I took a trip tonight. It was to a magical land where prices are low and possibilities are abundant. A place where you can get what you want, get it for cheap, and get more for your hard earned money in these difficult and trying economic times. At least, that is the smoke which is blown up our butts.....
I had a list of things that were needed by me and my wife Sarah, and they were as follows:

windshield wiper blades, one 17 inch and one 22 inch
three bottles/tubes of lock de-icer
(possibly wiper fluid)
a bra for the misses
socks

From that list we came home with the following:
a bra (but not the one sought after)
socks

I think the Rolling Stones have it backwards in this case.
Wal-Mart is said to be this great place as i described above, but it is basically a glorified convenience store. You get what you want, but nothing you need. Our car takes 2 different sizes of wiper blades and in every brand Wal-Mart, all of the 22 inch blades were gone. The bras were the wrong style and size. (side note: we found a size 42G. FORTYTWO G!) There was NO lock de-icer, and the guy in automotive said they only got in 2 units. The worst part is that because of the length of the list, we justified the trip to Warsaw, and have very little to show for it.
Was there a lesson learned? No, not really. It will happen again. I have faith in the system. I'll sadly keep going back, clinging to the hope of a slim chance of getting what I need. Next thought: why do I keep trying Starbucks coffee products when every time it cramps up my intestines? Same reason, i suspect. What do i really need?