What a girl wants, what a girl needs is a pair of flip flops

I'm on my way back to the hostel after hours of wandering around the Upper West side, when I realize that I forgot to pack shower shoes. I turn on my heels and head to the corner drugstore, we'll call it VCS. After searching the isles, I ask the guy at the counter if they sold flip flops here. He looks at me sideways and shakes his head a slow-mo "no". I ask where I could find some and he suggests I head to Broadway where the clothing stores are. Then I look at him sideways and say I'm looking for shower shoes, but okay. On Broadway I find VCS's competitor stores, MiteAid and DrainReade, both also coming up short. I exit to the street and begin to consider showering in socks when I spot a Payless! If THEY don't have what I'm looking for then ...

I'm walking down the isles and realize that all they have are fall/winter shoes. How hard is it to find some flip flops up in here? It is at this point that I start to realize just how Californian I really am. Where I grew up, flip flops are sold rain or shine. Shoe stores, drugstores, no wait, supermarkets will have them on one clearance isle or another ... even in October. But this was like ordering a custom burger at the drive through; the result is falling waaaaay short of the expectation. So as a last resort I ask the sales associate what is the closest flip flop-esque shoe that she has in the store. "Here," she said, surfacing a lone pair of white and glitter gray Women's C9 sandals by Champion.

That'll work.

Fifteen dollars later I'm a happy camper, speed racing it back to the hostel before the sun goes down. All clean and ready for bed, I told the roommates my shoe story, and they informed me that I could've gotten shower shoes at the hostel. Womp womp.