Haberdashery

At our cottage when I was growing up, we had a closet full of old games from the 50s and 60s -- Head of the Class, some complicated game I can't recall that involved a sort of bingo twirler and little button thingies, DoodleBug, many many card games, of course -- and this bizarrely compelling game called "Park and Shop." I think it was the enculturation companion to Mystery Date -- the players had shopping lists, and there was a small town shopping grid with tobacconists, haberdashers, green grocers, butcher, etc, and the object was to plan your most efficient shopping route and get back home with your car full of shopping.


This game is blurred in my childhood memory with a PSA for seatbelt use that ran when I was about 5 featuring a woman saying "I don't like to wear a seatbelt when I go shopping because it wrinkles my dress." Then there was a Scary Flash and crashing noise and, presumably, she was dead, struck down by her Vanity.

I was obsessed with Park and Shop for several years -- I found the archaic shop names charming (I was sure that the tobacconist smelled so good, and the green-grocer was chock full of shiny ripe lettuces and fat apples), and the object was so simple. There were, I'm sure Obstacles -- red lights, detours, forgotten items -- but the scope was comfortingly simple and narrow. I think I liked it for the same reason I liked memoirs about people with huge families -- thriving-on-love-and-little-money stories of having 8 or 12 siblings.

I obviously imprinted on Park and Shop, because anytime I have to mentally plan a bunch of errands, I find myself imagining the board layout, where there were, I think 3 haberdashers, 2 tobacconists -- trying to plan my route that retraces the fewest steps.

I had a real park and shop day today -- there were a mittful of tedious backed up errands I couldn't put off any longer. Renew car registration (one year or two? two years is more efficient, but will I really still be living here a year from now?), which involved me going first to where the Service Ontario kiosk USED to be (Mowat Block), and plopping all my stuff down on a credit union ATM and not realizing it was the wrong thing until I'd pulled out all my documents. Cracking up security guard sent me back to College Park, where I'd just BEEN. Get photo health card (finally). Go to bank to deposit cheques. Get prescription filled -- which involved 4 pharmacies before I found one that had it. Meeting at one hospital, and another meeting at another hospital. All circumnavigating the same 2 km radius stretching from here to yonge/college, but retracing my steps repeatedly.

Am set up, now, though -- renewed out of country health insurance, paid GST, paid bills, did RSP contribution, etc. And now can't possibly justify another day without writing.

I had a real burst last weekend until Monday, then lost momentum. I have another 3 or 4 day stretch starting tomorrow, and it's hibernation mode again. Then I'll know where I really am.