Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire
  • Mood: happy
  • Music: Clandestine, "The Nobleman's Wedding."

We give as we get, because that's how the world keeps turning.

I asked Mom if we could go by the mall tonight after I got off work. "Sure," she said. "What for?" I told her there was a store I'd heard about called "Justice," and that they might have Monster High dolls. Mom, who is endlessly tolerant in some ways, thought this was a fine idea, and away we went.

Now, for the last month or so, we've been haunting the usual stores looking for the new beach assortment, the ghoulishly-named "Skull Shores." There are five dolls in the assortment, four of which have been released (the fifth, Draculaura, will be joining the set in the next wave of releases. This keeps you coming back to the shelves, even when you think you're done). We hadn't been able to find any of them.

We reached the mall, parked, and made our way to the Justice...where I immediately found all four currently available Skull Shores dolls, AND several Toralei dolls (the werecat I recently had wonderful people hunt for in Australia). I gleefully grabbed one of each of the Skull Shores dolls and, after a moment's consideration, snagged a Toralei as well. I wanted to compare her paint to the Australian version of the same doll.

Now, Mom and I go to Toys R Us a lot. I mean a lot. So we've come to know the people who work there pretty well, and one of them, M., also buys Monster High, for his little girl. Her favorite is Abbey Bominable, who is damn hard to find, and the reason that her father has also been awaiting Skull Shores anxiously. After a little more consideration, we grabbed a second Abbey. I paid for my toys (40% off the whole store!), and we decamped for the Toys R Us.

We took Abbey and Toralei inside, Abbey for M., Toralei to show the manager, since he's had people asking for her. M. was on lunch, and the manager said we might be able to find him outside. We went looking. Upon finding him, I thrust Abbey at him, going "Look!" He was very excited, since, well. Hell hath no nagging like a little girl in want of a specific toy. I explained that I hadn't found her inside, but we'd grabbed a second in case he needed her. He stared, and said (without handing back the doll—I think I would've lost fingers) that he had no cash on him. I affirmed that I knew where he worked.

Happiest. Dad. EVER.

I showed him the Toralei, so he'd know what she looked like. He asked, excited, whether they had another of her, too...so I handed him the Toralei. Dude, I have mine, and I am happy to play toy mule for actual small children. Tomorrow, I shall return to Toys R Us to get reimbursed for toys, and tonight, when he returns home, M. shall be a hero.

Karma is important. Pass it along.
Tags: be excellent to one another, good things, shopping, so the marilyn, toys are nice
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lilrongal

November 18 2011, 02:54:41 UTC 5 years ago

You are MADE OF THE AWESOME.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 02:56:57 UTC 5 years ago

Didn't give up mine, but...when I know there's an ACTUAL KID looking for a doll in my ACTUAL HAND, why not make the effort if I can? You know?

hoppytoad79

5 years ago

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adelheid_p

5 years ago

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wcg

November 18 2011, 02:58:20 UTC 5 years ago

You are awesome!

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 02:59:34 UTC 5 years ago

I like people being happy. :)

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seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 03:00:17 UTC 5 years ago

Making kids happy and toy store employees well-inclined toward me is a delicious peanut butter cup of goodness. ;)

wiredwizard

November 18 2011, 03:00:41 UTC 5 years ago

And to think all I look at at the toy store is the LEGO section...

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 03:07:46 UTC 5 years ago

Hey, we look at what interests us.

deakat

November 18 2011, 03:01:34 UTC 5 years ago

Thank you for doing that, and for telling us about it. <3

You make me smile on a regular basis (when you're not making me think thinky thoughts), and that's a very good thing.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 03:07:55 UTC 5 years ago

I am glad. :)

vulpine137

November 18 2011, 03:02:19 UTC 5 years ago

You rock on so many levels.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 03:08:07 UTC 5 years ago

Aw, thank you.

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seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 03:08:23 UTC 5 years ago

Yeah, I figure toys should be loved and played with whenever possible.

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seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 03:09:29 UTC 5 years ago

You are also awesome, and toys are important. :)

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

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evieeros

5 years ago

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evieeros

5 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

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eilan

November 18 2011, 03:14:58 UTC 5 years ago

*points to the icon*

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 03:18:34 UTC 5 years ago

*beam*

hoppytoad79

November 18 2011, 03:17:42 UTC 5 years ago

Once again, you prove you are made of pure awesomeness.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 03:18:42 UTC 5 years ago

Aw.

dormouse_in_tea

5 years ago

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rhodielady_47

5 years ago

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hoppytoad79

5 years ago

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rhodielady_47

5 years ago

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glinda_w

November 18 2011, 03:23:12 UTC 5 years ago

<3 (*wordless appreciation*)

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:15:55 UTC 5 years ago

<3!

mutantenemy

November 18 2011, 03:24:28 UTC 5 years ago

You are quite the awesome human being. :)

My Spectra that I finally found at Target on sale? She is haunting my nightstand. Soon I shall set all 5 dolls up in their directional/elemental correspondences and take photos. Why? Because that is how I witchy roll.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:16:10 UTC 5 years ago

I appreciate the way you witchy roll, and I hope to see those pictures.

fayanora

November 18 2011, 03:29:25 UTC 5 years ago

Cool!

