High Risk of a New Grocery Store
We all have our personal obstacles of adulthood. For some, it’s doing dishes. For others, it’s vacuuming. And laundry? Honestly, no one likes laundry. But my personal nemesis? Grocery shopping. Being dropped into a new store could only make things worse. So of course, a brand-new Trader Joe’s opens. Not just anywhere, but right off the road I regularly travel. Is this a sign? A trap? A test from the universe?
Meanwhile, Chantel decides to extend her Florida trip. Supposedly to spend time with her friend Summer (uh-huh, sure), but I’m convinced this was a Jedi mind trick to make me confront my grocery demons. I had two options: starve or shop.
Now, let’s be clear: we’re spoiled with options. Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Target, Costco, Amazon Fresh... the full buffet of grocers. But of course, no one stop ever has everything. Of course, you can’t ever get everything you need at a single spot so you have to decide ahead of time if this is a multiple stop shop or deal with whatever you can get at one. You need to get your mentals checked if you thought I was gonna be doing two stops.
Trader Joe’s it is. They’ve got elite, simple dinners. I was slightly comforted by the fact that we still had a stash of Mountain Dew at home, though the snack sitch? Dire. RIP snacks. You’ll be missed.
The plan was to swing by the University TJ’s after a run—yes, I had to go for a run. But Maps had other plans. Maps was pushy. A little too pushy.
I resisted.
Maps persisted.
Fine. FINE. I’ll check out the new Trader Joe’s. I’ll do it. I’ll be brave. I’ll be... efficient?
But let’s talk anxiety. New layout? Unknown parking? Will the frozen section still whisper sweet nothings to me from across the aisle? The fear of the unfamiliar is very real. Put me on a plane to a foreign country and I’m fine, but throw me into an unfamiliar grocery store and suddenly my anxiety spikes to 30,000 feet.
Still, I couldn’t come back empty-handed. Chantel would absolutely ask what I got up to while she was away, and I refuse to be the person who responds, “Uhhh... nothing really?” No. I needed a story. A triumph.
So I went.
And guess what?
Not only did I survive...
I thrived.
This new location? Dare I say—a revelation. The layout? A bajillion times better than any other I’ve visited. The parking? A literal dream. I was feeling so good I even got myself to a $5 kombucha. Treat Yo Self, baby.
Honestly, this trip had the potential to spiral into a week-long crisis. But instead? We hit big. We hit kombucha-level big.
Score one for the grocery hating adults.