Sunday, September 17, 2006

Shopping Kismet

We had to get a few useful things yesterday, which somehow (inevitably) led to finding useless things as well. Target has some absolute WONDERFUL Halloween things. Their new emphasis on slick design has again led to snappy looks that make Halloween stuff fun, including a kind of Dia de los Muertos influence that made me buy a plate (a plate!) and made me contemplate buying other things. They don't entirely get over the cutesyness that has destroyed my desire to buy Halloween stuff in the last couple years, but it goes a long way toward restoring my faith in spooky products. Very cool, also -- Universal Monsters-inspired pants and shorts in the men's department.

We decided to dawdle just a little longer by swinging past T.J. Maxx to check out their Halloween holdings. After a lot of picking, we found a couple of interesting items and headed to check out. I turned around and the woman getting in line behind us had a Hello Kitty (adult sized!) folding chair. "Where did you find that!?" In the children's section, folded up, she said. Now, we had seen a good deal of Sanrio in the middle of the store, but mostly just bags. Here was something useful! We bulletted out of there and I grabebd the chair lying under a clothes rack, hoping to find more. It was apparently the last one. The other woman who had immediately charged to the back looked very disappointed. We also found a folding storage box, whoo hoo. Both, of course, for much less than their Sanrio stickers indicated as the original price. well, that stop was worth it!

Two bits of good news: the every fabulous and funny Lee Martindale has given a wonderful blurb for the print edition of Con-Eire, the play we debuted at Trinoc-con this year. She's so sweet! A nice blurb like that will no doubt encourage folks to pick up the book.

Also, Gerry Henkel tells me that my piece on traveling in search of ancient Finland will wind up on the cover of New World Finn. Wow! That's great. It probably helps that I had a bunch of pictures to go with the narrative. Yes, which reminds me I still haven't posted them. This week -- I hope!

All right -- I have a date with Hrotsvit right now.

4 comments:

CL said...

We just went Halloween shopping this past Saturday...isn't Target's Halloween stuff AMAZING?!

The design is right on...I will be returning!

Are you thinking up a costume for the party?? :-)

The Queen said...

Congrats on the New World Finn!

-QOE

C. Margery Kempe said...

Thanks, Queen!

Cheryl -- I am thinking of a costume, but I need to find and unpack one essential part. I think I know where it is...but if not, I'll think of something else. Or got back to Target -- maybe I shoudl have got that candle holder...!

C. Margery Kempe said...

No! Huh -- I looked them up on line (ain't the internet great?!) and they're just in the northern Midwest. But I didn't think of looking at hardware stores. Hmmmm -- maybe we should!