WALKING MY WAYS

WALKING MY WAYS. The Holiday Season is a must for shoppers. And non-shoppers alike. But one must depend on the cashier and their wands. For instance, the other day, I was at Target and bought some of their delicious $3.49 frozen dinners. Which were even on sale. But later that day, when I looked at my bill, I realized the wand had made a mistake, and I didn’t get my discount. But fortunately, a week later, I still was able to get my savings. And then I went to CVS for some Christmas lights. Which were clearly marked $7.99. And this time I checked my bill. Carefully. And I had been charged $5.99. Which was a pleasant surprise.

But it all goes to show the we are at the mercy of automation. Or cyber space. Or an unknown. Unless we look closely at every price and remember every digit. And at another store, the cashier thrust my $20.00 into a “seeing eye” machine, or something, to check for bogus bills.

I asked her if she had ever encountered any fakes. “Not so far,” she replied. And then added, “But if I did, I don’t know what I would do. Probably run.” Of course, whether that shopper would even know that their bills were fake, is another story. Which goes to show that maybe we should go back to keeping change in cigar boxes with mathematically inclined clerks, rather than automation.

Recently I was a passenger in a new Prius. At night. And I thought it daylight, as the headlights were so bright. Especially compared to my 7 year old vehicle. And so I went to Javier’s service station, across from the Carmel Police Station. And asked Jose to install two new assemblies. And once he did, I saw daylight. And at night. Thanks to his knowledge, ability and honesty. All for a very fair price. Which made me realize the importance, of a trustworthy, and honest mechanic, like Jose Javier. No cyber space for him. Luckily. Finis.