i don't like to go shopping at Target.
this statement has caused many people to gasp and clutch their chests, but i mean it.
many of my girlfriends eagerly visit their local Target store each week, and they proudly know when new products hit the shelves in every department. i suppose they peruse the sunday Times' ads to know what is on sale, and they compose shopping lists accordingly. perhaps they clip some coupons, i'm not really sure, but something about going to what one of my friends recently called "bright, shiny Tar-zhey", is a welcome, regular adventure.
i have one girlfriend who actually goes to Target almost every day. instead of allowing a list to build up with items, she will stop by just to pick up some batteries, or just for saran wrap, or just for some polish remover. i consider this bordering on insanity.
my trips to target are as few as possible. i keep a list of things i am out of and i try to buy them elsewhere or not at all. train not running, need some double A's? this is a good time to talk about why you should not leave the engines trudging around the track while you're out playing in the sandbox. used the last tissues to wipe the baby's nose? here, use a cloth next time. trader joe's, the only grocery store i visit, sells a surprising number of paper, toiletry, and household cleaning products, most of which are better for the environment than what is sold at target, and they are very reasonably priced.
but when i need toddler ballet slippers, a king sized cotton blanket, a roasting pan, some board books, and cottonelle toilet paper (we all have weaknesses), i am forced to submit. even though i will only go first thing in the morning, it is always hard to find a parking place, no matter which of the four Target stores i visit in my general vicinity. i review my list as i enter, i plan my logical route through the aisles, and i always, always get sidetracked. i intend to get only what is on the list, but then i remember! a gift i need to buy, and i start browsing cute little things and i try to make some decisions:
. . . maybe i should get two of those because in another few weeks i have that shower to go to, but should i really spend that much? isn't it cheesy to give a gift from Target? will she ever know? oh maybe i will just get it next time i come in, but if i get it now i won't have to come back for a month, well, it's really not that bad here, in fact i'm really liking these little things, i could treat myself to one too, wait! i was going to stick to my list and not spend all this time being wishy-washy, and now i've stood here for ten minutes, and i haven't gotten anything done . . .
and this can go on at a few different locations throughout the store. i can't get out of there in less than an hour. the first twenty minutes are enjoyable enough, and then i get into a panic at the amount of time i'm spending and the the bill i'm racking up and how i have to plod through the rest of the giant "box store" and i'm all in a tizzy. i hate it.
the only thing worse is going to wal-mart. i'd have to be stranded on an island that had no other stores before i'd go to wal-mart.