T. J. Maxx -- Who Knew?

I had just completed shopping at my absolute favorite New York establishment: Trader Joe's... when the red lights of the T.J. Maxx sign caught my eye walking home on 6th Avenue.

Because I am stubborn, I refuse to take a cab. Ever. In 8 months of living here, I've ridden in one once, and that was because it was pouring outside. My theory is this: if a person has 2 legs, they should be used. Why would you live in a fabulous walking city like New York and not walk? The walk alone is the adventure- hearing 50 different languages on a 10 minute jaunt, the smell of sewage rising with the steam from the gutters, the candy peanut men on each street corner, beckoning me with his roasted, delicious nuts. Correction: cashews.

So, T.J. Maxx looked good. Maybe because it was a taste of familiar in a place that, sometimes, feels unfamiliar. I walked in and up the escalator, my body weighed down with brown bags full of almond milk, broccoli and walnuts (tonight was a night of good choices at the grocery), and into what I soon found to be oh-so-delightful. What did I find? Shoe heaven.

Fendi Boots? Why not? These silver studded beauties are no other than PRADA. All I know is that T.J. Maxx stores in Texas do not sell PRADA boots. They sell brands like MIA and Candies (no offense to shoe-wearers of such brands). Now don't get too excited. You are not getting PRADA boots for $59. They were once $1,500 and now they are going for the easy price of $899.

Can you imagine a woman from Tyler, Texas picking up a pair of boots at her local T.J. Maxx marked at eight hundred and ninety nine dollars? New Yorkers are a special breed, this I know for sure.