I have a feeling that this is going to be a very random and rambling post. Several things happened today, but there was nothing that really stuck out.

For starters, I left the yard today for the first time since Wednesday afternoon. The drive wasn’t terribly bad (although our road is drifted over in several spots), especially once one reached the highway. Any paved road was in good shape. That was a Good Thing.

After church was over, we did our ritual of stopping at Willie’s to grab some groceries. Sunday after church is basically our traditional ‘weekly trip to the grocery store.’ We always run into folks there and sometimes you end up chatting longer than you were in to shop. Anyway, I won’t really digress there much. While at Willie’s, I picked up a copy of a local paper (not the Morris paper to which I have a subscription, of course) that had a small story in it about Beth taking over a teaching position. It wasn’t a bad article from the small town newspaper standpoint, but it could’ve been written better. Ah well. There was nothing libelous or nasty, so that’s always a Good Thing (especially in a small town paper).

So we got home and put away anything that needed refrigeration, then ate a small lunch (was a lettuce salad and egg salad sandwich for me; Beth ate some sort of processed chicken patty — I don’t ask, she’s pregnant) and changed clothes (not necessarily in that order). Anyway, we then got in the car again and made an Alexandria pilgrimage. Today’s trip was multi-faceted. We first hit the mall to look for some baby things and for me to take a look at some new black shoes (which I didn’t buy). then the trip focused on Fleet Farm where some wiper blade refills (for the car) and cat food were in order. Fleet Farm carries the special ‘Science Diet’ hairball control food (for the cheapest I’ve found it around) in the 17.5 pound bag.

After leaving there and replacing the one wiper blade insert, we made the Wal-Mart pilgrimage. This is both a blessing and a curse. I really *do* like the Super Wal-Mart that’s now been open for almost a year. But there are certain aspects I do not like about it. Most notably the people. And the prices. Being the bargain hunter I sort of am, I pay attention to prices on some items, and I will guarantee that the smiley face isn’t always the price beater. Especially on certain items. And super Wal-Mart doesn’t carry the variety the old store used to (for some items). Anyway, that’s a digression, but it’s actually forced us to go to Target more often (which isn’t a Bad Thing) for things we used to find at Wal-Mart. Regardless, for staple items like paper towels, toilet paper, dog food, etc., it’s the place to go.

One piece of advice, though. Don’t ever shop for produce at Wal-Mart. At least not unless you’re in a bind. Perhaps my palate is a bit highbrow for Wal-Mart produce, but the prices aren’t all that great, and the quality is definitely not all that great. Don’t get me wrong — it is produce and it can be consumed without concern, but I will take a local grocery store produce department over Wal-Mart any day. Even if it costs more, the quality is far superior. I will pay for that.

So anyway, we end up at Wal-Mart and ended up (for the first time I can ever remember) essentially filling up two carts of items. Granted, the hundred pounds of dog food, 30 pounds of cat litter, toilet paper, and two cases of Sprite filled one cart itself. But we got a load of canned goods (‘staple’ soups like Potato, Vegetable Beef, etc., and other items), and that took up most of the other cart. Neither cart was overflowing, either. But, we should be good for at least a month on several of those items.

Anyway, we got home and I unloaded and put everything away. Our cabinets are now stocked full of stuff and organized (a Good Thing), and that a Happy Matt makes.

So I didn’t really get much else done today, but there’s always tomorrow (or Tuesday) for that stuff. Tomorrow will be back to the regular grind…which should be a welcome change after the last few days. It’s going to be a long day, but that’s alright too.

I seem to think that I’m forgetting to write about something I intended to. Oh yeah. I remember now — Ten Funny Gadgets! My personal favorite *has* to be the DVD Rewinder (it’s the top item on the page). Great stuff!

Anyway, I managed to do some other looking around online and tagged a few things on del.icio.us. I’m getting more familiar with how to use it more efficiently to find other random things. Perhaps more on that in the next few days.

In the meantime, thanks for reading this historic first week of posting with the new medium. Until next time…

–MZ