Instant Gratification: Only a Few Years Away!

Number of volcanoes at last night's school science fair: 7
Reading: The Last Juror
In the Attic: How addicted are Americans to being instantly gratified?

It was time to get Binta a new bed. A "big girl" bed. After all, she had just turned three, and was still sleeping in the crib-converted-to-a-toddler bed. I figured that getting the new "big girl" bed would be a good motivator to get her out of sleeping in my bed. I searched online, and found the ideal bed at IKEA. It was the bed that I would have chosen, had I been a kid again. The bed is assembled at a mid-loft height, with ample space underneath to fill with storage needs, or leave open for additional play space. It featured a blue tent-like canopy covered with twinkling stars, that arched over the head end of the bed. The bed was perfect in every way.

So I packed Binta up and headed to IKEA, luring her to the car with the "We're going to buy you a Big Girl Bed!" She excitedly came along. Once at the store, we followed the IKEA maze to locate the Kid's department. And there it was. Just as beautiful and perfect as I had imagined it.

Although I didn't imagine it having a tag attached saying, "Temporarily Oversold."

What exactly does that mean, anyway?

Well, according to the IKEA associate, it means that we're not taking the bed home today. I quizzed the young woman on exactly how long it would take to get the bed.
"Four weeks," she said.

I was baffled as to how something like this could happen in America.

Instantly, I began reflecting on the numerous examples in our lives of being instantly gratified with whatever one needs in our country.

• Fast food providers on every block.
• Instant credit, no money down, and all of the other sales lures that allow you to take home merchandise that you cannot afford.
• Cash advance shops that will give you money so you don't have to wait until your next payday.
• DVDs have replaced VHS tapes, so now we don't even have to wait the several moments for the tape to rewind.
• Cars come equipped with TVs, so we don't have to wait to get home to drug ourselves with our favorite programs.
• Digital cameras - why wait for developing? You don't even have to wait and fret about if your eyes were closed or not.
• We don't have to wait until we're home to take a phone call. Cell phones allow us the luxury of answering in the middle of a meeting or a movie.

I came here to get a bed. And you're telling me I have to wait? So, I did what anyone else would have done. I searched around the store for a different bed. One that was not temporarily oversold. Unfortunately, after trying out all of the other beds in my mind, I came to the conclusion that I could not substitute the perfect bed with one that was in stock. I ordered the loft bed, left my contact information, and turned to leave.

The worst part of the experience was yet to come. Now, I had to explain to my child that we were not going to be getting the Big Girl bed today that I had promised. I told her that this store didn't have any Big Girl beds. Only Little Girl beds.

I think our culture is in bad shape, friends, if waiting is the biggest thing we have to fret over.