Interlude II

It's only two weeks before the day we are leaving and the list of things to get done beforehand is growing. The route has not been plotted out; we haven't decided on a northern or southern trajectory.We have made no hotel reservations. We haven't even looked for our passports in case we have a need to slip into Canada, or perhaps to wave them to authorities as we cross the Arizona border.

So what have we been doing in preparation for our big trip? Those are all small details.We like to think large, so we have been giving President Obama a hand with the economy. New car? Check. After all, the current one is 11 years old and major things have been going wrong for the last few years. And we may not find a Volvo dealer in Kadota, South Dakota. (Although it's highly unlikely we will go near there, we passed through there once on a previous trip. It was so much fun to call home and say. "Hi, I'm in Kadota, South Dakota." It slips its way so deliciously rhythmically off the tongue.) But I digress. The new car is also a Volvo. And 33 years after that phone call there are plenty of Volvo dealers should we need one.

We have planned ahead just a little bit on wardrobe. Now here we have run into two vacation maxims, both of which sent us out yesterday on the first of our shopping expeditions.

MAXIM 1: Khaki pants that fit perfectly last summer, when carefully hung in the closet, shrink over the Winter! Now I know many of you have experienced this as well. Perhaps it's the dryness in the air that does it, but since we can't wait around for the August humidity to see if they revert, I'm going to have to buy new ones. I'll probably buy a larger size, too, although I'm certain I don't need it, just in case the dry desert air in Arizona attacks my new pants the same way. I can't think of any other explanation for it.

MAXIM 2: You just know that all of the tops, shirts, and sweaters you have accumulated for many years, some of which you wore just this week, suddenly (a) become baggy; (b) become dated; (c) are wrong for the activities you think you will do; (d) make you look like a tourist; or (e) all of the above.

So shopping we went, and a few things we bought. To judge by the folks in stores and at the mall, there is no lack of patriotism. Democrats and Republicans were buying in equal amounts. (Poll accuracy +/- 3 points). It's truly country before political party when it comes to shopping, and we were proud to be part of it.

I was people-watching as I was eating my lunch in the food court - a very good slice of pizza from Regina's - and was left with one unanswered question: If these are the same people who are buying bagsful of new, stylish clothes, why do so many of them dress so badly?