On Sunny Lane: Keep On Trucking

Sweetheart wonders how we get so many miles on the car’s odometer.

Well, we do make long trips from time to time, and I do go to my old neighborhood about once a month to visit my daughter and to take care of personal business. However, a lot of those miles are a result of short trips to take care of errands.

Years ago, during my growing-up years, the stores in my community all maintained, basically, the same hours. The businesses were usually open from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The retail stores were open those same hours and also on Saturday from 9-9. But NO ONE was open on Sunday.

It was a good system. It worked.

Then, suddenly, the merchants’ association decided not to stay open on Saturday night any more. Some stores chose to be open on Monday night, while others decided to remain open on Friday night. Gone were the Saturday nights of camaraderie the farmers experienced on Saturday nights, at the end of the work week, when they could see fellow farmers from the outlying areas and compare notes.

Besides that, a person had to remember which stores were open when. If a person lived outside of town, that could mean more than one trip into town to accomplish all of the person’s goals.

And that is how I clock up all of the mileage.

Through the years, businesses have changed their hours considerably. Many are now open on Sundays. Some are closed on Mondays. Many Amish stores close on Thursdays and some donut. (Oops! I mean, do not.) And NONE of them are open on Sundays. Some restaurants are open until 10:00 or later. Some are open 24 hours. Some only serve breakfast and lunch, while others only serve supper.

This can be very confusing.

Just last week, it took me two forays into entrepreneur land to complete my list of errands. To begin with, I am not a shopper--I am a buyer. I know what I need, and I go to the store where I expect to find it. Also, I shop locally, because I like to support local businesses.

On Monday, I went to renew my membership at the library, but it was closed. I had forgotten that it was having reduced hours because of the state budget impasse. Silly me. I went to the credit union, but there was such a long line that I decided to go back another day. I went to the Amish store to buy fresh, brown eggs, but they were sold out. I did accomplish several other goals, however.

The next day, Sweetheart and I went out for lunch. Along the way, we went back to the credit union and the library. We got the fresh, brown eggs at the Amish store. We made several other stops at special stores to get special things.

It’s a good feeling to know that I now have everything I need for a while, and my errands are caught up. And it’s a good feeling to have a car and gas and money and time to take care of business.

I just hope Christmas shopping won’t be this challenging.

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Dorothy is the author of two books—“Miles and Miracles” and “Getting It All Together “. You can purchase a book or send a comment by emailing her at dorothybutzknight@gmail.com