Lye (Caustic Soda)

Yesterday I was on a quest for Sodium Hydroxide like the Holy Grail. Typically you find it next to the Draino in that section of the grocery store. Not yesterday. I have found it at the Sears Hardware but they did not have it. A really informed man (who watches a lot of tv specials) let me know that I need to be careful with that stuff because when I pour it down my sink and run water it will splash back in my face. I told him that I make soap with it, but he still insisted that I be careful when I pour it down my sink. I don't think the whole thing registered to him. Anyway, they did not have my lye there.
The kids and I went to Home Depot, Food Lion and Wal-mart hopping along singing "lye songs" and saying stuff like, "man, we only want to find some lye!" My oldest said in Home Depot that we should look in the "plumbing" section (mind you, he pronounced the "b" and I had to correct him). I need to make clear that I was not in the greatest of moods at this point in our hunt. I just wanted some lye, ok?
So, we went home defeated but I would not be! I called the Manassas grocery store to see if they had what their sister store did not have here in my town and behold! They did. I should have done that in the first place. Manassas has everything. People probably make soap in Manassas. Not snooty Fairfax. I ran down there with the kids and they each took a can of lye and we went to the check out.
I will not go on about our previous search for Sebastian Molding Mud! How frustrating!