Day 1050

Does anyone else think that shopping has become way too difficult? I try my best to buy everything online, because going to a store is usually an exercise in futility. Today I needed some new shoes. Although I have nicer shoes for weddings, funerals, and important meetings, my go-to shoes for all other occasions are a well worn pair of Sperry Top-Siders. Dallas has a big Sperry flagship store, so I thought that would be the best place to find a replacement for my worn out shoes. The store had hundreds of different Sperry designs. You'd think they'd surely have what I wanted: a pair of the original boat shoes Paul Sperry designed in 1935. This style has never changed and are still quite popular. When I asked for a pair, I was told they were a special order item.

Having failed in the shoe department, I moved on to the Apple store and got a Lightning-to-30 Pin adapter, so I could use my old devices and chargers with my new iPhone. Why didn't the geniuses at the Genius Bar tell me that this adapter will only work if your phone doesn't have a case? What is that all about? Everyone has a case for their phone, The adapter was worthless and I had to make a second trip to the store to return it.

Dash didn't do much better than I did today. We waited forever to get his antigen shot today, because it appeared that nobody showed up for work at the vet. They were very shorthanded. Maybe I should have just waited until tomorrow to do all these things. The stars clearly weren't aligned today. Even my online purchases went awry. I though I'd found a place in New York that was still shipping, because the shopping cart dialog box said my order would arrive on Thursday. Five hours after I placed my order, I received an e-mail telling me that the store was actually closed because of the hurricane and that my order would be processed when they reopened again. Oh, well. So much for believing websites.

I shouldn't complain though. The weather is still perfect. The dogs and I had a great walk this morning. We saw our first pelicans of the season. Every year, hundreds of American White Pelicans return to our lake for the Winter. I find the predictability of migratory birds reassuring. Seeing a bird return year after year is much more pleasant than learning that an old high school friend has died, or that you've been fired. Too much in life is unpredictable. Especially shopping.

Puppies are today's Dalmatians of the Day

Watch of the Day