Compost Studios

We’ve all done it—stood in a checkout line, studied the contents of someone’s shopping cart, and dared to imagine their life:

The college studient buying beer, Doritoes, and condoms on a Friday night; the young mom with Lucky Charms, milk, Poptarts, Wonder Bread, hotdogs, mac n cheese, and diapers; the chick buying salad, Diet Coke, sugarless pudding, People magazine, and a package of Oreos; the woman with her cell phone stuck to her ear and her cart loaded with produce, organic dairy products, and two good steaks; the guy in dusty work pants checking out frozen sausage biscuits, Pepsi, a package of ham, loaf of bread, Velveeta cheese slices, and a six pack of beer.

Today I give you a glimpse into my shopping cart and into my life.

What went into the shopping cart at the military PX on Saturday:

1 pair of girl’s Lee jeans

2 pairs of boy's Levi jeans

4 pairs of men’s socks

1 Lancôme bronzer compact

1 Lancôme Hypnose mascara in black

1 L’Oreal eye shadow quad

Justin Timberlake Future Sex Love Sounds CD

John Mayer Continuum CD

Over the Hedge DVD

Poseidon DVD

1 bag of Hershey’s caramel kisses

1 bag of Mounds snack bars

2 rolls of orange streamers

2 rolls of yellow streamers

3 paper Mache pumpkins

1 full size steam iron

1 potato peeler

1 Yankee candle in Home Sweet Home

1 Dr. Scholl’s foot file

2 bottles of enteric coated aspirin

1 bottle of acetametaphine

1 bottle of ibuprofen

2 boxes of Sudafed

1 box of Breathe Right strips

2 boxes of Thermacare heat wraps

3 sheets of poster board

1 black spiral file folder holder

1 box of thumb tacks

1 Rubbermaid desk drawer organizer

1 square Rubbermaid stain-resistant container

1 Polish pottery plate

1 women’s Timex watch

1 box of cinnamon Mentos

2 Hershey’s S’More bars

1 Mary Engelbreit desk calendar for 2007

What my purchases say about me:

restocking kids clothes yet again

wondering whether men’s socks will fit me better than women’s

replacing my favorite makeup

looking for musical inspiration

wasting my Netflix rental fees by buying E and the kids movies

ready for Halloween

courting good intentions and my husband’s approval

shocked that my pototato peeler broke after 20 some years of service

addicted to candles and the smell of cinnamon

continuing my zero-tolerance policy for rough heels, even though sandal season is over

trying to prevent keeling over from a stroke by taking three aspirin a day

equipped for cold season

anticipating cold-weather back spasms

getting prepared for school projects

drowning in school papers

organizing my desk and small stamping supplies

rebelling against round storage containers that can’t be stacked

slowly collecting a second set of dishes with smaller plates than my Mikasa set

unable to read the face on my old watch without my reading glasses

desperately craving chewy, hot, sweet, and spicy

treating my two kids to something sweet

thinking about the New Year, indulging my sentimental side

October 24, 2006