The Inconvenience Store

When I’m busy, the inconvenience store is on the corner of my road. The corner of my road has a very thin pavement, and the door is placed in such a way that it’s incredibly difficult to go into it when someone else is passing by, and someone always is.

When I’m not busy, and make the mistake of thinking ‘perhaps I should go to the inconvenience store’, the inconvenience store always happens to be on the other side of town. I often go to it nonetheless. I peruse its wares, and always find that it has nothing I want.

Traffic jam of various flavours lines one of the walls. Why would anyone want a traffic jam for breakfast?

There are pencils whose labels guarantee at least three breaks per lead, and pens which promise to have air bubbles at the bottom, so that they always look to be full of ink but never actually work. The stationary section also has rubbers which stain the paper and sharpeners which break leads, just in case your sketching was going too well that day.

The popcorn kernels they sell burn as soon as they pop, and the coffee is always lukewarm unless you make it for your boss. Their ready-meals, on the other hand, become scalding hot as soon as you put them in the microwave. If you try to heat them up in the oven, though, they remain fridge-cold.

How lucky that I have a world of inconveniences right at my doorstep. Shame they’re never there when I want them to be.