Janessa and I couldn’t believe the sign on the door of Ross
in Bountiful, Utah on September 30, 2016. The hastily scrawled sign said “Cash
Only. Our Credit/Debit machine is down.” A little dazed and confused, we walked
into Ross. Inside, it was like a ghost town, with only a handful of people
milling around. They looked a little dazed and confused, too.
One never knows what treasures are to be found at Ross. As
we walked back to the toys, Janessa said, “I hope they have Littlest Pet Shop
Toys.” I said, “I hope so, too” as I said a silent prayer that her request
would be granted. I wanted to get a new bedspread but had no luck. While
Janessa searched in the toys, I went to look at the next item on my list: new
towels. I know, very exciting What really makes them exciting is that I’m
giving them to Ron as a surprise birthday gift (he likes surprises, no matter
how mundane). Word to the wise: this is what you get when you won’t ask for
anything for your birthday-ha ha.
Then, Janessa and I reunited with our finds. She found a large
Littlest Pet Shop set for half the price. Then, I suggested we walk back to the
towels so she could pick some towels for the kids. On our way, we “happened” to
pass the tall shelves with pull-out wicker drawers (I call it a wicker
organizer.) This made Janessa stop in her tracks. She said, “This would be perfect for my LPS”
(Littlest Pet Shops, for those in the know).
Then, came the issue of how to pay for all of it in cash. I
usually just carry a $20 bill on me for emergencies. (Janessa later said, “This
was an emergency.”) I had brought some items to exchange but it wouldn’t be
enough for all we wanted to buy. Then, I remembered a pair of boots I needed to
return to Famous Footwear that were in the car. So, we put our items on hold (except
for the wicker organizer) and booked it to the car and then to Famous Footwear
where we made a refund.
With cash in hand, we returned to Ross. We quickly walked to
the back of the store and the wicker organizer was still there. We each had a
cart full of items and we headed toward the front of the store. There was a
super long line in comparison to the few people that were in the store. This
was likely due to there being only one cashier.
Then another cashier showed up at customer service. I got in
the empty line for “Returns/Exchanges.” I felt a little bad as all the people
in the regular line glared at me as I was taken next in line.
I hadn’t really added things up. I was just trusting in the Universe. The cash register was super slow and I began to wonder if it would
work. I said another silent prayer. I returned the items for in-store credit as
the credit card machine still wasn’t working. I came up short. But I still had
cash from the boots. I ended up with $20 left over from the boots. Yay!
Janessa waited by the front with our items while I drove the
van to pick up the wicker organizer. Truth be told, I didn’t really want to
carry the wicker organizer to my van. As I was about to pick it up, a strapping
young Ross employee was heading for the exit and I enlisted his help.
We got home safely. I told my son Ryan about our grand shopping
adventure. When I told him I bought towels for Dad’s birthday, he didn’t
believe me. Then I showed him the towels and he believed me.
Janessa later told me she had said a silent prayer that the cash
register would work too. Like mother, like daughter. We both like a good find
and an answered prayer.
