Alfred (Or Actually Rachel), Let's Go Shopping

So today Rachel and I did our overly extravagant Valentine's Day shopping.

Why are we doing such a thing two weeks beforehand?

Well, I never know how Rachel is going to feel on our days off. She's pushes herself so hard at work and that usually overtaxes her and she will sometimes feel like doing something and sometimes just wants to crash. We planned to do a really dig Valentine's Day this year because a.) we got a lot more money than expected back from our taxes and b.) last year she had a broken leg and was in rehab, which brought us down. So this year I really wanted to make it special for her.

She wanted a Nintendo DS. The Brain Age commercials have gotten to her and she just wanted something to help her focus more. Rachel rarely asks for big things. It's not in her nature and when she does ask for something I do whatever I can to get it.

So the plan was to go, get her a Nintendo DS and some games and to get me some action figures and trades. I'm really easy to please and I find such gifts romantic because they Rachel knows I want them and she wants to give them to me. Like I said, we'e doing really good with money and bills now after a very shaky start, so it was time to splurge a bit, especially since we don't normally do such things.

First stop was GameStop, where I we found a few games for the DS that Rachel wanted, including a new spin on a Super NES game she had called Tetris Attacks, which Rachel absolutely loves. This version was all Disney and has a Nightmare Before Christmas level (or more than one, I really don't know), so that was a lock. We asked the guy at the counter if he had a refurbished DS and he said no, so I asked for the black one and he said no, they didn't have any. Ok, I thought, we'll get one at Best Buy or Wal-Mart. No big deal.

After stops at Bath and Body Works and Yankee Candle (because nothing is too good for my baby) we went to Books-A-Million, where I picked up the Avengers Disassembled hardcover, the first volume of the over-sized New Avengers line, the third volume of Ultimate Spider-Man and the hardcover to Jeph Loeb's run on Wolverine because I really like Jeph Loeb. I also picked up this clearance Marvel DVD game, which looks to be fun.

So then we hit Best Buy, where not a single Nintendo DS was to be found. I asked the nearest associate and was informed that they ran out of them around Christmas and that Nintendo had lost the contract with the people making the chip, so there were none being made.

You ever get really mad? I mean can't see straight, fucker don't mess with me or I will eat your soul mad?

Yeah, that was me when that guy told me that not only were there none to be found there were also none to be made.

Thoughts flashed through my head. Thoughts like, "What they fuck are they still promoting this fucking game system for if they aren't going to be fucking making and fucking more fuck, fuck, fuck." I didn't unload on the guy because it wasn't his fault. I was clear headed enough to know that. But I was mad at Nintendo, boy.

My anger came from one simple place; Rachel doesn't ask for much and when she does she deserves it. She has had such a rough life and it seems that if something is going to go wrong it goes wrong for her. Because of this I see my main responsibility as her husband is to make her happy by whatever legal and financially responsible means necessary. I will figure out a way because she deserves it, mostly for putting up with my dumb ass but also because it's time someone put her above all else. This will change somewhat when we finally have kids, but for right now it's pretty clear to me.

So the thought that she wouldn't get the one thing she asked for because some company was apparently staffed by morons who couldn't foresee a contract problem made me "MIKE SMASH!" angry.

I sort of calmed down at PetSmart. She kept saying it was okay and that we might find one at Wal-Mart. After a time I looked at her and said, "You going to be okay if all they have is a pink DS?" Begrudgingly she said yes.

Thankfully, we found one at Wal-Mart. They had eight as a matter of fact, seven of which were pink but one was white. So tragedy averted and plans for me burning Nintendo to the ground have been put on hold. We even found Brain Age 1 and 2, just like she wanted.

The other part of my gift, btw, was a near complete set of the Fantastic Four Marvel Legends line of action figures. Normally these things are ten bucks a pop, but Wal-Mart had them on clearance for five. Boo yah! Only one they didn't have was the Silver Surfer, which is too bad because in the Build-A-Figure scheme of things the Surfer had Ronan's right leg. I'll find it though. There's always eBay, right? (Which did have some, btw, for varying prices.)

So overall a very good day was had by all. Rachel and I found some other little things we liked and I finally secured a copy of the Gross Pointe Blank/High Fidelity DVD combo pack, which eluded me at Wal-Mart but was secured at Target.

Now it is time to make sandwiches and watch the Jeff Dunham DVD Rachel got. A nice end to a really good if momentarily stressful day.

(My Icon is meant to reflect me at Best Buy, just in case you were curious.)