I think I am finally feeling old, well, some days. What gives me this feeling? Seeing time fly by quickly with so many changes. We all see beloved family, friends and acquaintances passing. Much less significantly, we see stores we enjoyed shopping at are passing. What brought on this realization?

First was the expected, yet sad loss of the sweet Jinxie, one of the most gentle little kitties who have graced our home, a few weeks ago. We knew the end was coming and treated her better than before. This did not make the morning when she gave up any less emotional. I’m not really sure of the impact on the two other fuzzy girls, Sweetie and Princess.

A while ago, I wrote about the closings of several favorite local, family-run grocery stores – Penn Dutch and Laurenzos (see 9-21-2019 post). When I drive to the Spanish grocery store once a month or so, I pass the long-abandoned and empty buildings that housed this amazing Italian market that for almost seventy years served the community. Even better than their imported merchandise was the great and inexpensive cafeteria. Then, when I drive north, going out of town, I try to find the Penn Dutch site which has long been built over. Nothing has come close to replace either.

A week or so ago, I heard a report that the last surviving full-store Kmart was set to close at the end of the month. To my surprise, the radio continued, one small Kmart store was still found in Miami!

KMart was my go-to place for shoes and unmentionables (bras). They had the best prices on Cobbie Cuddlers sandals and Thom McAn shoes – $24.99 a pair, and available in wide. The real attraction of both was that they were leather!

At Christmas, they often ran a shoe special – buy one pair at regular price, second pair one penny. Two nice pairs of warm boots served me well for twelve or more Seoul Februaries. They only gather dust these days.

Yes, as the stores announced their closing, I bought a depression-era supply of all I could find. I still have a few pairs waiting to replace the old ones when they give up the ghost. Two pairs of sandals recently did that!

Yes, I drove across town a few Saturdays ago hoping to find those items that needed replacing. And yes, the store is really small; no shoes or other desired items. It was mostly some food items, shampoos and conditioners, home goods, and holiday decorations (Christmas, that is).

As I drove home, I decided to take a look at the Big-Lots store near the University. I used to stop there regularly on my way home from work. For some time, e-mails announcing the close of these shops have crossed my desktop. Yes, this store was closing, great sales!

When I was a kid, my mom would take me to “odd job lots” stores in New York. These were stores selling remainders, goods that were outdated or from the previous year(s). In Oklahoma, I was introduced to “bent can stores,” same idea. Not just bent cans, but also out-of-date or gently damaged products. Not just food, but also decorating items, whatever fell off the truck.

I lucked out one winter years ago. The Hanukah menorah was half of half price … figure that out … a great bargain that we enjoyed many years. Another family with young children is enjoying it now.

A friend of mine and I lovingly went to “gourmet distress” stores because they frequently had imported items which now have come to regularly grace our supermarket shelves. Imagine two Oklahoma cashiers getting their first taste of Nutella, $1 a jar in the mid 1980s! Big Lots grew out of these stores. Not only did they have outdated goods, they had their own labels. Perhaps they got too big. Perhaps they were pushed out of the market by the ubiquitous dollar stores that are rampaging across the American landscape much like Walmart did decades ago. On the other hand, a quick Google, jut revealed a category of “Salvage Grocery” stores.

Maybe I’ve been beset with a wave of nostalgia. I really do not crave the so-called good-old-days. I really do not resist change, as Daughter frequently informs me. Well, not all change! I guess, perhaps I miss my routines, my expected patterns. I look back at the adventures and finds of the past. Perhaps I should think of those new experiences and finds waiting for me somewhere out there.