Shopgirl

Jesus, I thought, spying my alarm clock as I pushed Cadbury off my face (What is his deal?). 5:10 a.m.

Twenty minutes later I was on my way to the car, absently noting the beautiful dusting of snow as I slugged my Hansen’s smoothie.

When I called my parents Thanksgiving night to confer on the meeting time for the annual day-after-Thanksgiving-shopfest, I was expecting the usual: 8 a.m…. maybe 7:30 for coffee.

“We’re going to be at Walmart at 5, Herbergers at 5:30, and Marshall Field’s at 6,” my dad chirped.

My god.

“I’ll see you at Marshall Field’s?”

By 12:30 p.m. we’d filled my parent’s trunk with bags, hit two malls and one restaurant, and guzzled six coffees between us.

While the day fell short of our glory years (at SuperMall before opening for breakfast, hitting a record four malls in one day…) there is nothing like sprawling book in hand, kittens in lap at 1 p.m. with a full day of shopping behind you.