BTW, last night I was thinking about how you said you have a 40 hour dayjob. I'm astonished that you can work a 40 hour dayjob, keep up on TV shows and reading, do all your writing, and do everything else as well. Did you go to Wolfram and Hart to have your sleep removed?

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:16:33 UTC 5 years ago

I wish...

sirriamnis

November 18 2011, 03:37:43 UTC 5 years ago

You are the best person in the entire world.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:16:51 UTC 5 years ago

I am not the best person, but I try to stay on the nice list when I can. :)

lysystratae

November 18 2011, 03:44:40 UTC 5 years ago

Ser, that's part of why we love you.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:17:00 UTC 5 years ago

Aw.

Thank you.

alicetheowl

November 18 2011, 04:10:01 UTC 5 years ago

They mentioned on Good Morning America the other day how Monster High was "the hot new toy" this Christmas. And then one of the guys on the show said incredulously, "Is she in a COFFIN?" like it was the edgiest thing he'd ever seen.

And that is why we don't turn on the TV in front of me before the caffeine has kicked in. Because I'm STILL grumpy about it.

Anyway, at least there are going to be happy kids with morbid toys to play with on Christmas morning. And good on you for helping out a no-cash-on-hand dad.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:17:38 UTC 5 years ago

To be totally honest, if I didn't know him, I wouldn't have done it. But I bought the dolls knowing I might be keeping them, so it's not like I was dying for the funds, and M.'s good people. I trust him.

alicetheowl

5 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

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aircrash

November 18 2011, 04:10:24 UTC 5 years ago

this post made me smile, and i've been having a frowny-face kind of day. you're a good person. <3

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:17:51 UTC 5 years ago

I am glad to have brought you smilings!

dragonsally

November 18 2011, 04:17:19 UTC 5 years ago

What a wonderful thing to do.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:18:11 UTC 5 years ago

I figure if you don't do wonderful things when you can, no one will feel the need to do wonderful things for you.

dragonsally

5 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

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paragraphs

November 18 2011, 04:17:56 UTC 5 years ago

your tag 'be excellent to one another' is awesome, as are you and your mom. :)

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 04:18:23 UTC 5 years ago

Thank you. :)

groblek

November 18 2011, 04:24:45 UTC 5 years ago

You pebble (like rock, but cooler according to a friend). Thank you for sharing stories like this. It's amazing how much happiness can come from small acts of kindness.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 15:12:40 UTC 5 years ago

Happiness matters.

ducktape74

November 18 2011, 04:33:39 UTC 5 years ago

You are made of win and awesomesauce. <3

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 15:12:47 UTC 5 years ago

:)

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seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 15:13:41 UTC 5 years ago

If it's the toy you really, really want, that is TOTALLY what you remember. And I'm so glad you got your Cabbage Patches! I never did those, but when there were new My Little Ponies...hoo, nelly.

paksenarrion2

November 18 2011, 05:07:14 UTC 5 years ago

I've had kind of a crummy week but this just made the whole thing better. You made a Dad a hero to his little girl without thinking about it, and sadly that is a little rare nowadays.

We need more folks like you. :)

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 15:13:55 UTC 5 years ago

We all just need to be good to each other.

thedragonweaver

November 18 2011, 05:15:30 UTC 5 years ago

I am reminded of that sequence in Connie Willis' book Bellwether where the protagonist goes looking through every toy store in the major Denver area in order to find one particular (faddish) Barbie. (As I lived in Denver at one point, I think I even know the Target that was the final success.) Toy hunts are not for the weak, that is for sure. Good for cutting that short for somebody.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 15:14:26 UTC 5 years ago

I remember that sequence, too! Toy hunting is fun, but yeah, especially when you work retail during the holidays, having it truncated must be lovely.

sheistheweather

November 18 2011, 05:20:44 UTC 5 years ago

Aw, yay!

sheistheweather

November 18 2011, 05:29:31 UTC 5 years ago

I have a Breyer Shetland Pony that my dad went all over town to find for me when I was 8 or 9. I still have her; her name is and always will be Cassie.
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