Day 45 - I just wanted to use the fax machine

 I just wanted to use the fax machine 

Matthew Ryan Fischer

 

There was a line. Unexpectedly ridiculous. How was there a line for a fax machine. In twenty-twenty-three. I ask the question, mockingly, ignoring of course the fact that I myself was in said line. Really one person was there to check a PO Box. Another was shopping for greetings cards. Don’t get me started on that. That’s a whole other level of ridiculous. Going to a mail box store to shop for cards. Especially when there was a dollar store two doors down. Like even if you didn’t care about cost, there have to be better quality cards at just about anywhere than here. Drug store. Grocery store. Office supply store. Ummm, a card store? Yeah, no, there was no way that a store focused on mailing things was going to have the best cards out there. I’m sure who ever was about to receive said car would truly appreciate it.

 Here I was trying to avoid… what? The time delay of the US postal service. What multinational business wouldn’t accept paperwork via email? And what sort of fool couldn’t be bothered to download an app so he could send an efax from his email or pdf program? Me, that’s who.

The woman at the front of the line was on her phone. I would think she would want to finish her business and get out. But apparently not.

The lady at the counter was talking about vaccines and the manager of Costco who died Sunday morning before the Superbowl. As if those things had anything to do with the one another. Of course no one was supposed to die at 42. And they really weren’t supposed to die mere hours after completing their game day food supply shopping, but hours before the game began. What a waste. The manager being 42, not the food. Of course I guess technically it was a waste to waste that food. But that was maybe something the family and friends could take care of. Either way, bad. Death is bad. Not knowing any of the medical facts and spreading vaccine misinformation is probably also bad. Thinking it was a tragedy simply because the man went to church was a bit ridiculous. As if church goers couldn’t have high blood pressure or bad eating habits. Or get a brain aneurism. Or a million other things.

Still, what a loss.

Not to mention the manager of the bar next door who died at 37 two days ago. But he apparently didn’t go to the right church to make the counter woman’s list of tragedies. And of course there had been a school shooting and 5 kids died. But you can’t worry about that because guns are like right up there with godliness or something.

I hope Costco can survive.

With all the delay, the man shopping for greeting cards took a turn at the wall of self-help books. Because you always sell those when you sell boxes and bubble wrap. And of course I was distracted by the NFL memorabilia, so who am I to judge or complain?

Ten minutes, seven dollars, and a twice repeated Costco manager story later, I was able to get a confirmation printed. I double checked the number and triple checked once I was in my car. I’m still not convinced. For a six page document, I’m thinking that somehow the wrong pages will have gone through and I’ll be back in a couple of days trying to resend materials. I could spend those days looking into cheaper and more effective computer software. But if I did that, I’d miss out on the riveting conversations.