Where do you see the most happy people?  In a bar or restaurant? At the beach? On a cruise ship? Actually, those places are often jammed with people TRYING to be happy.  But if you want to be among truly content, satisfied people, look no further than your local home improvement or farm store.  Regardless of their economic status , men and women  congregate in home improvement stores, every hour of the day, any day of the week.  They don’t have to dress up; they’re relaxed, and they’re shopping for something to improve their lives.   I’ve never seen an angry person walking through a farm  store.  Here in Flyover Country,  these are  places where happy people hang out.

Most of these stores started out as something simple.  Rural King was where you went for chickens.   Lowe’s began as a hardware store.  Menards was originally a pole building business.   These retailers slowly expanded, and appeal to customers who are quiet and serious, and enjoy shopping for toilets and cone flowers. Couples wandering the aisles in these places seem more content than the average twosomes you see elsewhere.  Let’s face it, you must have a fairly good relationship if you’re looking at new kitchen cabinets.

Unlike department and clothing stores where fashions fade each season,  what you buy in a home improvement store is going to give you  a longer lasting enjoyment.   I’d rather have dirt in my fingernails from planting roses  than bright, acrylic fingernails that will chip and crack.  I’d rather wander the aisles at Rural King eating free popcorn, than try on bathing suits at Macy’s.

Now of course, you won’t  set foot in these  down-to-earth places if you’re the glamorous type.   But I have to tell you, a new rose colored light bulb will  do more for your reflection in the mirror  than a slathering of expensive Estee Lauder foundation.

Maybe that’s why stores like Macy’s and Carson’s are closing, while  places like Menards are expanding all over the country.   These are happy people hangouts.