretzel, and to pick up a book and a couple of gift cards. The mall was next on our list before we had to drive to the other side of town to a 2nd Costco so I could pick up some pictures. We deftly avoided the crap peddlers in the center of the mall aisles as we entered Bath and Body Works for some smelly stuff, as Stemshul would say. Smelly stuff in tow, we were back in the Ranger, pointed in the right direction. All of a sudden I see it...the place I need to go to get my $10-$20 exchange gifts...Cost Plus World Market...and that is where it happened.

We pull in to the parking lot and spy a parking spot. Stemshul darts toward the seemingly empty space and we see a lady in the next spot over casually leave her shopping cart in the middle of OUR space. Now, having been a cart boy in the past, this is a special pet peeve of Stemshul's and I just think it's inconsiderate and rude...if you need to take a cart out to your car, you need to put it away too...that's just the way it is. "Oh hell no!" Stemshul yells as he lays on the horn 6 or 4 times. Meanwhile, mortified, I'm yelling at him to stop it. The lady gets out and reluctantly moves the carts so that instead of being in the center of our spot, it is straddling the intersection of four spots. By this time I'm cracking up because, let's face it, that was frickin' funny...and the lady is furiously glaring at us, but she gets in her SUV and drives away. I couldn't believe he did that...no...I could believe he did that, I just couldn't believe that I was laughing about it.

We did find some good exchange gifts there and then made a bee-line to Grandville and to Costco #2. We finished our shopping spree at the Dollar World and then MC Sports to pick up some tools that will be used to butcher game animals for my dad. Then, omitting only a stop at Advance Auto Parts for some yummy cashews, we went home. It really was fun...sometimes you need to get out and mingle with the crazies.