Almost There

Whew! What a long day! I awoke to snow...but unlike a week and a half ago, it wasn't coming down heavily, though it was sticking. I decided to give it a little time, which means I did skip Yogawood. As it turned out, I got plenty of exercise today anyway.

The snow was gone by around 9:30-quarter of 10, but Manor Avenue was too much of a slushy mess to ride the bike. I set out for Collingswood on foot. Stopped briefly at Dad's to see if Jessa wanted to join me, but she had work, so I headed out alone.

As it turned out, the snow was not a problem. We only got about 2 or 3 inches, nothing close to what we got before. All major roads and rails were perfectly clear. Some sidewalks were a little slippery, but navigable. Erica, my friend who runs the thrift shop in Collingswood, had called me twice to thank me for the cookies I gave her and her mother, so I made that my first stop. I wished her a happy New Year, and she told me how much she loved the cookies, especially the Cherry-Coconut Bars. (And to think, I almost didn't make those after they came out so badly last year...)

After leaving Erica, I headed a couple of blocks down to the Collingswood Library. It was not only open, but the manager was eager for volunteers. Apparently, they hadn't had much help all week and he desperately needed the DVDs to be organized. No problem. I spent a pleasant hour returning and organizing DVDs and helping families find what they wanted.

Headed for the PATCO next. I figured everything would be running slow, due to the weather and the holiday, but the opposite proved to be true. The train going to and coming from Haddonfield showed up early, the bus to the Deptford Mall was over five minutes early, and the one going back to Haddonfield was right on time. The train was so early, I went for a short walk after arriving in Haddonfield, stopping at the bank around the corner from the PATCO/Bus Station to make change for the bus trip.

The Deptford Mall was packed when I arrived. While not quite as elbow-to-elbow as the weeks before Christmas, there were still a lot of people looking for end-of-the-season sales and lots of lines. It was kind of fun, though. There were these big, soft moving animals for rides, and a cute little train tooting around the lower level.

I did really, really well with shopping. For clothes, I bought a corduroy skirt from Layne Bryant for $17.50, a desperately-needed pair of winter boots for $24.99 and a pair of long work-out pants for $8.99 from JC Penney, and a pair of khaki pants for work from Sears for $19.99. The only clothes I had a hard time finding were tops and sweaters. While prints on shirts now seem to be a bit smaller and fewer have gathers, there's still an awful lot of chunky knits, flowy gypsy blouses, and waiter ruffles. A lot of flimsy material, too. They'd never last me one winter, much less many of them! I wear my clothes until they wear out...and then, I fix them until I need to cut them into dust cloths. I'll look online for shirts and sweaters.

I can never resist the call of a store that has toys. I spent a bit of time in the Disney Store after Sears. Was looking for The Princess and the Frog soundtrack, but I ended up with a very cute Beanie Marie the Kitten from The Aristocats, dressed for winter in Paris. She'll be an all-winter decoration - she's really not that Christmas-y.

I stopped for lunch at a booth in the Deptford Mall Food Court that sold gourmet sandwiches - had a delicious panini with chicken, marinara sauce, and fresh mozzarella, along with a Diet Dr. Pepper and something called "Pop Chips" - potato chips that were popped instead of fried or baked. They weren't bad, nice and crispy and not too greasy.

Also wanted to use the Borders and Barnes and Noble gift cards I got from my best friend Lauren and my brother Keefe. From Borders, I grabbed two American Girls books (Meet Kit and Changes for Rebecca), the newest Diane Mott Davidson novel in paperback, Sweet Revenge, and a journal. I went with DVDs from Barnes and Noble - the first season of The Mary Tyler Moore Show (which was half-price), the soundtrack from The Princess and the Frog that I couldn't find at the Disney Store (I'm sooo dying to see that), and the original Broadway cast album for the 1991 hit musical Crazy For You. The latter is a favorite of mine. I had the cassette in the 90s, but it broke when I was living in Wildwood, and I've never been able to afford to replace it. Most Broadway cast albums are expensive, between $13 and $30.

Barnes and Noble and Old Navy are in a mall across the street from the main Deptford Mall. I had to hike across the huge parking lot, and then across another huge parking lot belonging to an older mall that's mostly abandoned and creepy except for the AMC Movie Theater. (I also noticed a sign for Halloween Adventure - maybe this is where they went this year instead of Westmont?) I was dead tired and sore by the time I came out of Old Navy empty-handed. I didn't have the time to sit, though. I had to hurry back across the two parking lots and the mall until I got to the upper floor and caught the bus to the PATCO, then took the short train ride to Collingswood.

I made a few stops during the walk home. Yeah, I probably should have called for a ride...but who would have picked me up on New Year's Eve? Most everyone I know is either getting ready to party, already partying, or still at work. The first one was WaWa for a chilled cappuccino and cookies. I was hot from hiking around a warm mall all day in a sweater and huge black winter coat! I also stopped at CVS on the way home to grab something I'd forgotten - a kid calender for my room. Ended up with a cheap, cute cats calender and a half-off 50s Snoopy plush. He holds a candy cane in his paws and is just too darling for words. No wonder Charlie Brown had to adopt him.

It's a good thing I got in when I did. Less than an hour after I finally got home and was eating leftover chicken and escarole with mushrooms for dinner, it finally started raining for the first time since some brief rain this morning...and unlike this morning, it was a nice, steady shower.

Here's hoping that you have a wonderful New Year's..and a much drier one than mine! (And spend it sitting down - my legs are KILLING me!)