Shopping, especially for clothes is not something I “relish.” I do “muster” through it, just to “catch-up” when I need to! Enough hot dog talk. Shopping is an acquired taste and takes a special skill set. It often becomes mundane and you find yourself taking the same path from store to store, up and down the same aisles going the same direction when you shop “your” stores. Canned peas on the left, laundry detergent on the right, kitty litter is heavy and usually on the bottom shelf.  It can become very ho-hum. But! Yes a shop hopping “but.” But how fun is it to find a new store?

If you are a guy don’t stop reading here. I mean even guys get all fidgety and smiley when a new everything outdoor or tool store is discovered. I don’t think I am the only woman who rubs her nose at the hit of rubber tires and WD40 upon entering a tool store! Women too get a little lilt in their step when building materials show up on a corner lot that was empty except for weeds and a building begins to grow that will soon house girly things. These are all well and good and exciting. However these are to be expected. The really cool thing is to find a store that has been open for a while and you discover it. Whether on your own or a friend knows of it and shares its secrets with you. That’s how I recently found out about a wonderful little store that has some amazing—well here’s what happened…

While on an outing and shopping for the best apples and doggie treats my friend looks at her list and says she needs to go to the “messy store.”  I’m driving so I say the what store? The messy store she repeated you know it’s down and under the over pass and a left and a right, over there and she points. I think I know what she is talking about so I head towards a store I have been by but not been in. Now understand that as adventurous as I like to think I am I also get anxiety at doing something out of my normal box. (Yes, I have a normal.)  I get a little fluttery inside. Like a big fluffy rodent is doing laps on a wheel inside me. Well that wheel was spinning pretty fast as I neared this store. She then remarked that I was not in the right area. This was not the underpass she was talking about. I breathed a sigh of relief because as much as I always wanted to go into this store I really didn’t want to go in. I cannot be the only one who goes back and forth with these things in my head. I mean when push comes to tickle I find the best stories of life come out of doing something you would not think of doing unless you have a partner to cajole along with. This was one of those times for sure.

We get to her store and as we pull up she is telling me that it gets very busy at noon with people coming to the food truck parked next to it and to get the bakery stuff inside. Oh, bakery stuff? I’m so in. I feel quite comfortable with her in the lead as we go in. Let me tell you it was small, clean and absolutely amazing. I’m not telling you where it is but I will tell you that along the back wall in a case with plexiglass doors and rolls of baggies hanging on strings I was introduced to the most amazing baked goodies. I was wary, of course I was. I asked if they baked these breads on site and she said, “Yes right in the back.” I said every day? Yes every day. Of course I glommed onto a few items… Just to be polite. Wink, wink. Then checked out the rest of this tiny new jewel of a store. There was produce and spices and regular staples. Baking items and things that I finally had to ask the people in the store what they were. It was such fun. The critter on the wheel in my chest was doing handsprings and a hoochie koochie dance. The best part? Trying what my friend calls messy breads. Good?

I went back the next day and filled up one of those baggies to the brim scurried home and hid them in my freezer for Sunday morning brunches for the next weeks until I get back to my newest hot shop to shop at when I shop which is something that I do not relish!

Trina lives in Eureka, Nevada. Find her on Facebook, Instagram or at itybytrina@yahoo.com

Really!