Still on my post-conference high, I stayed in Boston an extra day last weekend to visit two long-time
friends, Laura and Stef. We went to college together
before I moved to California and
have remained great friends through the years and time zones.
 |
| Look at those adorable bellies! |
Laura and Stef are both about to become first-time moms. I
think it’s super cute they’re pregnant at the same time and due only a few
weeks apart. I spent most of the day staring at their adorable bellies and willing
one of the babies to kick hard enough for me see it.
Laura picked me up at the hotel on Sunday morning, and off
we went, chatting like we see each other every day. Later, Stef joined us for a
quick lunch and an afternoon of apple picking.
Apple picking seemed like the perfect activity for a warm
and sunny fall day. I could almost smell the hot apple cider and the freshly
baked sugary doughnuts. Suddenly, the apples seemed secondary.
On our drive to the orchard, we chatted about babies and
ultrasounds and baby carriers and strollers. They asked me questions, and I
offered reassurances, remembering my own pregnancy jitters.
The fall season rushed to greet us as we drove further from
the city. Golden and fiery hues were just starting to appear on the leaves, and
the familiar smell of fall seeped into the car. I was thrilled to experience
the beginning of the color change, which we don’t have in California. It made
me miss home.
We ooh’ed and ahh’ed over the vast New England houses with
their large front porches and red front doors. Their expansive lawns were
already littered with a few fallen leaves. I imagined fathers raking them into
piles while joyous children jumped into the heaps, re-scattering the leaves
everywhere. Growing up here must be wonderful, having childhood homes and
memories made of this.
After a pleasant and cozy afternoon, we drove back to Laura’s
house in the city, armed with a bag of apples, jugs of cider and a sack of
doughnuts. (Not all the doughnuts made it home.) We continued our baby conversations
in the car, over dinner and into the evening. We talked about nursing bras and
maternity pants and the difficulties that come with putting on shoes with a
growing belly that won’t budge.
I felt a little melancholy that California doesn’t have
Laura or Stef or a proper fall season.
You know what else California doesn’t have? Grocery stores with lasers. (How’s that
for a transition?)
Before lunch, Laura and I went to the local Stop & Shop, a popular
grocery chain in the Boston area. When we entered the store, Laura grabbed a
strange looking device from a rack. It looked kinda like those guns you use at a
department store when you register for your wedding or baby shower, only this one
was way cooler.
I asked Laura what it was, and she explained that she can
scan and bag all of her items as she shops. Then at the checkout, she scans a
code on the screen, and her entire order shows up. Then she swipes her credit card
and she’s done. No taking your items out of the cart. No waiting for someone to
bag them. No waiting in long checkout lines. They even have slips that print
out for you to scan when you weigh your produce. Genius!
Riddle me this, people. How is it that I live in Silicon
Valley, an area known for its techy geeky nerdiness, and I still wait in line
at the grocery store without a laser? This
area is, like, 99.9%* engineers or something like that, yet we don’t have such
a thing. That’s seriously messed up.
Okay, it’s possible that other parts of California may have
these fancy grocery store lasers, like maybe in Los Angeles or somewhere, but
not where I live.
With every beep of Laura’s laser, I ooh’ed and ahh’ed more than
I did over the big houses on the way to the apple orchard.
(Side note: Stop & Shop was actually one
of the sponsors of the conference
I went to last weekend. I had no intention of writing about them since they don’t
have stores in my neck of the woods, but after seeing the lasers, they totally
deserve a mention.)
As it always goes, my visit was too short. Monday morning
quickly rolled around, and Laura dropped me off at the airport. I suppose my
next trip out there will be to visit their new little ones after they arrive! In
the meantime, I will bombard them with cute baby nursery images from Pinterest.
*That’s probably not
right.
