Step 10- Shop elsewhere.

Picture this- you are trapped in a modern day wasteland. All that you can see are tiled floors and chain stores. You scramble to find an exit but are continually sucked back in by the sale racks. It's terrifying, it's foreign, it's shopping ANYWHERE but Fort Mac.

I do not like shopping for clothes. It is one of my least favorite things. But when the mercury drops to -25 and all you own are cotton sweaters, the experience of shopping becomes more of a necessity of survival than anything else. I had to get real clothes. Clothes made of wool and fleece and poly pro. It was time to shop big or go home.

It is hard to go shopping here in Fort because of the limited access. In October I went to the Mark's Work Wear House to buy wool socks and they didn't have any. The most recent shipment just hadn't come in. And that was it- there was no other place to go to buy good wool socks. Today I want to the store to buy a sewing pattern for some new pants, only to discover that the WalMart doesn't sell patterns here. In fact, NO ONE DOES. You can't purchase them in Fort. You just cannot get them! Every once in a while you run into a road block like that which reminds you that you live in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE.

Now, I know what you are thinking. “Kate, stop exagerating, we know you have a Zellers- how bad could it be?” You are partially right. We here in Fort are blessed with a Zellers, Walmart, and a Superstore in which to buy your clothes. We even have our own take on up-scale shopping: Suzy Shier. Here, take a look at the shoe rack at the local Suzy Shier:

And even groceries can get sparse. Smart people shop at the Superstore on Friday because the fresh stock comes in on Thursday nights. Here is the beef counter on a Tuesday, 3 days away from being restocked:

Note the LACK OF BEEF. Knowing that my options are limited and I am running out of time to buy warm clothes, I made the most of the week of meetings I just attended between Toronto and Edmonton. I got to see a bunch of friends in each city, and made each of them struggle with me through the arduous task that is shopping. But first, a picture of my airport dinners. Nothing like poutine and Battlestar Galactica to get you through your 2 hour delay:

Tanya met up with me in Toronto. She is my shopping guru. She is the only person I know who understands that I find shopping really personally challenging, and she times herself accordingly. Here we are enjoying the ONE photo we got together while in Toronto. Note the new hat she encouraged me to buy:

In Edmonton, I left the conference early both days to hit up the malls with my friend Brittany. We put in a good 3 hours on the first day, and then another 3 the following day at West Edmonton Mall. This was, perhaps, my most productive shopping. More sweaters, sports wear, and a bikini (it was on sale!). Here we are taking a break at West Ed:

And this is the teddy bear I ALMOST bought at Winners. Unfortunately, it didn't quite fit into my carry on luggage. But hey, check out the bag- I actually bought something! This is a new personal high for me!

Things are getting cold enough that I have to wear snow pants and boots when I drive out of town- that way, if I skid off the road and it takes a while for someone to find my unconscious body, I will last more than 15 minutes without heat. It is regularly -20. It doesn't seem bad when you have all your layers. The snow drifts in waves across the roads. And the moon is so bright and clear in the sky. It is actually quite beautiful.

Ha! As if Fort Mac looks like this. It is so Edmonton. I would have posted pictures of all my beautiful sweaters, but I really didn't think that would be of universal interest...