Just A Minute
I firmly believe that there must be some subliminal message permeating the air at stores like Home Depot and Lowe's. Every time I go in there--even if it's only for "just a minute"--I get sucked into a time warp and can't get out for at least an hour.
Today, I ran by the local HD to pick up some chair leg felt pads for our new kitchen bar stools. That was all I planned to get--it was a very short list! As soon as I got out of the car, I happened to notice the pansies sitting outside the nursery area. It was a bright, sunny day, and the pansies reminded me that I had planned to plant my lettuce seed this afternoon. But I needed some soil for my window boxes. I made a quick, mental note to pick up a bag of soil after I got the pads.
As I entered the store, I turned toward the nursery. Before I got to the soil, I passed the seeds. Now, I had already purchased several varieties of lettuce seed, but a new one caught my eye. So I dropped it into my basket.
I heaved the huge bag of soil into the cart and headed for the carpet pads. But before I got out the nursery doors, I spied some vegetables plants on a rack--right next to the aisle where you couldn't miss them. (Smart marketers, those HD folks.) I did a quick once over of the plants and decided to pick up a broccoli seedling. After all, I've had trouble raising broccoli from seed in the past, so I thought it couldn't hurt to get just one.
As I went further, my route took me past the paint section. There was a display of caulk right by the aisle (again!), which reminded me that I finished the tube of caulk while caulking my daughter's bookcases the other night. So I grabbed some of that before continuing on.
I finally made it to the carpet pads, which are usually on the end of the aisle. However, this particular display was out of the type of pad I needed, so I had to walk further down the aisle to the main display. I found the right pads, but en route back to the main drag I passed the cabinet hardware--and stopped. You see, I'd been thinking about getting new knobs and drawer pulls for my daughter's desk to tie in the bookcases with the desk better. (The bookcases have cabinet doors on the bottom.) So I spent a few more minutes checking out the knob and pull designs, colors, and sizes. I knew it would be impractical to buy new ones today, since I didn't have the measurements I needed nor my daughter with me. But that didn't stop me from wasting time looking.
Fortunately, when I got to the checkout line, it moved quickly, or I might have ended up with another magazine in my cart. I did get stalled at the register, though, when the scanner kept malfunctioning. Good thing I was already too far away from the product display to grab anything else, like a pack of batteries or another flashlight.
When I left the HD building, the bright sunlight hit me squarely in the eyes. It was like a jolt that woke me up--awakened from my "HD-induced slumber" where I roam the aisles aimlessly, "just looking" and imagining wonderful new projects to be added to my list.
And I'm sure that's just what HD intended.
Today, I ran by the local HD to pick up some chair leg felt pads for our new kitchen bar stools. That was all I planned to get--it was a very short list! As soon as I got out of the car, I happened to notice the pansies sitting outside the nursery area. It was a bright, sunny day, and the pansies reminded me that I had planned to plant my lettuce seed this afternoon. But I needed some soil for my window boxes. I made a quick, mental note to pick up a bag of soil after I got the pads.
As I entered the store, I turned toward the nursery. Before I got to the soil, I passed the seeds. Now, I had already purchased several varieties of lettuce seed, but a new one caught my eye. So I dropped it into my basket.
I heaved the huge bag of soil into the cart and headed for the carpet pads. But before I got out the nursery doors, I spied some vegetables plants on a rack--right next to the aisle where you couldn't miss them. (Smart marketers, those HD folks.) I did a quick once over of the plants and decided to pick up a broccoli seedling. After all, I've had trouble raising broccoli from seed in the past, so I thought it couldn't hurt to get just one.
As I went further, my route took me past the paint section. There was a display of caulk right by the aisle (again!), which reminded me that I finished the tube of caulk while caulking my daughter's bookcases the other night. So I grabbed some of that before continuing on.
I finally made it to the carpet pads, which are usually on the end of the aisle. However, this particular display was out of the type of pad I needed, so I had to walk further down the aisle to the main display. I found the right pads, but en route back to the main drag I passed the cabinet hardware--and stopped. You see, I'd been thinking about getting new knobs and drawer pulls for my daughter's desk to tie in the bookcases with the desk better. (The bookcases have cabinet doors on the bottom.) So I spent a few more minutes checking out the knob and pull designs, colors, and sizes. I knew it would be impractical to buy new ones today, since I didn't have the measurements I needed nor my daughter with me. But that didn't stop me from wasting time looking.
Fortunately, when I got to the checkout line, it moved quickly, or I might have ended up with another magazine in my cart. I did get stalled at the register, though, when the scanner kept malfunctioning. Good thing I was already too far away from the product display to grab anything else, like a pack of batteries or another flashlight.
When I left the HD building, the bright sunlight hit me squarely in the eyes. It was like a jolt that woke me up--awakened from my "HD-induced slumber" where I roam the aisles aimlessly, "just looking" and imagining wonderful new projects to be added to my list.
And I'm sure that's just what HD intended.
posted by Tif at 9:04 PM
1 Comments:
Now that's where we're different. I'm that way in the quilt/fabric store and the bookstore. I can get in and out of Home Depot in an instant - but I don't build anything and have no garden! (I thought you would have gotten your fill of drawer/cabinet pulls and knobs when you were up here!)
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