A quick trip to Wal Mart

Last night I had to pay a visit to Wal Mart. Normally I don't shop there, but I was only a few blocks away running errands and I just had to pick up a few items for the priesthood ice cream social. How bad could it be?

I entered Wal Mart at 7:25 and counted myself extremely lucky to find a cart with a working toddler seatbelt on only the second try. This should have been a good omen for the rest of my trip. I found the toppings with no trouble with the exception of the Reddi Whip and the cherries. After picking up the disposable bowls and spoons, I realized I was making great time and congratulated myself on conquering the Wal Mart beast.

Next was the Reddi Whip. I checked by the cream and milk. Not there. I checked by the refrigerated Jell-o. Maybe Reddi Whip doesn't have to be refrigerated. I checked by the baking supplies. Not there. I checked in the center-of-the isle refrigerated bins. Not there. Discouraged and sick of singing "Old McDonald Had a Farm" to keep Emily from having a meltdown, I went for the ice cream.

After procuring the ice cream, I finally found a Wal Mart employee. She was a stocker, but my best bet. After explaining to her what Reddi Whip was, she told me to check by the milk. I checked again and found it had not magically appeared. Defeated, I picked up a tub of frozen-solid Cool Whip and hoped it would thaw on my way to drop off the supplies. By then, the ice cream had started to get soft, so I exchanged it for some fresh ice cream before leaving the store.

On my way out, I passed the milk, then the cottage cheese, then the yogurt then - Reddi Whip! For some reason, in the collective Wal Mart brain, whipped topping is closer in genus and species to yogurt than to whipping cream. I triumphantly placed two cans of it in my cart and sneaked the Cool Whip from my cart onto the shelf next to the cottage cheese.

When I went to check out, I realized two things: 1) I never did find those cherries and 2) I accidentally grabbed light ice cream. Oh well, most of those guys could stand to loose a few pounds anyway.

I finally left the store at 8:15. It had taken me 50 minutes to pick up ice cream and toppings. My weekly grocery trip to King Soopers normally takes 45. In the future, I will remember there is no such thing as a quick trip to Wal Mart.