Shopping For Groceries Is Like Hell Right Now (PT 6)

Previous thread:

thanks

I purchased the last two packages of toilet paper at the dollar store, that should last 2 weeks. still no sanitizer or liquid soap, lysol or wipes. bleach is available as is bar soap, eggs, paper towels, kleenex and napkins. people are not paying attention to social distancing recommendations, so i am gonna stay home indefinitely.

I've decided that Lysol, Purell, and Clorox products will not be seen on shelves again in my lifetime. I've relaxed into it, and I'm fine.

I tried using the Ralphs (Kroger) site to order for a pickup order ... and nothing is working! If you search for anything, it comes up with zero items; if you browse by category -- same thing. The only way to order something is from the featured items they have on their page. Very annoying. I finally gave up, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

R4 You can luck out, I was in my local Walmart a few days ago and they were stocking Lysol and Bleach, they had no limits. I didn't go over board, but I picked up enough for me and several older relatives, who can't get out too much.

hoarding. shortages. higher prices.

I guess Im going to use dishwashing liquid as hand soap once I run out of hand soap. I read that it all works to remove germs, it just has to be soap.

I live in Florida and Im going to start hurricane shopping way early this year. If things continue like they are it will be impossible to get toilet paper if a storm comes.

What are you talking about? There are no issues. I live in Western North Dakota and it’s perfectly fine! Got all my goodies today. I’m making casserole tonight! So much for that fake news!

Since this thread is relatively new:

BE LIKE R8

TELL US WHERE YOU LIVE IF YOU ARE REPORTING ON LOCAL CONDITIONS

R8 I use body wash as hand soap in my bathroom there are better selections of scented soaps and some are antibacterial.

You know, I've been thinking. All the little amenities we've become used to, all the niceties, like body wash, and special soaps for this and that? I think we are going to have to simplify our lives and get back to basics. When I'm in the kitchen I pour a few drops of dishwashing liquid on my hands and wash 'em. If I'm in the bathroom I use a bar of soap. I'm into making things very simple right now. And it's cheaper. But we need to be very discreet and do it gradually, but get ready for the tidal wave that's going to hit by this fall. BTW: They now have proof that the virus has mutated. The strain that initially came out of China is not the same as the strain we're dealing with now. The stronger strain that has emerged from the COVID19 virus, is now more contagious and moving faster. And little kids are getting it and carrying it. And there are after effects. People who recovered are reporting difficulty with everything from Liver to Kidneys, to pancreas, GI tract and of course the lungs.

Well if you're going to use dishwashing liquid, use Dawn- it's what animal rescue operations use to clean the crude oil/tar off of animals in the ocean. That should obliterate the fatty lipids of the Covid 19.

Friend of mine was at the grocery store and said some man came rushing in to the store, mask around his neck, and running up and down the aisles shouting, "Has anyone seen my wallet?"

He ran over to the produce, panting, and breathing heavy, and another customer asked him to put his mask back on. He responded by yelling at them, "What are you going to do about it?"

The manager and security were called and they were chasing him around the store but couldn't contain him. He had a little kid with him that he was dragging along. Kid apparently had no mask on.

Friend said he and a few customers called the police but couldn't get anyone on the phone for 10 minutes.

I think most people use dishwashing soap on their hands if it is handier. And using a bar of soap in the bathroom is hardly living on the edge. Bars of soap are generally used to wash hands.

I bet when you shampoo you actually repeat after rinsing?

Remember that old Vidal Sassoon system, where you shampoo, then condition, then use "finishing rinse" (whatever the fuck that is)?

r5 again ... still having that problem with the Kroger website on Firefox. But when I switched to Chrome it was fine. Just passing that along in case anyone else is experiencing similar problems. Crossing my fingers they have most of what I ordered for tomorrow's pickup order.

TJ's was fine this morning. In NYC.

I have started buying extra of a lot of things now that the shelves are better-stocked. I have some large shelves in the bathroom that were empty, so I'm storing it all there. (Downtown 1-bedroom apartment but 650 square feet, for those arguing space issues in the last thread.) So far, dish soap, hand soap, various toiletries, toilet paper, laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, etc. My question to DataLounge is this: when does stocking up or having a stash cross the line to hoarding? I have only bought a few things at a time, not filled my cart with the stuff, but I am buying these things every time I go to the stores. I've been to Dollar tree twice this week, though. I don't want to get caught flat-rooted again. So, when does it become hoarding? I'm in Boise, by the way.

If things continue the road they're going, especially with crazed motherfuckers behaving in public the way they have been? I don't care about whether or not my stash crosses the line of hoarding.

If it will prevent me from having to make frequent trips out in the future I will just follow the rule of see it, buy it. As long as I stick to the established limits that are allowed,I don't care. I'd rather have it then not have it so I don't have to go out and deal with people.

