Steeltown Blog #2: "Convenience doesn't begin to describe it."

At the corner of Sixth Street, a super short walk from the hotel, was a corner 7-11.

Now, I was born in Michigan, I spent the first four years of my life there, and i've gone back several times. So I'm not unfamiliar with the 7-11 franchise. But we don't have them in Houston. This means that for most of my life, I have somehow managed to live without the indescribable goodness that is... The Slurpee.

Allow me to say in all seriousness, if my soul wasn't already mortgaged to Target, I'd seriously make an offer to the 7-11 folks, simply on the merit of the Slurpee.

You can keep your ICEE's and your Slushee's. They're cheap knockoffs. Cheap floozies and whores in the frozen beverage world. They cannot compare to the Beatrice of the slushy drinks, the Venus of the corner store.

Needless to say, I had three.

But the utility of the 7-11 didn't stop there. I woke up late on Saturday and almost missed my class. As I was power walking down the street, I realized that I had to eat SOMETHING, so I stopped in and got the breakfast of champions (chocolate milk, Starbucks Double shot, little chocolate donuts, and Diet Pepsi). Without 7-11, I couldn't have concentrated on plain language in medical documents for 10 minutes, let alone 3 hours.

The final boon of having the oh so convenient store so close by was something I took home with me.

Growing up, I'd watch the Bozo show, on WGN. If you remember, and i'm sure you do, there would be a game involving pingpong balls and buckets. The prize for the last bucket was always a Schwinn bicycle and a "crisp, clean, ONE hundred dollar BILL!" But what was the prize for the first bucket? Archway Cookies. A year's supply, I think. I always thought that was kind of a crap prize.

Couldn't. Have. Been. More. Wrong.

I ate one package of the chocolate ones during my four days, and took another home with me. That alone was almost worth the trip.

So thank you, 7-11. You rock.

And by the way, happy 40th birthday, Slurpee! Baby, you look mahvelous.