So, the other day, I needed a helium tank for my kid’s birthday party. Balloons, you know? Gotta have ’em. Figured it couldn’t be that hard to find one, right? Wrong! It turned into a bit of a scavenger hunt, but I finally nailed it, and I thought it’s worth recording and sharing my experence here.
The Initial Brain Fart
First, I just kinda assumed any big store would have them. Like, I pictured myself strolling into a Walmart or Target, grabbing a tank, and checking out. Easy peasy.
Hitting the Stores (and Missing)
- Walmart: Went straight to the party section. Lots of balloons, but no tanks. Asked a worker, and they just looked at me like I had two heads. Nope.
- Target: Same story. Plenty of party supplies, even some pre-filled helium balloons, but no tanks for DIY. Started to feel a little silly.
- Party City: Okay, this felt like a sure thing. It’s a PARTY store! They had tons of balloons, even a whole wall of them. I finally found a worker and… they do have helium tanks! but only for filling balloons in the shop, they do not sell or rent helium tanks for individual use.
Going Down the Rabbit Hole
Okay, so the obvious places were a bust. Time to get creative with the internet search.
- Google some keywords like “helium tank near me”, “buy helium tank” and found some local stores that might have them.
Finding the Goods and wrap it up.
It took longer than I expected, but hey, lesson learned. Next time, I’m skipping the big stores and heading straight to the places. Hopefully, my little adventure saves you some time and frustration!