Day 9 - Purchase

I'm taking an online class to help me with my writing. Every morning I get an email prompt about the topic for the day and I write what I can/want, with the intent to go deeper than just the basics and to capture the details of my life. You can learn more about the class here: 31 Days For the fun of it, I'm posting on my blog what I wrote for the previous day's assignment.

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Okay. I'll confess. I'm getting hooked.

But let me explain–

I don't think I've ever been an out-of-control shopper. Well, I take that back. I can be sort of out-of-control when it comes to pretty dishes and platters and bowls. And books. I guess I have spent my fair share on books. And, as I think on it, through the years I have spent a pretty penny on home school stuff. Now that is some fun purchasing.

It has been 20 years since we lived in a place that has shopping options. It was Colorado Springs when Doug was doing an Army residency at Ft. Carsen. I had three young boys at home, and on Saturdays Doug would send me off for a few hours to do whatever I wanted; shopping, library, shopping. Whatever I wanted.

That was the last of that easy life. It never occurred to me that there were places to live that didn't have lots of places to choose from to shop. 

In 1992 we left Colorado and we were assigned to Ft. Irwin, California, in the heart of the Mojave Desert. Barstow was the nearest city and it was 30 miles away and at the time didn't have much going for it. The real shopping was in Victorville, another hour away. We started learning how to get by without things because that drive was just too long and hot.

After our Army stint we moved to our current rural Utah town. It is a 2+ hour drive to what I call The Land of Many Stores. We've been here for 17 years and I'll tell you that it can be hard to not be able to jump in the car and run to ___________ to get a ___________. So when we do go to civilization we always have a list of things we need to get. And some things we might not need to buy but we get anyway. Just in case.

Which brings us to my new reality. I've resisted it for many years, but I'm beginning to appreciate online shopping. And, yep. I may even be getting a little bit hooked. The ease. The comfort of shopping on the couch. The stores that are never closed. The thrill of seeing the key in the mail box that lets me know a package has arrived and is in the large box. (For those of you who don't have cluster boxes, you won't understand that thrill.)

They've just made it wa-a-a-a-ay too easy.