Last weekend my baby girl, Cameron, turned 15. I took the weekend off of "un-named retailer", we rented a car and headed for Princeton, New Jersey. I had not been out of Manhattan except for some Saturday train trips to the beach since last May when I went to St. Louis for my brother's wedding. Everyone else in the family has been on several long weekend or weeks away visiting friends or on business trips, so they have all tasted suburbia or small town living within recent memory.
After we checked into our hotel we headed out for a lovely dinner downtown and then to our ultimate destination, Wal-Mart. I have not been to a Wal-Mart in the year and half since I left Colorado. Now, this is not a conversation about the pros and cons of the mega store. This is just an insight from someone who has spent her life having access to the convenience and low cost that the store has to offer. I got my shopping cart, took off my coat, and began the fun! We started in cosmetics and spent a lot if time browsing nail polish and make-up concealers before heading onto shampoo and toothpaste. The only litmus test for prices that I conducted was L'Oreal hair color. It was $7.95 per box, which is the very low end of the price point that that product goes for. After that, I put whatever I wanted in the basket knowing that I would never find it in Manhattan for less. We did not frivolously fill our basket, but I did buy things like a three way outlet plug, a pair of pajama pants, a picture frame, birthday wrapping paper, Nestle's semi-sweet chocolate, and computer paper which I knew we needed but that I had waited to buy, or didn't buy, because I was looking for the odds and ends at a decent price. When we checked out I piled my goods on the counter with glee. The person at the register was a man in his mid 50's who looked like life had passed him by and his words were as empty as his gaze, "Did you find everything alright?" he asked and I replied, "I had the most wonderful shopping experience. I found everything I was looking for and some things that I didn't even realize that I needed. Thank you." I told him what had brought us to Princeton on this rainy January night and then he began telling me that he had lived in Germany for a number of years and that his life in Princeton was just a brief stop on his life's journey as he raised his three daughters. Wal-Mart never disappoints
Now you would think that living in Manhattan shopping for clothes would be a joy. Variety is abundant. The latest trends and fashions are available. But.... the masses. There is always a crowd. Your idea of holiday madness is every day in the city. Some days you just want to buy a pair of jeans and some t-shirts. So we headed to Kohl's. Cameron needed new jeans and tops. We left the store with clothing essentials for Cameron to get through the spring. I'm not so naive as to think that she isn't going to have many, many special occasions, but the jeans and t's are taken care of with no overcrowded fitting rooms and impossibly long check-out lines.
We had lunch at Panera. I live across the street from two delis that are both insanely inexpensive (by New York standards). I can get a foot long Italian for $6.50 at the Dominican bodega or a turkey/avocado sandwich at the Indian corner store for $6.00. But there is something to be said about knowing that if I go into the Panera at Southwest Plaza in Denver or a Panera in Princeton, NJ the Chicken Frontaga is going to be exactly what you expect it to be.
Ok, I can hear my locavore daughter and Manhattan friends railing against what I've written. Hey, I get it. I understand "viva la difference". I live it and I love it. But this blog is about stepping back into the ease of living outside of Manhattan.. And there is no denying that living outside of New York City is easy living. Access to a variety of products and services at reasonable prices is at your doorstep and there is a LOT to be said for that.
It was foggy and cold on Sunday when we came back into the city, so Manhattan looked dark and dreary. Jeff dropped us off at the apartment and he drove the few blocks to the Hertz garage to drop off the car. I love living in New York, but on this particular night coming "home" was hard.
