Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Something I didn't know would be annoying until I had a child

Today I visited T. J. Maxx (my favorite store) with Benjamin. We were on borrowed time as it was time for his nap and he doesn't generally do very well shopping (Steven has trained him well :). He doesn't like being strapped into the cart and doesn't want to be held, naturally, he just wants to run around (which isn't appropriate in a store that contains many collectibles and fragile items). Thankfully, he did really well! It helped that I had a baggie full of animal crackers....anyway, my point.
Upon arriving at the store, I noticed that he was a bit wet and needed a new diaper. We traipsed to the very back of the store, trying to manage the cart while holding him. I happened to have a cart with a funky wheel, which I have a knack for finding. As I struggled towards the back of the store, I made my way through two heavy steel doors into the bathroom, trying to locate the diaper changing caddy. I notice a sign for it on the last stall (of 10 stalls), the handicapped stall. All the other stalls were empty, but this one was occupied. I immediately think, great, someone is being selfish using this stall when they could use any of the other stalls...Then, I caught myself, trying to be less judgmental, thinking, maybe this person is elderly or incapacitated in some way. So, I wait a couple minutes with my squirmy boy, and....out walks an able-bodied 20-something girl. ARRRGGGH. She says, "Oh, I'm sorry, were you waiting for this one???" This is the second or third time this has happened to me since having Ben. Its a struggle not to be annoyed.
However, I need to be compassionate. I used to be that girl, thinking, nobody is around, the spacious bathroom would be nice. But now that I am on the flip side, I am much more conscious of using handicapped stalls in the future. If you're reading this, be conscious of those who might be needing the bigger stall for legitimate reasons...like a disability or a dirty diaper. Thanks!

1 comment:

Kirsten said...

Hey, I'll add to your rant....what about when the Men's Room doesn't have the diaper changing table at all?

Or is that something Jim makes up?