Only 48 days left until Christmas ...

With the way that I hate crowds, especially in shopping malls, it's a good thing that I've got most of my "gift getting" done already.  One of the perks of being retired is that I can do my shopping when most people are at work or school.  No crowds; no line-ups; no waiting to part with my money.

Last night was a little different.  I accompanied Margaret on some of her shopping errands.  One place on the list was Costco.  The parking lot was nearly full.  I kept repeating to myself, "chill out, Roy ... it'll be over soon".  This place always seems to be busy.  Looking at the number of shopping carts inside the door, I thought the place must be empty.

Not so.  This store simply has way more carts than it needs.  It was very busy inside.  Looking into some of the carts going by, I knew a lot of Christmas shopping was underway.  After pushing the cart around for a half-hour or so and leaving Margaret at the check-out area, I waited outside to escape the crowds.  Surprisingly, she appeared only a few minutes later, with a full cart and an empty purse.  Costco is very efficient when it comes to their check-outs.