I Got "The LOOK"

Wednesday I finally could take the solitude no longer and ventured forth into society with child in tow. Who was I trying to kid? There's a store nearby where I can usually land hellaciously sinful bargains. $40 worth of brand spanking new merchandise for about $10 if I do it just right. Unfortunately, this particular store has an unusual and undesirable effect on dd. She absolutely hates it. Can't stand to be in it for two minutes. She wanted to go play in the toy section. That's usually where dh takes her when we all go shopping there. Well, dh was working. I couldn't very well leave her in the toy area to wreak havoc when I was at the other end of the store. So, that set the stage for the entire visit. The body slamming, head butting, began shortly thereafter. The annoying mouth noises and idiotic blathering escalated until my eyes were rolling in the back of my head. I tried to do the gentle discipline thing. Tried to redirect her attention. Begged for her to be nice and allow Mommy an enjoyable shopping trip. Then the guy asked for an "expert's opinion". Not mine. Dd's. About the plush character pillows that she had yet to see (as I had very craftily negotiated her around). Scooby-Doo and Dora. Which one was the most popular? He went on to tell me that he was having a hard time finding toys. I jokingly said "thanks for pointing these out" and I laughed. He got very apologetic. Gushed, as a matter of fact. He walked a few steps away and I said it was no problem. Then his wife came up and asked him what that was all about and he said "Oh, I asked her daughter's opinion on this and now she wants one and she's annoyed." About 4 feet from me. So then I had to listen to dd whining about wanting the Dora the Explorer pillow for the next ten minutes. I grabbed up a few shirts for the kid, barely looking at the price (which is so not me) and headed for housewares. I get the nicest egyptian cotton towels there on clearance. Dd stepped it up a notch. And then I got THE LOOK. A woman was looking at towels also and dd was busily slamming her head into my butt. I glanced up and she gave me the tiniest smile of commisseration. The sympathy was coming off of her in waves. I took dd to the shoe section, sat her ass in a chair, and dared her to move. She bellowed. "I want to go home!!!!" "I want my daddy!!!!" "I'm getting out of this chair!!!" People glanced warily but would not meet my gaze. I don't blame them. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirrored column. My hair was in disarray, my lips pulled tight across clenched teeth, and my eyes had narrowed to mere slits. I frightened myself. It was time to leave.