Cart Return

Today we broke camp to go shopping for food and supplies. I haven't driven the motorhome in over a month, so it was nice to get the tires rolling. It's never good for tires to sit a long time, they need to roll around. Also the generator needs a monthly exercise to keep the carburetor happy. Usually 15 minutes is plenty, but today it ran for hours.

It was pretty warm, so at my first stop at Dollar Tree (everything is $1) I fired up the generator so Harley dog would be comfy in air-conditioning while I could shop without wondering if  my pooch was  turning into a grilled hot dog.

It's been so long since I shopped that when I left him behind in the comfort of his rolling dog house, he gave me attitude. I park far from the store entrance, since I need 2 end to end spots to fit in.  I had already hiked a good ways when I heard him bark and howl. I marched back through the parking lot, right up to the window of the RV to shake my finger at him and remind him to STAY. I told him STAY means I go, you stay, and you be quiet about it. He hung his head in shame, looking away from me. This time when I walked away he was silent.

He is so spoiled! I leave all the window shades up, so he can patrol his surroundings from any angle. I left him water, dry food, wet food, toys, a comfy bed, two throw rugs, I mean he's never put into a kennel or cage. (I refuse to own one.)

I am a slow shopper, still not used to the ton of variety available. In the Caribbean islands, where I lived about 23 years, the choices were few and chaotic, so one had to be very flexible about the lack of choices and the scarcity of supplies.

I like to peruse the Dollar Tree for cleaning supplies and food items before I hit the pricier grocery store. A $1 dog toy fell into my basket, but I like to save that for a treat at another time. I don't want him to think just cause he guarded the motorhome in a parking lot while I shopped he will be spoiled further. Ha, he is spoiled no matter what.

But it sure is FUN to come back to the RV, unlocking the door to be greeted with enthusiasm, kisses and a jumping bean for a doggy. I put him on a leash, he leaps out the door and stands in the parking lot tethered to me, while I empty out the shopping buggy. Then we lock the RV, walking together, while I push the buggy back to the front of the store. He loves this reward! Cart return! Yippie!

On the way back to the RV, we look for landscaping that he can water. Then we get back in our wheel estate to head for the next stop.

At every stop he almost always get a little outdoor exercise before we move along. If there is a cart to return, then by all means we take it all the way back to the front of the store together. Because of an old shoulder injury, I often do push a cart out, even when I haven't bought much. The physical therapist that worked with me years ago, said it was best to balance my load (half in each arm) or push a cart.

At one quick stop, I came out carrying a small bag with one item and no cart. Poor Harley, he looked a bit crestfallen. But I took him on a quick walk to go sniff a tree and see if it needed watering.

All in all he was a good little doggy.

Harley sometimes lays on the head rest of his passenger seat so he has a commanding view.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SHOP AMAZON
Let your fingers do the walking...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~