Just Another Day at Ross

September Writing Challenge - Prompt #30:

What The?!?

I'm always amused by the strange things I find at Ross. Take these shoes, for example:

Wow! Just wow! They're real life Barbie shoes! And possibly made from upcycled stemware.

Anyway, I enjoy a good trip to Ross. It's always feast or famine. There's either nothing to buy or way too much to buy. Earlier this week I popped into Ross for a few minutes while I was waiting for another store to open, and they had so much great stuff. Really. I had to practice a lot of self-restraint because they had some really cute fall decor like fabric pumpkins (that I don't need), garlands (that I don't need), and wreaths (that I don't need). I also fell in love with a set of Mason jar shot glasses for $3.99. They were so cute with their tiny handles and whatnot, and I knew my kids would go crazy for them.

But I walked away empty-handed because I'm trying to play catch up with the budget. And where would I put 8 tiny Mason jars with the cutest little handles of all time?

I am strong!

So strong!

While I was perusing the shoe section, I stumbled across these boots:

They seemed pretty normal at first glance, but then I noticed the strange little zippered pouch on the side…

What the?!?

What is the purpose of the little pouch? What does a person put in such a pouch? Is there a market for boots with pouches?

I googled “boots with zipper pouch,” and found lots of different boots with various secret pockets and mini receptacles. I personally don’t want to bend over to get my ID or phone charger out of my shoes, but apparently there are people who think that’s a good way to live. 

I guess if I happened to have boots with a zipper pouch, I could use them for storing the following:

• Vending machine money
• Ibuprofen
• Chapstick
• Ear buds
• Extra batteries
• Mints
• Dental floss
• Skittles
• Spare car keys

But I’ll be propping my foot up on a bench and asking passers by to retrieve my belongings from my pouch for me. “Hey, kid! I need you to get me a ketchup packet out of my boot. Help an old lady out!”