When I stopped working in January, we decided to keep our nanny, Amy, for one half-day a week. Wito loved her, we loved her, and I especially loved the thought of having four hours to myself every Thursday. Pedicures! Shopping! The Beach!
Well, it turns out that Amy Day usually consists of me visiting the Holy Trinity of Motherhood – Target, Costco and the grocery store. Fun. And y’all, I have a confession to make. I hate Target. To me, it’s just an huge room full of crap. I know! How could I think such a thing?! People LOVE Target! The knick knacks! And fake leather stuff! Cheaply-made frames! Cheesy greeting cards! I’m sorry. HATE.
Luckily, I park right next to the door where the toiletries and kitchen supply stuff are located and it’s a race against the clock from start to finish. Lotion, toothpaste, Q-tips, Ziploc bags, Daisy razors, shaving cream. Check, check and check. If there were a Supermarket Sweep – Target Toiletries Edition, I would be world champion.
Costco gives me mild-to-moderate claustrophobia. The crowds, the gigantic carts, 67-pound jars of jelly beans that I want to dive into, etc. Luckily, I only buy Wito’s formula and baby food and I’m gone.
Technically, these errands shouldn’t take too long, but considering we live in a beach community, I am forced to get on the 405 highway (the collective groan from my Southern California readers is deafening), and drive to 2 separate cities to visit these frightening places. It’s like driving to the DMV every Thursday – the journey is usually just as shitty as the destination.
A couple of days ago, I was traveling down a major street relatively close to my home (405 – not involved, yo), when I noticed tons of construction at an upcoming intersection. I craned my neck to get a look while passing by and saw the words COSTCO – NOW OPEN. Could it be?! A Costco within 15 minutes of my home?
I immediately called D, who was attending a swanky lunch with clients in Los Angeles.
“Honey! Guess what! There’s a new COSTCO! So much closer to us! I don’t have to deal with the shitty 405! YAY! YAY! YAY!”
“Wow. Good for you, hon. I’ve gotta go now. With clients, you know.”
“I know. I’m so sorry to bug, it’s just really exciting! Bye!”
Wito and I had an hour to kill, so we maneuvered a U-turn, and made our way back to the new COSTCO, NOW OPEN! And it was a beauty. No people, no lines, the newness of it all. I knew it wouldn’t last, so we took a collective inhale, browsed the 96-packs of granola bars, and enjoyed the leisurely pace.
As we left with our cardboard box of goodies, I noticed another new building in the same lot at the other end of the new construction. I backed up the cart, squinted my eyes and there it was in big red letters. SUPER TARGET. Is this a dream?! A Target! Next to the Costco! With no highways involved?
And guess what. It didn’t end there. A new Whole Foods was on the other side.
The Holy Trinity of Motherhood was complete. And I was Moses.
I called D again.
(breathless from the mental frenzy) “D! D! OH MY GOD! A WHOLE FOODS, TARGET AND COSTCO ALL HERE! I AM COMPLETE! I AM COMPLEEEEEEEEETE!”
(silence)
“HELLO?”
“Um. Are you listening to yourself? What has happened to you, love? ”
“HUH?”
“Let me get this straight. You are about to pass out from sheer elation because you found a new suburban strip mall complete with stores you hate?”
“YES!”
Sweet Jebus, people. I need help.
UPDATE: In my mentally-frenzied state, I made a mistake. It is a new Target, not Super Target. My bad.
180/360
June 22, 2007 at 10:44 pmWhen faced with the choice of Target, Walmart or K-Mart- I would choose Target any day of the week! The store I go to is fairly new and really nice compared to some of the older ones I’ve seen in different parts of the country.
I feel the same way about Costco as I do about eating at buffets. Who needs that much food? It’s ridiculous, unless you have 12 kids.
And well… I’m a Whole Foods junkie. I love that store!
Cricket
June 23, 2007 at 12:58 amOh sweet jesus, they are building a Super Target?? Are you kidding?? Being I am a poor student with no money, I live off of the 50 dollar gift certificates to Target from my Mother that I get once a month, so a Super Target is like heaven! I must search for this…
Uh oh, what if I made up the “super” part? I think it’s a super target…
BeachMama
June 24, 2007 at 4:33 amWelcome to the dark side. Truth be told, I can’t stand Walmart (we don’t have Target here in Canada, yet.) and only go when I need to stock up on name brand supplies for cheap. As for Costco, I love it! Yep, I am one of the few that can leave there with exactly what was on my list and not spend a fortune. I go at opening in the morning and am gone before the samplers are out and the peeps that just stand in the middle of the aisle reading a book arrive. It is great.
I will say though that if I had a nanny for a half day, there is no way I would be at a store ;).
erin rae
June 24, 2007 at 7:13 amI must say, I love me some Target and Costco action. However, I can’t stand the crowds, so strategically time my visits.
I second the rotisserie chicken – it is my favorite. They are always pulling them fresh out of the oven, and it’s like $5. I also love the lettuce – the giant thing of organic mixed greens for almost no money. Nice. I’m also a sucker for their big bags of frozen fruit, great for smoothies.
For some reason, I get a perverse thrill buying huge jars of food, as though I’m a 6 year old playing “restaurant”, but when entertaining, they tend to come in handy – I’ve got a gallon of artichoke hearts in my fridge that are almost gone… and a pantry stocked with yummy kalamata olives and jarred bruschetta mix.
Seek out the goodness Whoorl!
Darren McLikeshimself
June 25, 2007 at 10:04 amWell, you’re dumb-dumb and I hate you!
I’m sorry. I take it all back. I just get really emotional when someone talks shit about Target.
Do you promise not to be too hard on our Target stuff when you come to visit (We ARE going to be BFFs in a couple of weeks, right?), because that’s seriously all we can afford right now.
Emily Ann
June 25, 2007 at 12:02 pmI think if you would have added H&M to that Holy Trinity (is that possible?), I would have passed out from sheer joy. Also a Nordstroms too. eeeeeeek!
erin rae
June 25, 2007 at 12:47 pmAhhh – I totally forgot to mention the delectable chunky tapenade and hummus by the gallon ;-)
Daisy
June 27, 2007 at 4:25 pmOh, the simple pleasures of motherhood! now that the stores you need but hate are closer to you, it leaves more “Me Time” for you to use. For. You. And only you.
Mrs. Flinger
June 27, 2007 at 8:51 pmOh, now just wait until you call him up drooling over the new minivan. Oh, good god, help me….
justJENN
July 6, 2007 at 9:03 pmHey! My crappy cheesy cards are sold at Target! ~weepy~