So what kind of ninny goes to Costco the day before Thanksgiving? That would be me. I thought I was being clever and arrived a few moments after they first opened. Apparently thousands of others had the same idea.

I decided to go to Costco to buy a pumpkin pie. I remembered that I did not have a proper pie plate. After breaking the promise to myself last year to buy one, I concluded it would just be much less hassle to buy the $5.99 pie from Costco. It is enormous and it is cheaper than making a pie really (because I buy my pie crust, I cannot make it). It was a madhouse in there and were people elbowing each other out of the way to get to the pumpkin pies. In the case there were maybe on 20 left (not many for Costco) and everyone looked panicked (myself included). I parked the kids away from the ugliness and wheedled my way around the carts to get to the pies. Just then, they wheeled out a whole trolley of pies and you could hear the collective sigh as people realized they would not have to fight each other for the last few pies.

Then I maneuvered the cart over to the book section because my mother asked me to pick up a book for Stephen for Christmas. I found it without much fuss and we were on our way to find the big-ass can of nacho cheese (a Stephen request - he is having a card game here on Friday). I found it easily so we were able to leave. As I was making my way up the main aisle which was overcrowded with carts and people, a blind man with a white cane starts trying to make his way down the aisle to the back of the store. He was sweeping his cane and hitting carts to the left and to the right. Everyone was dumbfounded. No one could move out of his way because it was so busy. So they all just stopped. I cannot believe that no one from Costco offered to help him find his way to the back of the store (I heard him asking for directions). I would have helped him but I was boxed in by a couple of carts all the while keeping a firm grip on Dex's hand.

Anyway, we finally made our way to the check-out and I felt I caught a break because I found a short line. However, I had not looked in the carts of the people a head of me. The carts were brimming over and in he lines next to us, people had 5 or 6 items in their carts. Curses! I commented to the cashier that I could not believe how busy it was and he said "It *is* the day before Thanksgiving, duh!" So he did not not say duh but I know he was thinking it.

So that trip, for those few items took me ONE HOUR in the store. Another 15 minutes getting out of the parking lot and that was a trip I did not want to make ever again.