Preaster

Those of us who aren't actively religious still acknowledge certain traditions at this time of year, just like humans have done since mankind began. Certain religious rituals are harmonious with the notion of renewal that comes with spring. I know fellow Catholics who haven’t seen the inside of church in years, yet still give something up for Lent, sincere or otherwise. I actually gave up beer for about ten days, well short of the required forty, a damnable offense I’m sure.

Today I bought a traditional ham, as well as some secular Easter stuff; hollow chocolate bunnies, three dollar cupcakes, cards, and some tulips. A couple of weeks ago I bought home tulips from Wegmans for the first time and was pleasantly surprised by the quality. Under Mama Wordbones practiced hands, they lasted twelve days, which is not too shabby for grocery store tulips.

I didn't buy a Wegmans ham. I would have but I only needed a small one, just like the ones they sell at the ham store in Dorseys Search. It used to be called Heavenly Ham but that company was bought by Honeybaked. I don't care what they call the place as long as the ham is the still the same .

At the ham store they were rigged up with stanchions and rope to handle Christmas sized crowds but I breezed right through. The cashier told me that this was just an abnormal break between storms. I was just lucky. Then again it was the middle of the work day.

It was a very quiet day at our office. It’s Good Friday and good Catholics don’t work on Good Friday. I figure there must be an awful lot of good Catholics because all the office parking lots in Columbia were empty but the retail parking lots around town were buzzing. I forgot to check the church parking lots.

There was one other thing I couldn't get at Wegmans, an iTunes gift card in a denomination below fifty bucks that didn't say Happy Birthday. Their stock had been depleted so from the ham store I headed to the Giant where I spotted this impressive display of spring flowers. I decided that for a non religious guy like me, today was more like pre-Easter than Good Friday, or Preaster for short. A Friday in spring when work slows down and people buy flowers in grocery stores.

Happy Preaster!