e's Favorite Things: Crap You Didn't Know You Needed at BB&B and L&T

You gotta love springtime in Chicago. One day it's 40 degrees and hailing, the next day it's 80 degrees and humid. A side effect of these wild swings in the weather is that nearly everyone in the city gets sick at one point or another. And now it's my turn.

I started sensing that I might be coming down with something late last week, when I woke up with a tickle in the back of my throat and that gross "sick taste" in my mouth. Sure enough, as each day progressed, I felt worse and worse. Now I'm totally disgusting and have a small pharmacy of meds in my bathroom after a doctor's visit yesterday.

But before my sore throat spiraled into complete and utter grossness, I thought that I could perhaps fight the battle against germs in one small way: I would get new pillows, a new comforter and anti-microbe cases for both my mattress and my pillows.

So this weekend I trekked all around my neighborhood... to Linens 'n Things, to Bed Bath & Beyond, and then back to Linens & Things (I found another 20% off coupon, hooray!). While I was a good girl and stuck to my list of items I needed to get, I couldn't help but marvel at all of the crap I desperately wanted to get. I am now convinced that these stores pipe some sort of magical vapors out through their ventilation systems to make people go crazy and buy ridiculous gadgets and unnecessary toys.

Do I really need an inflatable, floating house? I don't even have a backyard, much less kids, much less a pool! But dammit, it was awesome and was only $10. I found myself thinking, Who do I know with a pool... I will get this for them! Then I stopped myself and forced my legs to keep moving...

... Only to be drawn to the weatherproof recliner the next aisle over. Hmm, now that I'm writing from home, maybe I should get outside more often. Wait, what? There's a complete set of deck furniture for only $200? Must... get... out... of... here...

I had almost made it to the safety of the check-out line when I spotted a wine bottle opener that converted into a thermometer that could then transform into a back massager. I HAD TO HAVE IT! (OK, so maybe I made that one up, but you know there are crazy things like that in these stores!)

Back away, e, back away, I told myself. I paid for my new pillows and got the heck out of there.

After I was back in the fresh air, I realized that I seriously need to spend several hours in both Linens 'n Things and Bed Bath & Beyond one day. Yeah, some of the stuff they carry is over-the-top, but other things really are cool. I owe it to myself to thoroughly investigate the crap I didn't even know I needed.

Ice Cream Ball... here I come! (Seriously, what IS that thing?)

- e