July 25-26, 2022
Playing House
After a slothful Sunday, I awoke early on Monday. Hunger alerted me to the dinner we had missed the night before. Determined to get us moving again, I straightened my office, cooked up some chicken for freezing, and ordered tickets for an afternoon movie. It was another day too beautiful to waste. I admit, though, that our days of doing nothing are very refreshing.
We enjoyed the movie “Elvis,” this time at the Regal Cinema, a multiplex theater adjacent to all the chain stores and restaurants. Although we had prepurchased our tickets, we could not help but notice the ticket booths were closed. The lone gentleman at the door scanned camera and instructed customers without tickets to purchase theirs at concessions. One young, very patient woman handled all the concessions, including assisting customers in selecting seat when purchasing tickets. Behind three other parties, it took us 15 minutes to get to the counter. By the time we retrieved our popcorn and water, the line reached across the lobby, the gentleman at the door simply standing in place. Hmm
The service reminded us of a cheese booth at the farmers’ market which we left without cheese after about 10 minutes of waiting. The U-shaped layout limited the number of people strolling through the booth. The woman at the table inside packed the selected cheese, inviting customers to taste samples before purchasing. Her male partner took payment while selling membership in their frequent buyer club. Sounds efficient, except the woman completed her task in 30 seconds, the man taking 10 minutes, blocking the view of the products and forcing customers to wait. Idaho doesn’t move fast.
Following the show, we stopped at Target to pick up a few items. Discovering that this store does not carry groceries (who knew?), we returned to our neighborhood grocer Fred Meyer for a few food items as well as plastic plates and bowls to reduce paper litter during for our travels.
Leftovers at home, Midsomer Murders, and bed. Easy life.
