shopping with the enemy

I went to Walmart on Friday.

I had to buy a wedding present for friends who were registered there.

It was probably the 3rd or 4th time I've ever been in that store.

It makes me feel weird, like I'm afraid the employees and other shoppers will suddenly recognize me as an interloper and kick me out, or take me in the back and brainwash me into a loyal Walmart consumer.

I know it's not just Walmart with less than sparkling business ethics. It's just that they are the biggest and most visible, blatant example of what's wrong with our consumerist society.

I fully understand that my avoidance of Walmart will not fix anything, nor wash my hands of any guilt. That's why I try to avoid shopping in general, buy fair trade products when I can, and send the odd annoying letter to companies who need a kick in the pants.

I must confess that I did buy some kitchen implements for myself while I was there (I'm not completely immune to the shopping bug).

I also saw nuns there. I did

n't know there were nuns in Medicine Hat.

Now I do.