Yesterday morning I was up for a bit of an adventure, a little something that I thought would be new and different...a first. Funny, it didn't quite turn out that way. One of the things I've promised myself in this return, is to try to live as close to the way I lived in France as possible. Two of those things that I thought might be difficult were no TV, and no car.
I usually do my grocery shopping on my bike with my bottomless purple backpack. I start at Dollar General where they have very good prices. I get what I can and then head to my neighborhood grocery stores: Terranova's and Canseco's. My absolute last stop is Rouses, a big store that you would think would have better prices than my small neighborhood establishments...shockingly, no. I've promised myself that when I need bigger ticket items of greater variety, I will head over to the Walmart in the city.
When I sat down in my seat on the 91-Esplanade/Jackson bus yesterday morning around 9:15, it hit me. At home, I'd frequently be standing at the bus stop heading in to shop at the Carrefour in Figeac. There, we are speeding along the Lot River in the countryside. Here, we are creeping down one lane of Esplanade (road repairs have begun) on our downtown, very urban path.
Walmart is huge and familiar-I found everything easily. The checker looked at me a little strangely when I told her I didn't need bags, I was on the bus and would put it all in my backpack. How nice to be able to practically walk out the door to the bus stop, and have the bus waiting there. I'd forgtten our habit of putting one or two things in a plastic bag. I arrived at the bus stop-hands free-backpack full-to find shopping carts parked and other shoppers hands full of bags, bags, and more bags.
I got home about 11:45-a morning of makin' groceries in New Orleans, not unlike my mornings of making groceries in France. Oh, the scenery is a little different, the people are more diverse, I don't have to walk as far to and from the bus stop, and everybody speaks English so I don't have to struggle so hard with my French. Who'd have thought my life in France would have trained me well for makin groceries New Orleans Style!
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