But, first, some backstory.
Readers of How I Paid for College will remember the inception of Creative Vandalism, one of the parts of the book that's almost entirely true. (As opposed to turning to a life of crime, which, hello, is not.) The originator of the idea was a real high-school friend from Jersey, Lisa Sloan, who now lives a mile away here in Oregon and is the mother of my godchildren.
So who better to come with me to Trader Joe's on a busy Saturday to perform some Random Acts of Slyness? Our goal was for each of us to sneak something into a stranger's cart. Just in case our mark actually ended up buying it, we chose something both cheap ($2.29) and yummy (Trader Joe's Chocolate Caramel Tartlet Cookies.)I was done with my shopping before I was able to finally find someone who abandoned their cart long enough for me to park next to it while I did some sleight-of-hand. Lisa was far more bold, simply waiting for a shopper and her toddler seated in the cart to both turn their heads. A moment later a store employee approached us.
"Everything okay?" he asked.
I nearly lost bladder control.
Lisa and I then stalked our prey and watched while they both paid for the tartlets, not even noticing the goods as the checker bagged them.
Perhaps nothing better demonstrates the point of my Do Something New project than this exercise. With just a shift of emphasis, something onerous and dull became an adventure, a chance for two friends to have fun. At someone else's expense.
What could be better?
3 comments:
LOL...great idea, gotta try that next time i'm in T.J.'s ! :-)
Or maybe Home Depot, I could slide something totally weird, like a toilet snake (sounds perverted doesnt it) into someone's cart when theyre not looking... 8^D
Mike
Newark, DE
It's only perverted if you slide the toilet snake into the person.
Now that would be definitely be new. And actionable.
I LOVE this, though I'm way to rule abiding to ever attempt it.
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