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Politics : Sharks in the Septic Tank -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Lane3 who wrote (13067)	5/4/2001 8:01:13 PM
From: The Philosopher	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

You have no TV reception but you have Costco and Walmart? On the mainland. Heavens, the best we have here is a glorified corner grocer. We do a mainland trip about once a month. Get up at 4:30 in winter, 3:30 or 4:00 in summer, dress etc., drive in to town in time to catch 6:00 am ferry. Have to be there earlier in summer because it overloads with tourists. Oh, you also have to keep track of what teams are going off island, because in the fall if the Tigers football teams (there are two ages, always play the same place so on away games both are on the ferry) are going off on the same day one or two soccer teams are going off, the ferry can overload mighty early with vans for the players and cars for fans, so on those weekends be in line at least by 5:00 and preferably earlier for the 6:00 ferry. 1-1/2 to 2 hour ferry ride over, depending on which stops it makes--different times of year the schedule is different, but there's always a redeye right around 6. First stop is gas -- ours on the island is at least 40 cents more than on the mainland so when we know we're going over we let it run low and fill up over there. Then Starbucks for the monthly mocha. Oh, first we may go by the Soroptomists thrift store to drop off used clothing and stuff -- my wife doesn't like to give to the thrift shop on the island because she doesn't like to see her clothes come back on a parent during a parent-teacher conference or see the kids clothes (when they were younger) come in on her students. Well over half her students "shop" the thrift store. But if not the thrift shop drop-off, then it's gas, then Starbucks. Then Walmart since it opens early; Costco doesn't open until 10 on weekends. Then Costco, where we fill the cooler and most of the back of the van. Other stops, depending on need, maybe at Home Depot, the mall, fabric store, nursery, etc. Usually grab the luxury of fast food; I prefer either Arby's or Wendy's. There's no fast food anywhere on the island, so it's a treat, the way store bought bread used to be to kids whose moms baked good-for-your bread. There's usually a ferry back about 2:00, which we try to make if we didn't have too many stops to make, but you generally have to be in line at least an hour ahead for that one. If we miss that one, there's usually one around 5 which you really have to be in line for by 4 in winter and 3 in summer. (On the current schedule for example they are 2:40 and 5:05.) Another 1-1/2 to 2 hours to get back to the island, drive home, comfort and feed the dogs who are jumping all over the place from having been cooped up in their kennels all day, then unpack the car, run the meat through the Food Saver and into the freezer, which usually takes an hour. If we got the afternoon ferry there's time to read a bit; if not, it's sink exhausted into bed. That's how you do Costco and Walmart when you live on a remote island!