Top Five

The top five items on my Facebook feed this morning are as follows:

• PTA
  
• potholes
  
• problem-solving
  
• pork pies
  
• personality type
  

I'm seeing a pattern here.

Today's blog is brought to you by the letter P, and by the number 5.

Saturday evening Margo was at a party which left us with an unexpected opportunity for a dinner date. We didn't have a lot of time, so we chose from amongst the many fast-casual establishments nearby. After ticking off quite a few, we settled on Baja Fresh. Which brings me to one of my pet peeves: the parking lot at Dobbin Center.

No matter how many times I go there, I can't shake the feeling that there is something intrinsically wrong with how the parking is laid out in relation to the shops and restaurants. It is difficult to navigate in and out of the lot itself. It takes forever to maneuver around the lot, and the most desirable spaces are inevitably filled. I wouldn't go so far as to say that it's a soul-sucking experience, but deflating? Depressing?

Definitely.

Despite the expected commute from our parking place to our dinner, we had a delicious meal and enjoyed the chance for an impromptu "date". When we were finished eating, we realized we still had some time before we needed to pick up Margo. My husband, king of bargain hunters, wanted to pop into Ross. I did not.

"I tell you what," I suggested. "You go to Ross, and I'll go over to Panera and pick up some pastries for Sunday breakfast."

We were having a satisfying pedestrian experience at Dobbin Center. Parked car once, went to three easily accessible places. It almost felt like--gasp--walkability.

I'm looking forward to ongoing improvements in Columbia that will make it easier to park the car and have a pleasant pedestrian experience. But, for last Saturday night, going from pet peeves to pastries was pretty sweet.

 

 

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