Lifestyle

About that time we won a trolley dash at the mall! {+ Lessons learnt}

Way way back….when dinosaurs roamed (according to my kids)….If you were an 80’s…90’s kid….you may remember wishing with all your heart and soul, to win the Reggies Trolley dash? #JustMe? I never did win…and I never got picked to play Sonic the Hedgehog either…..mxm…talk about ruining somebody’s childhood. Thanks K-TV! So in the 90’s, maybe early 2000’s I randomly entered a Father’s Day competition to win a trolley dash at the mall. Maybe a way to finally live my 10yr-old-Simone’s dream?

When the call came that I (and in essence, my dad) was one of 5 people in the draw for the trolley dash….I was excited, but then I was annoyed. 5 people?? You had to be there to be eligible to win. It was early. On a Saturday morning! Also, there were 5 people….you could go and NOT win! I won’t lie….my family struggled a lot financially….we were always living from one day to the next. I don’t think we even had petrol on this day to get to the mall, but my dad decided he wanted to go….so we went. My mom, dad, sister, brother and I….off the mall, full of hope I guess, but also trying not to get our hopes up. But also…the mall with my family, when I was a teenager….embarrassing. At least it was early, so hopefully not many people would spot me in public with them.

The Draw

Okay so the title kind of already gives away what happened…..but humour me….. There was a trolley that was chained with a lock and there were 5 keys. The dads all dutifully took their spots….and I think my dad left it to chance and opted to take the last key. So dad number 1 tries his key…..nope. The lock stays put! I am standing so far away from my dad and family….I’m really not about attention…and also, a family again, is like the plague you don’t want to be associated with in the mall. I’m watching from a distance…and when I see dad number 1 is unsuccessful…my heart does a little flip flop. Dad number 2….same thing……dad number 3……and this is it….dad number 4 needs to go (because my dad again, has opted to go last!). Dad number 4 puts his key in, twists, turns….. and then I just see my dad raise his hand with his key. He knows now….and he is happy to claim his title as Champion Key Holding Dad! #Victory

Reliving the memory…..makes me smile….and teary….. I can still see him raise his hand and that smile smug ass smile spread across his face….Like…I got this…and I always knew I did!

The Dash

Guys…..so we have the whole mall to dash through. 5 minutes only…..and I think maybe it was a R5 000 limit on the prize…I am not too sure. So winning was a lovely feeling…a proud one….. BUT now I had to RUN THROUGH THE MALL WITH A TROLLEY WITH MY FAMILY! Gals…I was MORTIFIED!!! What if my friends saw me??? Thank goodness there was no Facebook back then!

So it’s like an ‘on your marks, get set…..’ sort of situation…. My mom only had one shop in mind. She’s a mother, she cooks and feeds her family…she was aiming straight for Checkers! CHECKERS of all places! If there was a reason to be more mortified as a 19yr old…. trolley dashing in Checkers with your family would probably be as bad as it gets. So they go….’GO‘ and off my parents go. My dad, I think headed into a cellphone store…because the poor man so badly wanted a new cellphone. My mom and siblings charge full speed ahead for Checkers….and I sort of delay-stroll behind them. Like…I’m here, but don’t make eye contact with me. #YouCantDashWithMe

I wish I remembered more….but I do remember my brother running with a bag of potatoes…my mom yelling for somebody to grab tinned fish (okay maybe not tinned fish, but it was something equally ridiculous)…..my mom trying to sort through bags of meat (lamb if I remember correctly). All of this happening, while I watched, walked close by, but pretended I actually wasn’t with them. Though maybe they remember it differently and I was the one running and looking for tinned fish! LMAO. If that’s true I’ll literally stab myself in the eye…..

