Why Do I Love Boulder County, Colorado? (Part 4)

I actually have a love/hate relationship with the local Safeway grocery store. I hate to pay the prices that they charge for their food! It often borders on highway robbery what Safeway charges for a carton of blueberries - $9.99/lb for 15.2 ounces today!!! No. I did not indulge. I'm no math wizard, but I don't think that's even a pound! In my mind I fuss and complain up and down every aisle as I load my shopping cart with the most minimal amount of groceries as possible. And yet I continue to shop Safeway - not for the big shopping trips. Those journey's are reserved for Target, my absolute favorite place in the world. But I can't seem to stop going to Safeway. . .and do you want to know why?

I LOVE Safeway because everybody knows my name! It makes me feel like Norm on Cheers every time I enter through the automatic doors. You see, it's the local "spot." For those of you reading this who live in Superior, you are shaking your head and you understand exactly what I mean. There aren't many places in Superior for locals to meet up. But at Safeway I can always count on running into multiple people I know. Even the ladies who assist me in spending way too much money in the checkout line greet me with a "Good morning, Mrs. Colon" before I even place my first item on the belt to be scanned. Those stocking the shelves ask me almost immediately where my girls are if by chance on rare occasion I get to shop alone. And I dare to say that never have I gone into the store when I have not run into someone from the community whom I recognize. And what does that equal? Talk, talk, talk. . . Kevin always wonders what takes me so long when I say I am just running out to grab one quick thing at the store. This is why.

In Superior we are a small town. . .small in comparison to Denver. . .enormous in comparison to my hometown, Princeton, KY, where EVERYWHERE you go EVERYBODY knows your name. Do I love Safeway? No. But do I love going to Safeway? Yes. For some reason in the middle of the hugeness of where we live, it makes me feel a bit. . .I don't know,. . . bigger.