the gravy boat (and chocolate!)

OK, let me explain. A few days ago, I spotted a JC Penney flier among the stacks of catalogs and carry-out menus in our mailbox. Normally this flier would go straight to the recycling bin along with the rest of the junk mail. However, I noticed a coupon on the flier for $10 off any purchase over $10. I was pretty sure that meant free. I don’t spend much time at department stores and I felt certain I would have no need for 90% of the items at JC Penney. But I figured the store would have housewares, so surely I could find some necessary kitchen gadget I didn’t already own.

So on Saturday Tim and I participated in a most enjoyable cold-weather-day activity, which is taking a stroll around a giant suburban mall. (Let me recommend the Natick Collection as Massachusetts’ best mall.) Once we made our way to JC Penney, I spotted a nice white gravy boat on sale for $11.99 from $20. (Side note: Have you ever noticed that everything seems to be on permanent sale at department stores like JC Penney, Kohls, and Sears?) As we got to the cash register, I had a moment of panic when I spotted rows and rows of Godiva confections. I now had a choice between one gravy boat or three bars of seriously dark chocolate. I looked to Tim for advice, but he wisely declined his help, knowing I would hold him accountable if I regretted my choice later. I decided to be practical and go with the item that would give me longer-term satisfaction. To my surprise, the gravy boat rang up as just $8! Again, I froze — I now needed another item to bring my total up to $10! I became very stressed (for about 10 seconds) until Tim, who is not easily flustered in these situations, reminded me that a chocolate bar would solve my problem.

So let me summarize: One $8 gravy boat + one $3 bar of Godiva dark chocolate = $11. With $10 free, my grand total came to $1! Basically, my best dollar find to date.

Tagged: coupon, dark chocolate, Godiva, gravy boat, JC Penney