Was it genuine concern for others, or am I being too hopeful?
In order to keep the peace toward the end of our shopping trip to Meijer on Sunday, I asked Gladys for a few pennies so The Kid could ride Sandy the penny pony. Sandy is an iconic part of the regional chain's history, enduring longer than tag-lines like "Meijer Thrifty Acres" and concepts like Sagebrush or SourceClub. (Sorry for the Meijer trivia, I was an employee during high school and college. Some memories are burned into my head, including some of the lyrics to Merry Meijer Christmas.) Anyway, The Kid loves carousels, so I thought Sandy would be a welcome diversion. I was right. After her second ride, I had exhausted my collection of pennies. When she got down, she was busy inspecting the horse and asking me to name all the parts of the saddle. Then she noticed three pennies sitting on Sandy's base, and wanted me to put them in so she can ride again. "Not today, baby. You've already had two rides, and those pennies are for kids whose Mama or Papa d