Let Me Give You My Card...or not

When: Friday, April 20; 8:30 a.m.

Where: The Grocery Store...not the usual grocery store. The other one.

Why: With the sun finally making an appearance and the truck deciding to run for a while following its latest round of repairs, The Sheep looked forward to a trip over to her favorite discount store for some low-priced retail therapy. However, the store doesn't seem to open until 9:00 so there was time to kill. The Sheep decided to go to The Grocery Store Where She Usually Doesn't Shop to pick up the weekly groceries while she waited. She doesn't really care for this store because they require a special "rewards" card to qualify for any kind of sale pricing and, while she is usually a big fan of sales gimmicks, she figures that the cost of producing these cards may be impacting the overall price of goods in the store. (And probably wiping out one or two natural resources in the process.) But good intentions are only as good as The Sheep's motivational level and she was really too lazy to travel to two shopping centers in one morning.

We pick up the story just as The Sheep has finished off-loading her cart and is getting ready to pay for her purchases:

Soon To Be Perplexed Cashier: I'll just need to see your Rewards Card, ma'am.

Sheepish Annie: I don't have one.

Now Perplexed Cashier: Pardon?

SA: I don't have one.

NPC: Oh...well, that's OK! I'm sure we have it on file. Let me just have your name...

SA: No. I don't have one.

NPC: Did you lose it?

SA: I don't have one.

NPC: Um...er...do you want one? You can apply right here! (now beginning to make some sense of a world that has been momentarily turned upside down) You can start saving immediately! Just let me get you a form...

SA: No, that's OK. I really don't want one.

(the two are now joined by the store manager who is assisting with bagging for the morning)

NPC: She doesn't have a card!

Bagging Manager: That's OK. Just get her name. We have it on file.

SA: I don't have one.

BM: (speaking slowly and a bit more loudly) That is OK, Ma'am! We can help you with that!

SA: I've never had one. But, that's OK. I'm all set. Really.

BM: (spluttering just a bit) Well...um...we can....it's really a simple thing to get one for you...

SA: No, that's OK.

NPC: (quietly, to the store manager) I just thought you should know about this. You know...how she doesn't have a card?

BM: ...doesn't have a card?! Well, I guess you just ring her through.

NPC: Without a card?

SA: It doesn't make me a bad person! I'm still a good person! I just don't have a card, is all!

BM: Oh, no, that's not it at all! It's just that the cashier is new and...well, frankly this doesn't happen very often.

SA: I can see that.


Sheesh. I almost applied for the card just to make everyone feel better. I have this image in my head of the poor cashier in therapy trying to find some meaning in her life after learning that there are people in the world who do not bear the Card Of Dubious Savings. I came to my senses, though, and made my way to my favorite discount store before I did anything crazy.

The knitting and spinning portions of my existence have progressed slowly and there is really little to show at this point. I blended a bit more of the lamb and silk and have almost spun up a full bobbin of it. There needs to be frequent rest breaks in this little project since there is something about little lambikins that gives me the occasional hive. Nothing major and I suspect that the problem will be remedied once the little wispies have been spun under control If not, then whatever it grows up to be will end up as a gift to someone less fragile and delicate than myself.

The striped sock hasn't really grown all that much since last we met. No worries there, though. I have class next week so there will be some knitting accomplished there in an attempt to fend off the boredom that comes from working with a project group that doesn't really want your input or anything. Heck, I can probably finish that sock and a Fair Isle sweater to boot. Well...if I could actually knit something in Fair Isle, that is. I was just trying to demonstrate how much time I have to kill in the class is all. Don't be looking for me to crank out a complicated sweater with more that one color involved anytime in the near future, for crying out loud.

I've also played with the drop spindle off and on in an attempt to finish up more of The Shire Blend. Pretty, but slow going. And you've already seen it so I'll wait until I have more on the spindle before I force anyone to sit through the "Hey, Look! The Sheep Can Spin On A Drop Spindle Show" again.

All in all, it's been a pretty nice way to spend the last gasp of my spring vacation. The sun is shining, the temperatures are mild and I found some delightfully low-priced t-shirts with three-quarter sleeves at the discount store. It's all good!

Unless you ask for my card. Then we have a problem.

SA