A blog for Baby Boomers

I tried over and over. I kept going back, even when I knew I shouldn’t. It reminds me of the Luther Vandross song entitled: “I won’t let you do that to me” The lyrics in part are:

“Wait a minute
This is where I draw the line
Tell me what`s got into you
Cuz apparently you`ve lost your mind
Repetitious fault just can`t be overlooked
So I`m reading you your rights in case
You misunderstood

 The first time, a mistake
Second time, a bad decision
Third time, there won`t be one
Cuz I won`t let you do that to me”

It all started like this:

1)      I have expensive taste.  I like to spend money. I also save but I am a stickler for customer service.

2)     Life changed when we retired to a lower cost of living. No need to spend fortunes on high end shoes, purses etc. Besides, people advised me to be thrifty and make it easier on my husband.

But it got difficult on two occasions when something  just didn’t seem right.

On the first occasion, I noticed two men following me everywhere as I shopped. Everywhere I went, they were there.  The second time there was someone lurking around my car in the parking lot as I was leaving the store.

It’s a shame because I thought there would be a lot of benefits in the relationship at this stage in life. We’re both about bargains now that I have succumbed to spending less. My sister didn’t want me to change. She wanted me to remain what she called an “elitist” because it was safer. She said she never got too deep into such a relationship with a so-called bargainer because she’d always end up on the losing end.

But Saturday morning I used a half a tank of gas to save a quarter for the last time. I needed eight things from the cleaning items aisle. I picked up the items, got in line, paid for the stuff and left. I had three bags. It wasn’t until I got home that I realized I only had five items. I drove all the way back to get my three items from customer service.  By this time Walmart was crowded and all of a sudden those Walmart customer photos that people send us in the email came to mind. I started seeing the real people from the emails.

But on the serious side, there is always Target, JC Penny or even the dollar stores. If I had my way, I would purchase designer ammonia from some Fifth Ave store and have it delivered. That’s not reality. We all watch pennies these days, but even my lovable, agreeable, frugal husband tried to tell me to stop doing what I was doing. Besides, those plastic bag turnstiles that the Walmart cashiers use are not smart for anybody over 18. I’m convinced they are there to confuse people. The reason I had to go back to the store is because my last three items were in the bag on HER side of the turnstile. In addition, I walked out of the store so slowly that she could have crawled to me on one knee to give me that bag.

This was incident number two. Number one was the day I asked the employee at the entrance door for an anti-bacterial wipe because the container was empty. She told me it wasn’t her job to refill that. There will not be a third time because I won’t let you do that to me. Never again! I am officially divorcing Walmart. 

by Dianne Thompson Stanciel® comments welcome at highheelshotflashes@gmail.com

PS…After I got home and opened the rug spot cleaning powder, the container was about half full. So I used a half a tank of gas and got about a half a container of cleaner, trying to save a quarter. With gas prices what they are and what they are becoming, all Hub could say is: “I tried to tell you…”. 

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