Scoring Hits of ‘Fantastic’ as We Lose Our Country

By Nancy Colasurdo

“Do you want to go to IKEA and maybe hit a diner for lunch?” my neighbor asks.

It’s a random Thursday.

Hell, yes.

A shopping-lunch combo? As a Jersey Girl, this has been my sport since my formative years. I don’t do a ton of shopping these days, but my God do I love it. Retail therapy rings true for this human, emphasis on the second word.

I’m trying to process thousands of my fellow Americans getting laid off for no good reason except they work for the federal government and our president is unhinged. And still reeling from the Zelenskyy meeting in the Oval Office. And gulping as The Felon and the Adolescent Billionaire telegraph the dismantling of Social Security.

Yes, by all means, let’s go to IKEA.

I decide to give my new Clark’s silver sneakers a test run, so I sparkle a bit as neighbor and I head out. I don’t own a car and she does, so that’s an extra treat. We drive out of our urban town in the New York Metro area and make our way to suburbia, where the multi-laned highways are lined with big stores and more big stores. I like visiting this world.

Now we’re in IKEA. I haven’t been to one in over a decade. I have no agenda except to maybe pick up a few items that would enhance my life. Focus on needs, not wants.

When I was training to be a professional coach, I learned to sometimes ask clients to create a list of small changes that would improve their daily lives. We’re talking about things like, change the bulb in the ceiling fixture, replace the shower curtain that ripped in the corner. Things that on their own might make you feel a little better, but all together would make you feel fantastic once done.

This is the kind of list I have in my head. I’m about to practice what I preach and … spoiler alert … it’s a rousing success.

I see metal measuring spoons and grab them. The ones I have at home are plastic; the tablespoon is snapped in half and has been for months. Score.

Wait, what is this bright yellow thing? A lemon squeezer with a mesh piece on the bottom to catch the pits. I make lemon salad dressing almost every day. A game changer.

Hold on, are those gorgeous “poppy pink” flowers really $1.49 each? I have a treasured glass vase at home just sitting idle in my closet. Boom. New arrangement in my living room that I get to admire every day.

Oh, look, pots and pans. My frying pan that I use daily is so beat up that the surface is iffy. I pick up a new one and two days later I’m flipping eggs for the first time in years.

At the checkout I see one of those little tote bags that folds down to nothing. I’ve been wanting one since ruining my last one by breaking a bottle of red wine in it … while in a store … glass shards and red liquid everywhere, prompting one laughing cashier to want to grab a glass to put under it. The replacement was a whopping 99 cents and it takes up so little room in my handbag that I want to let out a cheer.

We were in that store for hours. Picking up this. Imagining that. Do I need dish towels? Not really. Put them back. What about this charcoal gray throw for my couch? Actually, yes.

Within 48 hours of this outing, I had the hit of “fantastic” I was seeking. Turns out there is a control angle here. While the oligarchs take my country for a reckless spin, I can make my life a little smoother and get a kick out of over-easy eggs and vivid flowers in my home.

The outing was topped off by pleasant conversation and one of my favorite things to order in a diner -- a fried flounder sandwich (hold the bread), with fries, cole slaw and a pickle.

The day after we shopped, it occurred to me that it wouldn’t have been a bad idea to check up on IKEA’s record around DEI. Oops, hadn’t thought of it in advance. Turns out it’s a thumbs up on that front:

Equality, diversity and inclusion turns our workplace into a home

At IKEA, you’re welcome no matter where you come from, what you believe, what you look like and who you like to snuggle up in front of the TV with. We don’t even care how you organize your kitchen cabinets. We’re interested in you simply because you’re you.

There’s a breakdown on their website of not just gender inclusiveness, but trans and refugee. They promote social entrepreneurship and co-worker resource groups, among other things that feel forward-thinking and humane.

So yes, it was a day well spent and I continue to reap the rewards, but it can also feel like a mere blip of peace in our frightening times. I came right back to news of irresponsible mass layoffs, our allies tragically having to shore up resources to fight without us, an egomaniacal escalation of a spat with sweet Canada, a wildly wacky stock market, a gratuitous car lot on the White House grounds … I mean, how much time do you have?

This is our norm now, people.

String together some blips of peace. Otherwise, the downward spiral will grab you as it descends.