I tout this as some grand adventure, and I convince her to stop at Wal-Mart in South Carolina so we can buy some cheap reading glasses because apparently I have my "read printed things" glasses on my head and not my "see while driving" glasses.
She is very excited. We are in Charlotte, and I'm going to drive us to the next state! It's amazing! It's exciting! It's sensational! It's adventurous!
It's also only four miles away. This simple fact is the one I fail to disclose to my daughter. When we cross the border between states about ten minutes after leaving the hotel, my daughter is both happy and deflated. She expects more obstacles on our way, but we are in South Carolina as easily as if we are going for bagels across the street from our lodging.Just like the Goodwill store, this Wal-Mart is immaculate. The staff is friendly and the people shopping aren't pushing or jockeying for better line positions. As a matter of fact, it is so unlike New England that we feel like we've gone to another country not just another American geographical region.
We snap a couple of pictures for friends, texting them that we are in Clemson country. Then I head over to the reading glasses, which is why we came here in the first place. I select a lovely teal blue pair, a shade that doesn't remotely match the black and white I am wearing, but I don't care for the $6 price tag.
