Friday, November 25, 2005

Fully Recovered

Thanks to you gals for your sweet comments. I am grateful for all your prayers and encouragement! Things are looking up, thanks to you all, H&M, Thanksgiving, my best friend Robin, Jeff and our counselor (I agree with Ashlie, therapy is SO the new black).

So H &M...Where do I start? I had no idea what to expect when I got there, but now I realize it is the Ikea of clothing stores. I heard it was even Swedish. And they have everything there, from old woman-looking clothes to lingerie to bright green velvet jackets...for men. Think Emerald City. It was everything I imagined it to be, and better. But by the end of the day, I truly felt as if I'd been through hell and back.

So, I live about 30-45 minutes away from San Francisco. But this day, apparently the cards were against us. It took us 2 hours to get there (Clue #1). By the end of hour one, I am so ancy that I'm rocking back in forth in my seat and wriggling around like a little fish, yelling at every person in front of us to get out of the way. Finally we park (having to valet because parking is full--Clue #2) then we head towards the store. AM SO STUPID! There was a FREAKING LINE 3 blocks down and around the corner. Did I actually think it wasn't going to be crazy? Like I was the only person who had heard of the opening?? Robin and I look at each other with the same expression: No way. I have too much pride to stand in line for that long. Very, very bitter with heads hanging low (and pride hanging high), we decide to head over to the other stores we love that only the city has: Urban Outfitters, Gap GRANDE (4 levels!) and Anthropologie. But nothing was as big and as exciting and as cheap as...you know, the storethatnotbenamed. Everywhere we went, there were people carrying these white bags with letters written all big in sloppy red ink. It was painful to see their smiling faces, almost like they were smirking at us. Those stupid cheery expressions that only getting a really hot pair of pants for 25 bucks can give you. 2 hours later and feeling really let down by this point, we decide to head over to our old standby, Nordstrom. We head to the Mac counter, and see two ladies perusing over some lip-glass with those SAME dang bags at their feet. So I just ask, "Excuse me, how long did you have to wait in line?"
"15 minutes," they answer.
"I'm sorry, did you say fif-ty?"
"No, fif-teen".
"You mean a 1 with a five after it?"
They both look at me very annoyed, "Yes. FifteeeeNNN"
So of course, we dash out (of course not before buying my favorite shadow, satin taupe) and head to Post St, wait in line for less than 5 minutes, and then... We're In! Forget the fact that I was just herded in here like cattle, I can't breathe because the body heat is stifling, and I see piles of clothes on tables that have been rumaged through by like 80,000 people already that day. Seriously, who cares! I'm IN!

And then it hit me: The panic. The panic that there is probably hardly anything left in my size, and I am in a RACE to find something I like before anyone else gets it first. "Quick, Robin! Over here! Look at this sweater! Oh, what's that she's holding over there? Let's go over there! Hold onto me so we don't get separated!"

Finally with arms heavily laden with waaayyy too many clothes, we head to the dressing room.

The line was 45 minutes LONG.

Exhaustion and fatigue begin to set in as Robin and I stand there in line, nearly ready to pass out from the fact that it's seriously 90 degrees in there. As we stand there, sweating and attempting to fan ourselves with the tags on the clothes in our arms, I decide I can't take it.

So I sit.

On the floor.

Pride from earlier? Gone.

The 20/20 I saw the other day on germs that taught me they're ALL OVER floors? Trying not to think about it.

To top it off, about half way through the line, as I'm sitting there, scooching along on my butt as the line moves (Yes, I was the only one on the floor), I get a very frightening feeling. The feeling every female knows: CRAP. I think I just got my "monthly visitor". After all this pain and effort to get to this point, there is NO WAY I'm gonna leave this line.

I will not. be. deterred. No obstacle will keep me from my goal. Trying the sly "crotch check" every once in a while (I'm sorry, I really am not intending to be crass), Robin and I get into a room. Fortunately, the "visitor" decided to not come like I had thought, AND, I found 1 pair of pants and 2 shirts that cost me less than 60 whole dollars! And Robin? She found nothing, except a silk flower to pin on her coat that cost 3 bucks. Poor thing.

However, she is still determined, so we will be returning to the "storethatnotbenamed" in a couple weeks. In the peak of the Holiday Season. Any prayers and well wishes will be greatly appreciated.

Stay tuned for a HUGE, life changing bit of news that I will be sharing very soon!!!

5 comments:

Erika said...

LOL I never thought H&M would be so exciting!!!

Heather B. said...

Funny you should mention this opening of H&M. I was looking through my old closet this weekend and found stuff from H&M from like 6 or 7 years ago.

can we make guesses about your life changing bit of news?

AnnaBana said...

Sure you can!

Ticket 4 Two said...

I am so envious of you. I swear that I moved to Baltimore just cause it had TWO H&M's. But? They both are small and sucky. Sad day.

Anonymous said...

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!
From, The "Husby"