Update on Yesterday's Post: Found a Way to Turn It Into a Positive

If you didn't read yesterday's post (warning, it's long), I had a problem with my path to and from the bus stop being blocked by the apartment complex behind me. I usually take that path with my loaded down grocery cart, or lately, with my loaded down rolling backpack (since the grocery cart broke).
Well, that isn't possible anymore, which means I would have to walk an extra 8/10ths of a mile to get home.

One of the paths is blocked completely with a huge pile of cedar limbs, but the other only has some large logs across it, that you can get over if you go around the edge.

Finding a Way to Make It Work 

I was terribly upset yesterday, and didn't know what I was going to do. I was determined to turn this somehow into a positive, so I tried something today that seems to work. I walked to Aldi and took my rolling backpack. I only bought enough so that I could still lift it up and over things. I usually try to buy enough groceries for a couple of weeks, but I only got enough for a few days this time. When I got to the logs, I put the backpack up on the logs, went around them where I can step across on the side, then lifted the backpack over and went on my way.

So that works, unless they pile more stuff up there. I just have to make sure I never buy more than I can lift. What I did was I put my insulted grocery bag into the cart while I was shopping, and filled it with the lightest stuff I could buy (mostly fruits & veggies). I kept lifting it up to see how heavy it was. Then I loaded that and the groceries into my backpack and walked back home. I did have to purchase a bag for a bag of chips that wouldn't fit, but now I know to carry a a bag with me. If I have to get something heavy, like meat or canned goods, I'll have to make a few trips to the store that week, but that's just more exercise, so win-win, right?

It will cost a little more, but I can buy most of my canned goods at Dollar General, a few blocks away (no logs to climb over). I don't really eat too many canned goods if I can help it, but I like to have at least corn & green beans around just in case. I also buy all my cleaning supplies, paper products & toiletries there, and some OTC meds like ibuprofen, etc.They also have milk & eggs cheap, and a freezer section where some things are expensive, but they have regular sales on that stuff to move it, so I do get some frozen food there.

If worse comes to worse, and they block the paths completely with a fence or something, I found a shortcut through another complex that cuts the trip from the bus stop down to a half mile, so that's something. It involves cutting through another apartment complex, though, so I want to scout it out first and see exactly what's what there. I don't want to get in trouble with them and have them block the way or cite me for trespassing.

Claiming Victory Over a Bad Situation

So I'm turning this into a positive in three ways:

• It forces me to get out and walk more, because I can't buy all my groceries at one time. I will have to get a monthly bus pass in the summer and take the bus a lot, but I do that anyway.
• In the summer, I'll have to get out very early to shop if I'm going to have to go the long way. This will get my lazy butt out of bed at a decent hour, at least on some days. I tend to sleep in a lot in the summer.
• Since I couldn't sell my bike, I guess this means I should actually use it, so that is an option. The road that goes to Aldi has sidewalks all the way, so I can ride it down that way. If I get a large basket on the front, or a couple on the back, I can carry quite a few groceries. I need to ride that route empty first, to see if there are any steep slopes, because if there are, I won't be able to bring as many groceries. I've been afraid to ride my bike around here, so becoming more comfortable with that is a real positive.

Sometimes it's hard to see the positives in a difficult situation, but if you work on it, you usually can turn it around. What sorts of challenges have you been able to turn into positives lately?