a day on harbison blvd.

As ash and I have mentioned before, we are now finished with exams and home for christmas break!  Along with this season comes sleeping late, arts and crafts (of course), and trips to the mall.  If you're from columbia, you are familiar with the two or three miles that cut right off of I26, affectionately (or not so affectionately) named harbison boulevard.  This stretch of traffic includes almost everything a shopper could need: wal-mart, best buy, target, sam's club, 2 movie theatres, various small businesses and restaurants, in addition to a mall with a belks, sears, dillards, jc penny, and other attractions.

I've been spending a lot of time on harbison lately and encountered a few notable adventures during this time:

• i have been reminded of how much i hate driving, especially in columbia.  for example, the other day i was taking a secret route behind petsmart to avoid traffic (because it stresses me out) while also talking to my friend lauren.  an older couple passes along the secret path perpendicular to me, and next thing i know an older lady in the passenger seat is motioning something to me.  i squint my eyes and realize she is motioning in giant gestures and screaming for me to get off the phone!  i didn't know what to do next so I just continued to drive home
  
• i have also had several run-ins with the hair straightener people at the mall.  they try to get me every time!  the italian-looking men always say to me "sweetie, can i ask you a question," at which point i either run, laugh, or tell them i have to go to work.
• also...today at the mall an old man in a wheelchair mumbled something unidentifiable to me and shot me a giant stare!
• shout-out to my summer roomie brooke, who escaped from LP and paid $2 to stand inside a hurrican simulator!  i, too, noticed a HURRICANE SIMULATOR in the mall today.  whatever happened to gum ball machines?
• also made the GIANT MISTAKE of going to lowe's to find my dad a christmas present.  usually, i wouldn't consider going to lowe's a mistake, but this time i went without any idea of what to buy him, so i strolled down every aisle and even the garden center looking for a present for my dad before i got overwhelmed and peaced.

moral of the story: avoid harbison at all costs.  and if a lady motions at you to get off your phone, smile, lay it aside, and consider how many other numerous weirdos exist on our planet :).