Most Likely To Be Approached

Once upon a time I was in college. One day, as my roommate and I were walking across the quad, a couple stopped me, "Excuse me. Do you know what's going on over there?"

"I think it's something for the anniversary of the first Earth Day," I answered.

As they walked away, my roommate asked, "Have you ever noticed how people always approach you with questions? I was here too, but they asked YOU. And the weird thing? You almost always have an answer - a correct or mostly correctly answer."

We laughed, but as I thought about it more and more I realized she was right. I remembered shopping for greeting cards in Mal-Wart one weekend I was home and being asked by a fellow shopper if I knew where the playing cards were. They were one aisle over.

Apparently I'm very approachable and non-threatening. About a month ago, I was in Target and decided to skim through the clearance shoes to see if they had anything nifty that would fit the girls. As I approached, there were two women in the end of the aisle blocking my way. I raised up on tip-toe to see if I could spot anything worth walking around the the other end of the aisle when one woman said to the other, "Let's ask her." They wanted to know what I thought of the pair of shoes they were trying on (they each had on the same style); were they cute? I agreed that they were cute. Then they told me they were on clearance for $6.oo. I bought a pair too.


It makes me wonder...what do I look for in a person when I need help? I can't remember the last time I asked a non-employee in a store where something was located...oh, wait. There was a time, maybe last year... I stopped in a Mal-Wart on my way home from E2's gymnastics to pick up a binder (I think) for E1 and I had to walk around a bit to locate them since it was past back-to-school time. I figured while I was there I would grab some laundry detergent, and so I continued to wander around aimlessly (it's one of those SUPER Mal-Warts) before finally asking a fellow shopper if she knew where the laundry detergent was.

"That's all the way back in THAT corner of the store," she said while pointed to the opposite corner of the building from where we stood.

I decided I didn't need laundry detergent that bad and just bought the binder.

But there's also the knowledge factor. Apparently I also know a lot of random information about a lot of different things. How do I know these things? Why am I able to remember these random things and not other, more important ones?

It still happens...in the grocery store, in Target, in the mall... Odds are, if you happen upon me someday, you'll ask me a question and I will somehow know the answer.

Yesterday, I was in a fabric store - a place I rarely am as I don't sew - and was asked by another customer if I knew where they kept the fabric used for making knit cuffs.

"Ummm, I think it might be over by that sign," I pointed. After all, I DID take Home Ec. in high school, so the idea isn't completely foreign to me. "Oh, but I'd bet he knows," I nodded in the direction of an employee. I watched while he led her off in the direction of the sign I'd pointed to, and resisted the urge to huff on my fingernails and polish them on my sleeve.