Day thirteen, as unlucky as it sounds

Well, it had to have happened sooner or later. Both my appointments today weren’t expecting me. It makes me wonder what’s happening with the world. Each place was contacted several times in advance. Maybe everyone in today’s world is traveling in the fast lane and they just miss each other unintentionally.

All was well with the first appointment, though. I arrived at 10:30am at Teacher’s Touch in Myrtle Beach. No, they hadn’t been expecting me, confirmed Carolyn, the sales clerk. "That’s too bad," I said. "I’d really hoped to see John Reeves again. He helped me so much 15 years ago." Teacher’s Touch was the very first parent-teacher store I’d ever approached.

Carolyn got John on the phone and, to his credit, he stopped renovating his house and drove over to the store to see me. We had a good visit, reminiscing about our first meeting 15 years ago, when John had a much smaller store and I had only one title under my belt. Since then, John’s store and customer base has really flourished and we have gone from one title to more than forty.

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Seeing John [left] was definately the bright point of my day. His store [right] has changed a lot since the last time we spoke.

John showed me around the store. His busiest season is during March break and the summer, when teachers and parents are on holiday in Myrtle Beach. You can find him at: 2610 S. Kings Hwy in Myrtle Beach. His website is: www.TeachersTouch.com. He offers 10% all year long. When you stop in, tell him "Sara sent you."

After leaving John’s store, I was dreading the next drive, which was at least 3 hours, to The Friendly Apple Education Center, (also known as Mid Carolina Office Equipment). Maybe the second name is more applicable since I didn’t notice too much friendliness. After four hours of driving (and many service station stops confirming directions), I excitedly managed to arrive on time. Unfortunately, Lydia, the owner had gone home, feeling ill. Briana, the buyer, felt she was too busy to come out of the back to meet me, so I met with Norma the clerk. I’m sure you can imagine how I felt. I dropped off the samples and didn’t stay too long.

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Norma [left], the sales clerk who accepted my samples. I guess I left in such a hurry the shot of the inside of their store [right] turned out a bit blurry.

The last photo you see here is of Mario, I snapped while checking in at the Fairfield Marriott Inn, Orangeburg, SC. I wanted to capture his buoyant attitude. Mario is my hero of Orangeburg. He works as an HIV AIDS educator/advocate by day and at the hotel reception at night. The minimum wage and pay here in South Carolina is close to $5 an hour. Most people must work two jobs in order to survive.

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My hero, Mario.