R20, I am with you. I feel that if I do not stash, I may have to use shampoo as shaving cream or wash my hair with body gel.

I agree, R20 and R21. And if I was R8, I’d start preparing for hurricane season right now, even more so than usual, because what happens if you need something unexpectedly? It’s not like you’re just going to be able to pick up anything like first aid supplies, toilet paper, soap, paper towels, bottled water or whatever. People are already on edge, I’ll bet they’re stocking up for hurricane season already just like you are.

I think hoarding would be grabbing armloads of stuff, whereas you seem to be reasonably laying in a stash a bit at a time, R19.

MKe sure you call and complain to all the companies if they are being reckless, and many are.

Walmarts have not increased any cleaning procedures. There is zero cleaning that is don’t between opening and closing. Only a wiping of the cart handles.

All the tech based delivery services are hiring ratchet people right off the street and letting this people handle your grocery orders. You’re better off getting the food yourself. God knows how disgusting these cars are that deliver your food. The steering wheels and gear shifts are covered in germs from 15 grocery stores a day.

These people don’t wash their car, the food smells like cigarettes and blunts. Look at the disgusting cars the next time they deliver. Get a look inside these dumps. I see them loading up these jalopies with trash all in the windshields and they are smoking and losing up some sucker’s groceries.

The Uber cars are like virus incubators on wheels. If you think they clean those in between drivers, you’re dreaming. Stay away.

The parking lots of CVS and Targets and other stores are like cesspools of germs and grime and is probably a breeding ground for covid. Not to mention their sticky floors inside that have been mopped in ages. Look closely at the shelves and floors and they are absolutely filthy.

All the gloves and trash in these parking lots make me want to vomit.

So you think they are going to reach into their greedy pockets and pay someone $10 an hour to clean extra?

No. They are not.

Oh, and don’t think if those drivers see any items that are hard to get that they won’t keep them for themselves and get you a substitute.

Who is this cunt?

Tyson will reopen Iowa plant where hundreds were sickened

Tyson said workers have been invited to tour the plant Wednesday to see enhanced safety measures and social distancing procedures that have been implemented. The plant has been closed since April 22, and the Iowa Department of Public Health reports 444 workers have tested positive for the virus.

The company said in a news release that local officials, union leaders and others toured the plant to see the changes.

The plant is Arkansas-based Tyson’s largest pork processing operation, with the ability to process 19,500 hogs per day. That accounts for 3.9% of the U.S. pork processing capacity, according to the National Pork Board.

All those who will return to work have been tested for COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, the company said. Those who have tested positive will remain on sick leave until they can return to work.

Tyson said workers who haven’t been tested won’t be able to return to work, and all new hires must be tested before beginning their jobs.

Someone needs to open up a chain store that is moderately priced that is not a complete journey into the depths of hell.

Walmart was a fabulous store once. But Sam died and as soon as those piggy children got their hands on it they immediately set out to take away any pleasure for customers or perks for employees and suck every last dime out of the place until it turned into the depraved pit of despair that it is today.

If you complain they will credit your account.

Don’t let them push costs from their balance sheets over to your personal shopping budget. No siree.

The tech compines are trying to dump their adjustment pains onto the consumer and you just can’t sit there and take it like a pushover. Don’t make it to easy on these leeches.

*too

R30, costs (expenses) don't live an the Balance Sheet, they live on the Income Statement, also known as the P&L.

A lot of stores and take-out restaurants are hiking their prices or revising procedures that have nothing to do with covid. They are greedy opportunistic. Sometimes I wonder if their workers make up excuses because they always wanted it this way and they see a way to take advantage now. Like 2009, these hiked up prices and smaller portions are going to stay this way forever, covid or not.

(OT but why are we still paying for gas when the price per barrel is down to $7.)

Speaking of fuel costs, I found a station on Van Nuys in Sherman Oaks that was $2.61, lowest I've seen.

Over the hill near West Hollywood, etc., most prices still hover around $3+.

R21 It's all just soap with different viscosities and fragrance.

r19 if you have enough to stuff that you don't have to go out and shop for 5 years you're hoarding. : )

don't worry about it unless you find you can't help but go out when it is dangerous to you just to buy more and more and more.

R19 just start collecting those hard to find things when you run into them in the next months, tp, sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, disinfectant cleaner. Personally I would aim to have enough for 6 months, that way you don’t have to hunt for it. This thing will be in and out of our lives for likely the next 24-30 months.

Food wise not as dire at all, keep your pantry topped off (spices, cooking oil, flour, rice, canned tomatoes, pasta, shelf stable milk, etc) and your freezer filled with whatever protein is your thing. Meat will be tough for several weeks but seafood is ample. We will be eating a more lacto ovo diet going into summer because eggs and dairy are readily available near me.

I like these doom and gloom postings when they use funny turns of phrase.

