An Afternoon in Las Cruces

I took river to a pet store today called Pet's Barn. (sic) It just so happened to be the day that their computer network went down and they had to hand write all the SKU numbers on receipt pads, which took a long time. It was like finding a needle in a haystack. They were no more familiar with the SKU system than I am. As we stood and waited, I noticed what looked like a long dog treat that had been broken up into bite sized pieces on the counter. I picked one up and examined it and I asked, "Are these for dogs?" She answered, "yeah but those aren't samples, I don't know why those are there." Taking the one in my hand she puts it with the rest and pulls a large bag of dog food over them as if to prevent me from taking them? LOL Or to hide them? LOL "If you want you can give your dog some of these and take a sample pack from the basket."

The treats were actually pretty cool. They look like they come in different flavor varieties, and some have big flecks of color. I kind of want to try one.

Treat samples from Pet's Barn

 As I was sitting in my room, a woman came and asked if she could borrow 12.50 to help her daughter pay for a locksmith to get her keys out of her car. Ultimately, I had $10 in my pocket and it was worth the ten dollars not to have to feel like a heel and disbelieve her story. I did ask her though, "If you don't have the money, how will I get it back from you?" She didn't miss a beat and told me that her father was a truck driver. And they live right upstairs. Of course I don't expect to see that money again, but I like to think it made her happy as she drove off knowing she'd conned me.

I found a food co-op market that had late hours! And the weather was cooler, so I was stoked at the convergence with all of that and the fact that my motel room randomly happens to have a full kitchenette. So I left River in his seat, in the harness with both front windows half rolled down. It was after sunset and the temperature was quite cool. It had only been in the mid to high seventies that day. I was confident he'd be OK while I picked up a few things.

I made my rounds, but couldn't find the coconut milk. I asked a woman working there where it was and she walked me over to the coconut water. When I clarified that it was the milk I was after, she walked me back to the spot where her step stool was, and it was right behind us.

River and I spent all night in the kitchenette.

My bounty

I was cooking and eating and blogging and playing with the video camera. And River was pretty much just watching me.

 My cooler is restocked for a few days now. That's a relief. I have been on the road for almost a month now, living out of motels and driving all day. I've had the opportunity to cook in other people's kitchens three times along the way. So far, this is the first time I've had a kitchen in my motel room. I kinda like it! I was also lucky that there was a market in town that sold the kind of stuff I like and that it was open late enough, and that the weather was cool enough so I could leave River safely in the car while I quickly shopped. 

Las Cruces has been kind to me.