Day 180
I am up to my ears in clear, zippered packages of curtains and drapery materials … voile, nylon, cafe curtains, lace, toppers, panels, scarves and valances.
One might think it a nightmare … but no, it’s been my reality for the past 3 days … the nightmare of curtain shopping at … Walmart.
And it’s not that I don’t like Walmart … it’s okay. It’s functional. But I’d like it better in small doses and not 3 days in a row and not at 3 different locations. However, that is what has been going on … 36 hours (or so) of Walmart.
Egad.
However, I do now have curtains up in the kitchen, valances up in the dining room and gauzy tie-backs are up in the family room. Nice! And everything was inexpensive and looks good. Now I just have to contend with the car full of things to take back!
Funny thing about certain big-name chain stores though … I never really realized how much they vary with what they carry per store/location depending on the demographics of the surrounding area.
Store #1, closest to me, was a bit smaller than the store I was used to in Colorado. Had similar stuff … far fewer garden goods than the one back in CO and aside from the large (LARGE) liquor section I didn’t really notice that much of a difference.
Store #2, where I went to yesterday, was a bit further east of me. Being new to the area I don’t know the demographics of the different areas yet … but by what was in this store I venture to say that there were a lot of seamstresses living nearby! There were 4 aisles of sewing machines and fabrics and patterns and threads … trims and buttons and ribbons and needles and sewing items and accessories and gadgets galore! I was amazed. I was impressed. I was astonished. Who knew? And it was Walmart!
And you may be wondering why was I going to all these stores? To find the last 3 panels I needed to match the gauzy tie-backs that I found for the family room. I have 12 windows in that room … no store had all 12 packages … so, I had to collect them as I went from store to store … like a squirrel gathering nuts … hunting them down in the drapery and clearance aisles.
Today I went further west of where I live … to Store #3. And, even though the online shopping item finder said they had none in stock … I left with the final 3 panels and an armload of other items to try out in the dining room. Success! While at this store I thought I’d get more ribbon … but they didn’t have ribbon nor did they have the variety that store #2 had in their “sewing section”. Actually, their sewing section consisted of a shelf or two of threads and some fabric paints next to the crafts and tucked around the corner from the oil cans in the automotive section.
This store, however, was big on party goods … 2 rows of plates and napkins and party favors and goody bags and cups and plasticware and trinkets and wrap. It was amazing!
So, I guess the people out east are the industrious workers … toiling all day at their sewing machines and the people out west are throwing a ton of fun parties and eating off of Dora the Explorer paper goods and the people close to me aren’t doing much of anything out of the ordinary other than drinking a lot!
Hmmm … even though I don’t want to I’ll be Walmart bound tomorrow (to return items) … but I’m half tempted to search out a new store to just see what specialty items they carry!