Walmart: Because I know where the excitement is at
So my stop at the Walmart Supercenter on Monday night for a toothbrush and a short list of other items turned out to be a bit of an ordeal. First of all, that place is enormous and it takes forever to find things. After about an hour of hunting, I finally had everything I needed and proceeded to the checkout line. I had just piled all of my items onto the checkout belt when lights began flashing and my ears were assaulted with shrieking beeps. “You’re lucky – you’re the last one out of here,” the cashier said to the shopper in front of me who had just finished his transaction and was headed for the door with a cart full of goods.

"Fire alarm! Everyone must evacuate!"

Fortunately, the weather outside was pleasant. It was getting late and I was exhausted and dying for my bed, but I wasn’t about to leave all the items that I’d spent so much time tracking down. So, I decided to wait it out in the parking lot. Soon, the firetrucks arrived and firemen in full gear headed into the store. A young mom in a similar plight as myself struck up a conversation with me and we kept each other company until the firemen cleared the store and allowed us back in.

I found my way back to my checkout line and the cashier (who reminded me of Napoleon Dynamite) began ringing up my purchases. Unfortunately, he was rather new to the job and made a few errors along the way . . . slowing the process. Finally, he totaled my bill and I handed him a gift card to pay. No luck. He had to call a manager over to help him. It was nearly midnight by the time I got out of the store. I'm pretty sure it was the most drawn-out Walmart excursion EVER. Oh well - at least I got to brush my teeth with a real toothbrush that night.