Date: 2014-11-30
To: ÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂThe Idea was a SuccessÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂ
Miles today: 0.0

122 Days left to gear-up for the AT trek. Success! Okay, this is for the male shoppers out there...Have you ever wanted to buy things but knew that if you did you would be in the dog house and cut off for a long time to come? Well. I like to purchase my own things. I like to touch the items. I like to play with them ¢ sort of test them. I like to read the tags and understand the technical aspects of what I am about to purchase. This however does not lend itself to Christmas or any other ¢special event¢ in which a gift is forth coming. So as my wife and I ate breakfast this morning I made the strategic decision that today was the day to try something daring. I was going to go to my local outfitters; although as discussed in earlier journal entries they are not so local. Anyway, I said to my wife I would like to make a trip to the outfitters and buy some small items that are kind of hard to describe let alone get just the right one particularly if I am not exactly sure which brand of an item I would like. I went on to explain that I could bring the merchandise home and she could wrap them and give them to me for Christmas as if she had actually purchased them herself. Think how really great it would be! The stuff would be exactly what I wanted and she would not have to go through the pains of driving out to the outfitters in shopping traffic and then have to go roaming about the store looking for the items I had described let alone try and locate a store clerk to ask for assistance. Particularly in light of the e-mail I had received stating that ¢Black Friday¢ will be only on certain items and only this weekend at my local outfitters. I again reemphasize the point that I would hand over the bags of selected goods and she could wrap them and give them to me for Christmas. Then to seal the deal I said that I would probably forget about the objects by the end of the week anyway so it would be a surprise on Christmas morning! She just sat there with one of those expressions on her face. You know, ¢are you kidding me look?¢ After what seemed forever she said: ¢Yah that might work.¢ I was taken aback... I started to backtrack... her Yah was one of those women Yahs... Yah, look-out fool you are about to get hit by a freight train! So, not to look a gift horse in the mouth I decided that I had said enough and that if I ventured out any further that freight train would hit me. I just thanked her for the very nice breakfast and left the table to take a shower and take off to the outfitters. Upon my arrival I went up the stairs to look for some compression bags and a pack liner. There she was. Nicole, helping another customer with a tent. I waved to her and she waved back. I continued to look for some items and when Nicole had finished she came over to help. I asked her several questions about compression bags and she ended up convincing me that what I needed were dry bags. I asked her for some more items as well as her recommendations. She willingly provided all the great guidance as she had done in the past. I paid for everything left the store and returned home where my wife was waiting for me with a look of curiosity on her face. One of those ¢so, what did you buy? And how much did it cost? Looks. I handed over the bag of merchandise for her inspection with the words: ¢You can give me all of these things for Christmas.¢ ¢And consider your shopping for me done¢.... ¢Not so fast...what did I buy you?¢ ¢Well four pairs of hiking crew socks ¢ ONE PAIR WAS FREE!¢ 4 pair of liner socks... I was now getting the look of ¢How hard can it be to buy socks?¢ ¢Walmart has packages of socks.¢ I went on...¢A Highland jacket, 2 13-liter dry sacks, and 1 pack liner.¢ ¢Alright,¢ she said as she took the bag of merchandise from my hand and disappeared into her forbidden room. I can only surmise that my idea worked out well for both of us: I got what I wanted in merchandise and she did not have to fight people, the elements, and traffic. All remains bliss at the Butler household despite the skepticism. From both of us: Happy Thanksgiving to all.