"She is always turning from what has been offered her to say with a demure little sigh and a smile 'Oh please, please ... all I want is a cup of tea, weak but not too weak, and the teeniest weeniest bit of really crisp toast;." (C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters)I feel like I'm the crisp-toast woman. It happens when I'm clothes-shopping: all I want is a fine-gauge, flat knit, cotton-blend turtleneck with three-quarter length sleeves and a neck that does not stretch out. All I want is a pair of tropical-weight, lined, barely-boot-cut, black wool trousers in a midrise and NO SIDE SEAM POCKETS. It happens when I'm trying to furnish my home: all I want is a large, crushable, basket-like container to hold baby odds'n'ends. All I want is a drop-front desk with file drawers.
Maybe I'm too picky. Scratch that. I'm too picky. But this time I really feel like I'm not asking too much. I've been to J.C.Penney, Walmart, Target, Macy's, and Bed Bath and Beyond; and I can't find
- A bright yellow bath rug. Seriously, Walmart has bath towels and rugs in every rainbow color except yellow. WHY?
- A wire cheese slicer that isn't ergonomic. I don't slice enough cheese that I need an offset handle.
- A hygro-thermometer for inside the apartment. Analog preferred.
5 comments:
SO FRUSTRATING. I definitely hear you. It shouldn't BE this hard to get things that are really kind of basic!
Have you looked at Ross, TJ Maxx, or Marshall's? I don't guess you have an Ikea close, but maybe online? Also, if you're willing to spend a little more, GarnetHill.com has cute bathmats. And sheets. ADORABLE actually.
The wire cheese slicer you can find at Sur la Table. I don't know if you have one near you but ordering online works. I got this one for Dean since he doesn't slice cheese that much but just enough to constitute having one and I don't need some fancy adjustable one.
http://www.surlatable.com/product/PRO-384/Cheese-Slicer
Crate and Barrel has round and rectangular bath mats AND they have on in bright yellow. Again, don't know if you have one near you but ordering online is a good friend of mine. ;-)
http://www.crateandbarrel.com/decorating-and-accessories/bath-rugs/reversible-yellow-bath-rug/s432736
And I have no clue about the thermometer...in sticking with my online theme, though, I'd say try Amazon. :-)
And if you can't stand to look at the prices at Crate and Barrel, which usually put me in a wonder-like transe, you should check out the local dollar stores or places like Marshalls (the list on the first comment is good.) I've always been surprised at the things they have in their kitchen and bath sections. I've been astounded at some of the cheap things I've found at them that are actually just what I've been looking for. Especially things like non-ergonomic kitchen utensils, though if you're looking for a good cheese cutter, I'd check out good cheese knives instead of the wire ones because the wires usually end up bending, then they never get all the way to the bottom of the cheese block...so you have to break it off, which makes and ugly slice of cheese. Moral of the story--stick with sharp knives, they're more adaptable anyway.
And by the way, I TOTALLY relate to the clothes problem. Somehow I always end up getting things from goodwill and salvation army, and recently I've been sewing a lot more. It's so gratifying to put on something new that actually fits me!
Carolyn wins this round! When you mentioned TJ Maxx I remembered that there's a Homegoods nearby, and, sure enough, there's just one bright yellow Ralph Lauren bathmat. My bathroom inspiration piece, so to speak, is a framed NM license plate, so I really needed something YELLOW.
Giles, that Sur la Table slicer is exactly what I'm looking for. Of course, all the places with really good quality home goods (and even IKEA) are on the opposite side of the city. We live in a big-box-centric area.
Kathryn, I'm usually all in favor of skipping the single-use kitchen gadgets, so when my last wire slicer broke, I didn't replace it. And I miss it every time. That and a strawberry huller. Go figure.
Thanks, girls!
WOOHOO! I'm thrilled you found a bathmat! Really? Homegoods? I've never yet actually found what I needed there. Cool. Aww... I like the framed license plate.
As for the single-use gadget debate, I vote if you actually use it, it's worth keeping. Lemon curd is one of my go-to special foods, so I have a lemon squeezer and it's SO WORTH IT. But then, I'm okay with having a fair amount of stuff. Everybody has a different tolerance level.
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