Lessons learnt

Looking back I could kick myself for being such an asshole! I have kids now…  I love them more than life itself, to not participate in a trolley dash, because I was an idiotic teenager…seems like such a waste of time! That aside:

  • If you ever win a trolley dash, have a game plan! Crazy people running around with bags of potatoes…..I don’t know, doesn’t seem super productive.
  • One of your kids trying to pretend he/she doesn’t know you in the mall?? Make them hold your hand. Kiss them every few minutes as well…. Don’t let them get away with being assholes!
  • Cherish memories….. you never know when it will be one of your last…. My dad is no longer with us, but this is a memory that just makes me smile and laugh! I wish I was there, participating, celebrating that moment….so I could remember even more.
  • Maybe I wish we had Facebook back then, because this would have been documented…. We have no pictures…just the memories in my head. So maybe social media ain’t all bad you know?
  • Lamb is expensive….good on you mama for going for the meat!
  • Treasure your parents…treat them, if you are by the means, to things, to meals…to trips…. My dad didn’t manage to get the phone that day (the meat guys, was so expensive!! lol) and I used to joke how he was such a child when it came to wanting things. My dad was a computer boffin….he missed out on Facebook, really COOL cellphones, Tablets, etc….I’d give anything to go back and make sure he got whichever phone he wanted that day 🙁

We really didn’t have petrol, so it was painful when we had to do 2 trips, because the car was too small…so dad had to go home, offload and come back. Also, we lived in a flat…on the 2nd floor….so that was fun..carrying all those packets up those flights of stairs!!! NOT. We got home and we were exhausted…and wondering if we could sell the food for petrol for the next day! lol. Ahhh good times!

Have you ever won a trolley dash sort of moment? If you were ever one of those kids….THOSE KIDS who actually won the Reggies Trolley Dash…. or got called to play Sonic the Hedgehog, let me know! Literally that was the dream!

Disclaimer: All photos have been taken off www.pexels.com. 

 

I’m Simone, a mom of 3, a wife...obsessed with my family, makeup and books!

12 Comments

  • Vannah

    I loved reading this sis, had me teary and happy, all at the same time.
    LOL I remember running into Jets (next to checkers) getting some tops, not that I got all of them, cause you know…. Lamb 😂😂
    Such an awesome memory, I still have crockery that Daddy specifically wanted (not saying it’s no ugly but hey it’s something)
    Awesome advice.
    Thanks for this.
    ❤️

  • Charmaine

    What a read, This too brought a smile and wet eyes, memories flashing through my mind, almost reliving the moment. But yeah did we have lamb . and a 3 leg black pot. Awesome memories.

    • Renee

      Loved reading this. I love it when deserving people win stuff. I was one of those kids that wished for that Reggies trolley dash. Whenever i went to the mall i would walk through Reggies and work out my route through the store if i should one day win. And i did win. Not a Reggies trolley dash but in 2016 I won a Exclusively Frozen trolley dash. As an adult i was so excited to fillnit with food. I started at the seafood section and load it with all the seafood i can not afford. I only had 1min but i managed to get R1500 woth of stuff. I was chuffed with my goodies that i got but i always wonder what toys i would have grabbed at Reggies.

  • Kajal

    This was such a fun read and I totally relate to the nostalgic essence of it. I often find myself thinking about how I should have been nicer to my parents when I was a teenager. It’s true that we only really understand once we have our own kids ♥️

    • Simone

      Definitely. I try to remind my kids….I was also a kid. You’ll hate me, be embarrassed, but lets fast forward through that, so you never have to have any regrets…you know? Thanks for reading Kajal <3

    • Simone

      WOW! That’s awesome! A week’s worth of food is good loot!

      The one time that happened to my husband at Spar….he had bought stuff worth a whopping R87 bucks! I was annoyed…LOL. I don’t think we ever only spend R87 at the Spar, but Murphy’s Law on this day……

  • Megan Keith

    Oh my word, I always wanted to win the Reggies Trolley Dash! Ah, childhood dreams! My mom did win a trolley dash competition once at our local Engen One Stop shop, of all places 🙈 And we were about to go on a family holiday camping, so she used the opportunity to stick up on all the food we would need for our trip. I wasn’t with her when she did the dash, but I remember asking her about it afterwards, and she said she felt so greedy, running around grabbing things off the shelves. But we did have some awesome treats, we otherwise wouldn’t have had for our camping trip! Megan xx

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