Another New-Fangled Invention or: the Demise of Youth, Math and all that is Holy

Thank you, peeps, for sharing your amazement at the scanners at Macy’s. It’s good to know that I’m not the only one who buys shoes while also picking up milk or diapers, at vast self-service shoe places or at consignment shops! And if Alicia hasn’t seen them, then my guess is that they haven’t been out very long at all.

Anyway, yesterday there was another “invention”/application of an age old invention that cuaght me off guard. We went to one of those arcade/playland places when our plans to go the museum were thwarted by the 50,000 other people who had the same idea. MAM had a ball in the ball pits (not thinking about germs, not thinking about germs, not thinking about germs…) and eventually we bought some tokens to play skee ball and what not.

When we were done, MAM was ready for a prize or two, and so I counted our tickets and steered her toward the proper display case. You know the one–the one with the plastic balls, snakes, coin purses and yo-yo’s. We were no wherer near the number of tickets needed for anything plush or inflatable, but she was happy with a Koosh-like thingy and a sucker.

On to the Demise of Youth, Math and all that is Holy.
When we reach the counter, I handed my tickets to the kind teen behind the counter and ordered a pink Koosh and a red sucker. He looked at me and said, “Oh, did you already count your tickets or something?”
(Why yes Sparky, yes I did. How could I know what prizes we could get if I didn’t count my ever-loving tickets? I mean, really.)

He then proceeded to place our tickets on a scale. A scale that weighed in tickets. So my ticket collection “weighed” 105–just enough for a koosh and a sucker. Talk about bringing automated/mindlessness to a whole new level.

The kid was shockedt that I had handed him the right number of tickets for my pre-count order.
What can I say? I’m advanced like that.

Calorie-free Cupcakes for a Cause

I have a confession to make–I’m a Facebook Flair sender. It’s true. Those little virtual buttons make me smile, and I like to send them to my friends. And the virtual gifts like candy, cocktails, garden plants and sea creatures?? I send those too. Electrolux has taken this virtual gift concept to a whole new level….VIRTUAL CUPCAKES!!

For every cupcake that you create between now and February 24, Electrolux will donate $1 to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. How sweet is that?? As a bonus, when you log on to send cupcakes, you also get entered to win a fabulous “Red Hot Red” washer/dryer set. Create cupcakes at http://www.electroluxappliances.com/ and while you are there, check out the darling “wear your heart on your sleeve” tshirt designed by Kelly Ripa. Adorable, and all proceeds benefit the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund.

I don’t know about you, but after this weekend of Valentine candy, candy and more candy, virtual sweets are about all I can handle!

This post is part of a Mom Central blog tour.

New Shoes!

I think my winter boots may finally get a bit of a break. This week the last of the snow disappeared, and the ground is drying out. I’ve traded my parka for my leather coat. I won’t say that spring is around the corner, but I feel like there is hope.

Today I realized I needed some new black shoes….the last pair I bought at Meijer while grocery shopping when MAM was an infant. The pair before that? I got at a consignment shop while on vacation in 2004. Yeah..time for new black shoes.

Today we wrapped up a visit with parents, after church we headed to the mall. After lunch, Grandma headed to the playland with MAM and Grandpa took Jr. for a stroll. This left me with time to spend one of my Christmas gift cards. Score!

So I went to Macy’s, to the shoe department. How long has it been since I’ve shopped in a proper shoe department? Let’s say I was slightly more than amazed at the hand held scanners all the salespeople had–they scanned the shoe and could tell in an instant if the size/color I wanted was in stock. Amazing!

Anyway, I took my time, perused a lot, and ended up with a winner. What do you think? And do most proper shoe departments have those hand held scanner things?? I know, I know, I need to get out more…..