So, my daughter's birthday was coming up and she was full of anxiety and dread, thinking about how it would be hard to have a 'good birthday' when there is so much going on in the world, school being suspended, the Covid-19 pandemic and all things worrisome at the age of 13. I wanted to cheer her up a bit, and I needed to go out for supplies, so I offered she come with, on the condition that she remained in the vehicle, for all stops. She agreed, so I thought she may like to go get some Tacobell, one of the kids' go-to on the normal monthly occasions that we would get takeout. We went through the drivethru and ordered the newest addition to the menu, the Triplelupa, we both had one, hers was a combo. She doesn't care for tomato and loves the Diablo sauce. She thought her sissy would enjoy the cinnamon twists more, so she saved those for Bronwyn. Genesis is a kind and gentle soul, always thinking of others and usually full of cheer. I sanitized my hands and the money, then my hands again. When parked, I would use bottled water and napkins, then sanitize again, still thinking about touching the money, Sheesh!
We parked in the Walmart parking lot to consume our contraband. We ordered for the crew back home too. The package was nicely warm. The shell was nice and crisp, not greasy tasting or too chewy and what was supposed to be hot was and what was cold, cold. The lettuce was crisp and the tomatoes firm. The cheese sauce had a bit of spice on the section where it was located. There are three. I never broke it apart, because I didn't want my hands all over it, then going into my mouth. The beef was seasoned properly and the same all the way across. There were a couple of extra sauces, making the segments a little different each, but it ultimately all tasted very similar. I liked it and so did Genesis. Maybe we were hungry, maybe a little excited to break from the home food norm, maybe it was really good. We agreed that we would order the Triplelupa again, though we don't know when that opportunity will be.
The Triplelupa is reasonably priced, around $3.50. We had answered the commercial's beckoning and went in for the kill. We parked easily 200 feet from the nearest person or vehicle. I only cracked the windows, just in case any cough germs blew by in the wind.
After chatting and nibbling with Gen for several more minutes, it would be time for me to make my way into Walmart for our essentials. Her meal and Sirius Satallite Radio would keep her company, while I jetted in, to get out. I went equipped with my trusty homemade sanitizer, jazzed up with 7 essential oils, including cinnamon oil, (that I initially bought for making homemade lollipops, that never happened) for extra germ fighting and soothing relief for superwashed hands.
I super sanitized the cart with wipes and speed walked through the least populated areas, picking up butter pecan ice cream and rainbow sherbet for an early surprise, and the
Addams Family movie, in case we weren't allowed out when her birthday arrived, days later. I also grabbed some Snickerdoodles from the bakery. I sanitized yet again. These items would serve as her birthday treats, early edition, uncertain as to what the days ahead would bring.
I had managed to get some smiles and laughs from Genesis and I was thankful. She had been a bit apprehensive about anything going well in light of our nation's current crisis and expected nothing really other than more gloom and peril, I assured her these times would not last always and that we would overcome this as we have many other scenarios with dire straits. Faith in God and country, in that order, helps.
A special shout out to the Triplelupa, for assisting in saving my daugther's birthday, little things do mean a lot. What would have been a most likely a soon forgotten moment under normal circumstances, became THE moment, that all the bad things went away and a beefy, crunchy, cheesy and 'Diablo' sauce doused menu item, became an unlikely hero. Yo Quiero Tacobell.
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