As a man I should abscribe to the theory
that size matters. Yet unlike most males
I limit said aspirational scope to only a
few things like... household paper goods.
Why bother with normal sized allotments
when you can go for "MEGA"? After all,
think of the time you'll save not having to
refill your dispensers. Even better, you'll
avoid the crisis of not being able to clean
up post a sudden outage. Hence I believe
the bigger the better especially when one
is on a roll. However my biggest problem
seems to be going big in the Big Apple.
Anywhere else it's easy to bulk up. Out
in the burbs one needn't be a bounty
hunter to score a case of toilet tissue
or paper towels. The shelves at Sam's,
Costco, or even your local grocer and
drug store are full of maxed out goods.
Thus everyone can upsize. Whereas in
the city, some idiot decided long ago
that less was more in relationship to
household basics. Thus one must pay
the maximum price for the minimum
sheet count per roll. Meaning that one
cannot easily go big and go home.
In theory urban life is convenient. But
in reality often the simplest of things are
the toughest. In our neighborhood there
is a Starbucks on almost every block. Plus
plenty of alternative java and juice joints.
In addition there is a Duane Reed, CVS,
or the like on just about every other corner.
Within a few blocks radius sit hundreds of
restaurants and bars. We can choose from
five brands of French butter at the grocer.
Yet finding the most basic of essentials -
things we easily purchase in Lewistown
Montana - can be an exercise in futility.
In the case of convenience, Manhattan is often
proof that size does not matter nor is it always
as beneficial as one might think. Therefore one
must plan ahead in order to get one's honey do
list accomplished. Key to avoiding frustration
is assuming that NO place is a one stop shop.
Hence where one goes depends on what they
want to procure. For certain items I'll quickly
pop into my nearby grocer -just a block away.
Other must haves require that I walk six blocks
to Whole Foods on Columbus Circle. Proving
that having a discerning palate also requires
the fortitude to satisfy it. Which is exhausting.
Everything is more expensive in Manhattan.
Which causes me to think of my friends in
Lewistown. One of the favorite activities
back home is to complain of having only
one grocer. A dialogue that often involves
a liberal mix of fantasy and reality. Most
of us base our perspective on experience.
Which invariably is jaded by time, distance,
and opinion. With very few exception - our
hometown market has ALL that I need or
want at prices that seem quite fair. Hence
from the way I see it - the folks back home
have no idea how easy their lives truly are.
Often the only thing limiting our view is our
own dumb ass. By our nature humans are
rarely happy. Especially with the status quo.
So rather than celebrate what we have, we
berate those who do their best to bring it to
us. If nothing else being back in Manhattan
has been a refresher course in reality. Thus
no matter where one lives it never seems to
be good enough. A fact that by it's nature
I find rather repugnant. Wherever one lives
we all have to accept the good, bad, and ugly
that comes with it. Why not be grateful for
what you've got? Roll with it and think big!
