Hitting the road

Retail Therapy...Tossed and Found Style

This week I used the excuse that the "Bug Car" needed service and I hit the road. Here's the thing about managing your own time without punching a time clock. There is still a feeling of "I should be doing something else" whenever you want to roam. I loaded up early for my 9am appointment, I had a 2 hour drive ahead.  By 9:30 I was done and the day lay stretched out ahead of me. The weather was late April in January, I had my "hit the road CD" playing, a feeling of Ferris Bueller day off.
One of my favorite areas of this state is the North Central Lakes area. I spent alot of time here as a child, I live here as an adult. You can easily find the road less traveled. I made a large circle that afternoon. I stopped when I felt like it, drove past places that mean the world to me, sang along to the radio and spent time talking about nothing with perfect strangers. The photo above is an idea I copied from my sister. Whenever she shops at Tossed and Found she photographs her finds. This little thrift store is among the best I have ever seen. On this day it did not disappoint. After checking in on the Lake place, I continued on and finished the day in McGregor.If you have never been to this town, put it on your list. This small town has become a favorite of mine over the past 12 years or so. It is a small town filled with hardworking people. It boasts friendliness mixed with unexpected big city finds. The McGregor Baking Company is located here, the pastries, sandwiches and soups are not rivaled anywhere as far as taste and presentation. There is one of the best Dairy Queens ever in this town. It employs friendly hard-working teenagers that always seem to be giving it their all. Mark's Bar calls McGregor home and for broasted chicken, hamburgers and tap beer you simply can't do better. If fine dining is your thing, the Fireside is a McGregor landmark. Shopping takes many forms but do not miss "The Country House" gift store or "Molly's". These two establishments fall into completely separate categories, both are unique treasures. My last stop is always to see Diane at Timeless Treasures Quilt Shop. Diane is a friend from the quilt shop days. She is loyal, talented and always in your corner. There is no one that hugs like she does.

And then there is this: McGregor has a grocery store that could fit into some of the large chains 3 or 4 times over. What it lacks in size it makes up for in everything else. I have never been there that it wasn't full of shoppers and I have never left without trying something new. Last fall I stopped in there on my way home from"Girl's weekend". I picked up what I needed and headed to the checkout. I pulled out my checkbook and realized I had written my last check somewhere over the past weekend. This small town store does not take cards and because I finished "girls weekend" like you are supposed too, I had very little cash. This lack of payment form played out very fast, there were shoppers behind me and all the tills were staffed by teenagers. When I realized I was short by roughly $2, embarrassment set in. The young teenager bagging my groceries never paused, he took out his wallet and he said "I've got this".

This is what I know: When I was working, high school kids were my day. I can't tell you how I loved that job. I know I learned as much about life from them as they thought they were learning from me. I remember thinking at conference time I should sit in the hall and thank their parents that I got to spend the day with their kids. They were well thought, intelligent, funny and deeply feeling people. Were there times they weren't that? yes...but they were kids, they were supposed to be figuring that out.
My brother is a career police officer. His life has been about dealing with the teenagers that have gone underground. We used to have discussions about the future based on the kids we dealt with daily. He always felt the world was in trouble, I always felt we couldn't go wrong.  I didn't let the grocery bagger pay for my shortfall in hindsight that may have been wrong. He saw an opportunity to step up...and he took it. The world is hard and many teenagers have lost there way but the future is secure. There is a teenager in McGregor that is seeing to it.

Till next time.