Errand Reward

Jeni's Ice Cream. Bangkok Peanut in a Buttercrisp Waffle Cone. 

Helping my second born move to Ohio has been a productive and satisfying experience. Though I openly confess I enjoyed a fair share of poolside down time, my primary mission here was simple.

Unpack boxes.
Run errands.

The unboxing tasks were straightforward.

I scrubbed down the apartment first, to be obsessively sure we were starting with not just a blank but a clean and hygienic slate. And then, with a minimum of daughterly instruction, I just put things where they naturally belong.

Sheets on the bed.
Dishes in the cupboard.
Countless pairs of shoes laid in rows across the closet floor.

Though I had my hands full settling all my daughter’s possessions into logical new homes, that half of my job description was easy and clear cut.

On the other hand, the errands posed a series of considerable challenges.

Not just in sheer number but in scope, complexity, and wacky degrees of randomness:

• Finding a nail salon that was actually open on July 4. Holiday or not, we needed pedicures stat. 

• Troubleshooting with the Home Depot pros about which tool would most effectively help me remove a stuck screw from an upside-down bracket on an IKEA dresser I was assembling.

• Convincing a Crate & Barrel lady to let me swap out a marble utensil canister for another shade of stone, even though I had no receipt and had bought it at least 18 months ago. She agreed.

• Tracking down a recycling station that accepts cardboard. Ohio, really. It's time to get on board with a curbside program.

• Mourning the fact that our beloved Tillamook dairy products are not available in the heartland, and tracking down reasonable cheddar cheese and sour cream alternative brands. 

Over the course of the two and a half weeks, I ran dozens and dozens of errands.

So on my last day in Columbus, as I finally wound down my lengthy errand to-do list, I decided that a reward was clearly in order.

And nothing says, "Well played," like an ice cream cone.