But does he show up for career day?

Pregnant women have weird cravings. I've known that since I was old enough to watch sit-coms.

What I didn't know was that once I finally had my very own pregnant woman that the closest grocery store to my house would be the shadiest Wal-Mart east of Compton. So there I was, parking the car at the far corner of the lot and making my way to wherever they keep the Macaroni and Cheese (and broccoli).

I was on a mission, so it only took a few minutes for me to find what I needed and hop in the checkout line. I spent my short wait glancing around at nearby parents and kids, a creepy little habit that I've picked up recently.

Being a less-than-upstanding Wal-Mart, even by Wal-Mart standards, this can be depressing. There are a lot of kids getting smacked around and yelled at, so it's a generally unpleasant place to be.

Today, though, there was an exception. The dad in line in front of me was outstanding. He had a cart full of healthy looking stuff, stacked carefully around his two little girls. The girls were impeccably dressed. Their hair was fixed nicely. They were polite. He was trying to teach one of them how to eat fried chicken. She kept trying to gnaw on the bone and he was helping her hold it so that she could get the last bit of meat off the bone. It was endearing as hell and this guy was clearly the best parent I have ever observed in this place.

When it was his turn in line, he stepped up to the cashier, pulled out a huge wad of hundred dollar bills with a prison-tattooed hand and checked his big fat, diamond studded gold watch. His pants were sagging as he checked his beeper and gave one of his girls a kiss while he waited for his change.

I'm sure on a different day the guy would have shot me as soon as looked at me, but I couldn't help but think that he seemed like one hell of a nice guy.

It just goes to show that you can't judge a book by its cover.

Oh, wait. He's clearly a drug dealer. I guess you can judge a book by its cover.

Cute kids, though.