Shining Beacon of Failure

A friend once told me a story about working a high school band camp in an area filled with camps that other schools used as well. A hazard of using a Long  Ranger to speak to the band while out on the field is occasionally picking up communications using the same frequency. After a not so pretty run through, over their speakers came "Well that was a shining. beacon. of failure." from (presumably) one of the colleges rehearsing nearby. The kids all laughed because they knew it wasn't from their own instructors, but it became an oft used phrase the rest of the week and one I borrow occasionally.

I'm working on my second beacon of failure for the evening. The first was my initial foray into the wide world of being a Shipt shopper. I wasn't expecting miracles on my first attempt, but as an experienced grocery shopper, I was also expecting to be better at it than I was. Shopping for other people is hard though, even with an itemized list. To substitute an item, you need to text the client and get an OK. Sometimes you have to ask employees to help you sort out three different kinds of plums (that all look the SAME) to find the ones requested. Sometimes you discover that while one store keeps bread crumbs with the baking items, another keeps them with soups. (Why aren't they with BREAD?!?)

I was late which makes me 0 for 1 on timely deliveries right now. My shopper rating doesn't look good.

Failure number two is currently burning on the stove, despite my best efforts. My second attempt at vegetarian "burgers" are crumbly messes that are scorching to the bottom of the pan. I got cocky and messed with the recipe from my first attempt just a little too much. I also just realized that I failed to make my usual sauce that can generally cover a multitude of cooking sins. Dinner's going to be late. And crunchy.

The Universe is often better than I'd like it to be at kicking me in the pants every now and again. Sometimes though that kick in the pants is a great reminder of two things:

1. While we maybe be better at some things than others(give me 50 beginning band students any day), others have different knowledge (shout out to the awesome woman who doesn't even work at the store who kindly pointed me in the direction of a cleaning item I could not find).
2. Being out of our comfort zone can make even "simple" tasks difficult and it's no fun feeling so lost and at the mercy of others.

Luckily the day is nearly done so my bruised ego can recover a bit and I can better strategize for future shopping trips. Also, while my failed burgers don't look particularly appetizing, they don't taste terrible.

It's almost like we learn from trying something new and occasionally falling on our faces.