Mission Accomplished

Well, mostly accomplished. Ran the errands in the big(ger) city and out at the base. Got the car washed and gassed up. I’m replenished and re-supplied with food and other consumables for the next ten days or so; I won’t go hungry. The car is bright and shiny for the next 12 hours. The base library didn’t have a copy of William Manchester’s The Last Lion on the shelves but will get it for me by the first of next week through an inter-library loan.

I DO have a couple of nits to pick, however.

I stopped by the Clovis mall to pick up some note cards (those ten-to-a-box plus envelopes thingies I use to write my youngest son) and browse the bookstore, a favorite past time of mine. There used to be a stationary store in the mall, Hallmark, I think. No more. There also used to be a B. Dalton’s in the mall, too. No more. There are still tee-shirt shops, jewelry stores, a Penney’s, Sears, Bealls, and Dilliards, none of whom have stationary. I can’t believe Clovis, a town of 30,000+ people doesn’t have either a book store or a stationary store. I went to Walgreen’s, Office Max, and another store recommended to me by the folks at Office Max, and had no luck finding suitable note cards. Un-flipping-believable!

In Clovis’ defense, there may well be a bookstore or stationary store I don’t know about. But the folks at Office Max didn’t know of any, either.

The Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES, other wise known as the Base Exchange, or BX) came to my rescue, with a wide range of suitable note cards. I’m sure there are less than 3,000 people who shop at the base (active duty, families, and retirees), and that’s being pretty damned generous. Go figure.

OK. Got THAT off my chest! It was a great day, otherwise. Today was brisk and cool (mid-60s), nearly wind-free with nary a cloud in the sky, just perfect for tooling around town and country in the car sans top. A bright ‘n’ shiny clean car, I might add.