The uptown area is a solid 20-30 minute drive, but with Sam's Club along the way, it works well to combine a trip to the lakes with my weekly journey to restock the freezer. There was just one problem...when I arrived at Calhoun and started putting my rollerblades on, I realized that I left my wallet at home. Any idea what's hard to do without cash, checks, credit cards, or debit cards? Buying things!
No IOU's allowed.
I was already at the lake, so I did my rollerblading, still frustrated with my memory lapse. I shamefully and walletlessly returned home, curious if the Maple Grove Sam's Club location might be a closer option than the St. Louis Park Sam's Club that I'd already practically driven right by. Unfortunately, Google Maps showed me that I'm magically positioned equidistant from both Sam's Club locations. If I'd chosen anywhere else to live, I would have more optimally positioned myself for faster shopping. What hurt even worse was that I also drove right by Sam's Club last night on the way to that tennis match that didn't happen. At the time I told myself that I'd go to the lakes tomorrow anyway, so why not just shop tomorrow? If I only knew.
When I took the rollerblades out of the car, I noticed something was missing--the white headphones that came with the iPhone. Where could they be? I was wearing them the whole time I was rollerblading, and I distinctly remember sitting in the passenger seat of the Malibu and unplugging them right before I changed back into my shoes. I checked my pockets, and I checked every last inch of the car...nothing. They must have fallen out of the car when I walked around to the driver's seat back at the lake.
Normally I wouldn't care too much about losing a pair of headphones--I have a few other pairs, and ones with better sound quality, but that specific pair that came with the iPhone has one critical feature that all of the others--including my old Apple iPod headphones--lack. The base near the plug-in is narrow enough to fit through the tiny hole in the Lifeproof case on my iPhone. Without those headphones, I'll have to use the annoying, clunky headphone adapter that I've avoided for so long. Oddly, Apple is known for low quality headphones that break easily, yet they still come with the infamous Apple price tag...so replacing my lost friend will involve an expensive trip to the Apple Store....and I'm not referring to my apartment.
Since I had to go back to Sam's Club anyway, I figured I might as well drive the few extra miles to Lake Calhoun to search the area where I'd parked. So, with a sense of annoying deja vu, I drove back toward uptown. For some reason traffic had picked up considerably, so I spent nearly an hour sitting and staring at multiple cycles of the same red lights...all for the unlikely chance to maybe find those headphones.
When I finally got to the lake, I experienced a rare moment of luck. Despite the crowds, I found an open parking space right near my spot from earlier in the day. But my luck immediately ran out. As I pulled in, some jerk decided that open spot was big enough for two cars, and he tried to squeeze his car in front of mine. I graciously tried to accommodate his stupidity and backed up until my bumper was literally within inches of the car parked behind me. He, too, continued backing up, nearly parking me in.
Not wanting to get stuck for hours, I had about fifteen seconds to quickly scan the area around my old parking spot in search of the headphones before the guy walked away from his car. No luck. I ran back and asked the guy to move his car so I could exit without leaving tan paint on the bumper of his Mercedes. He seemed confused as to why I was already leaving, but he moved his car and let me be on my way. I've noticed that the Malibu has a unique ability to part seas of expensive cars...
I'm now down a $30 pair of low quality but much-needed headphones, and my future either involves a frustratingly unnecessary purchase or years of fumbling with an annoying headphone adapter. After spending my Saturday afternoon driving all over the suburbs of Minneapolis, I finally returned home with my groceries. Disappointed, but home.
Then I realized that a friend had stabbed me in the back...well, technically that friend had burned me in the arm. That friend, of course, is the sun. A glance down at my red left arm reminded me that I'd also forgotten the sunscreen this morning. I'd hoped that there was enough shade and that I'd wouldn't be facing the same direction long enough to pick up a sunburn, but like I said, it's one of those days. The sleeveless shirt, my Minnesota-white upper arms, and a hot summer day were a perfect recipe for disaster.
I want to strangle my friend right now...
My plans for the rest of the day involve re-reading yesterday's blog post to remind myself that things will eventually even out, then lying on the floor in the fetal position for the rest of the day, avoiding sharp objects as I wait out this bad luck streak. With a day like this and a car like mine, I'm certainly not going to drive anywhere.
I thought YESTERDAY was Friday the 13th!
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