About the gas posts up above, I realized last night I've bought one tank of gas in the past 7 weeks (and still have about half a tank left). I'm near Atlanta and most gas signs now say it's about $1.40 a gallon. I use my car about once every 5 days now, grocery store or liquor store.

Some of the supermarkets here in the NYC tri state area have restricted how much meat you can purchase. Chicken and beef is one package per customer. There's a nice Italian deli right up the block from me that is always fully stocked with meat. Admittedly, when I start to get anxiety over everything that's happening, one thing I spiral over is dark thoughts about breakdowns in the supply chain and people rooting for food.

[quote]I've decided that Lysol, Purell, and Clorox products will not be seen on shelves again in my lifetime. I've relaxed into it, and I'm fine.

The week before last I found Lysol Laundry Sanitizer on the shelf at Target, as well as Clorox's similar new product, their Fabric Odor Remover. So some stuff is actually making it to the shelves. Purell is a distant memory, though.

R8, Dawn's antibacterial dish soap is actually labeled as 'hand wash' - they actively promote using it both ways interchangeably. And I've seen it on the shelves more frequently than any other antibacterial dishwashing liquids.

Don’t let these billion dollar companies take even more time or money away from you then they already have.

They have enough.

R32 is incorrect.

[quote] Admittedly, when I start to get anxiety over everything that's happening, one thing I spiral over is dark thoughts about breakdowns in the supply chain and people rooting for food.

You can release that thought forever because I can guarantee you it is never going to happen. Never. I have never made statements like this and been wrong. Ever.

Don't think about it again.

This will eventually pass. It is just a part of life that we happen to be living thru. It will be all right.

R22, I was joking. Please do not think I am one of those born yesterday DLers who think washing their hands with dishwashing soap is some kind of hardship.

R34 Yeah I’ve noticed that too, where is our price break here in California? We always get screwed on gas.

Here in Miami, gas is below $2.00. It has been for weeks. (Last time I bought was a few weeks ago for $1.85 a gallon.)

I am going to tell them the next time I get gas that I would like to buy a barrel.

California has high gas taxes, that's why. We're always twice the price of other states.

[quote]I've decided that Lysol, Purell, and Clorox products will not be seen on shelves again in my lifetime. I've relaxed into it, and I'm fine.

After reading your comment I went to the Home Depot website and looked up Lysol and Clorox Disinfecting Wipes I clicked on the line that said "find other stores" and what came up was" Not within 100 miles of your zip code" LOL

I did find a 3 pack of Clorox Disinfecting Wipes and hand sanitizer at Target on Monday.

Our farmers' market is accepting orders right now and the meat, dairy, produce looks gorgeous. I'm ordering now and I will pick it up next week. I've decided I'm not going to purchase any corporate poultry or meat. Never again. Only local farmers. I will eat more beans and produce and less meat, but whatever I buy is coming from locally produce sources. It will be more expensive. But it is time to change our habits. THis quarantine has made me think about a lot of things I thought I "had to have." That list has gotten a lot shorter.

I told in the last thread that when I went to the Amazon Fresh site that no fresh meat was available - that page would come up with the heading MEAT but the rest of the page was blank. At that time, some other items like eggs were shown as "currently not available". Today I went back to the site to put something in my cart and I decided to search a few other items.

I'm so pissed because today there is loads of poultry, eggs, etc. I would have liked to get everything I needed when I placed an order two days ago. This is confusing - it can't be that all of the suppliers trucks happened to show up in the last 1-2 days. The only other explanation is that the AF is glitchy and I used it at a bad time.

[quote]They now have proof that the virus has mutated. The strain that initially came out of China is not the same as the strain we're dealing with now. The stronger strain that has emerged from the COVID19 virus, is now more contagious and moving faster.

You're misrepresenting what the news has reported.

What we have been dealing with since the beginning here in the U.S. is already mutated. The virus hasn't mutated recently, it mutated back in February.

It has not gotten more contagious than it was when the pandemic began in the U.S. in March and April because it's the same virus as we had in March and April.

The news was just confirming that the original virus from last year did indeed mutate, probably sometime in February.

r39. fill er up while prices are low. Prices will only increase when the "economy opens up". I have no idea what "opening the economy" means. Jobs have been removed from the economy during this health crisis and will not be returning.

Harmons on 6th avenue in Manhattan has a wall of generic chlorox wipes for sale, 75 sheets for 5 bucks, two per customer limit,(5/6/2020). This store placed all of the items we are shopping for right in the front of the store, liquid soap, hydrogen peroxide and giant bottles of tylenol. This is smart because you dont have to run up and down the aisles to look for what you need. Some of the things we are need are with the cashier at the checkout. Harmon's offers home delivery for a 10 dollar fee, you can call the store to set it up. In the stores, we are NOT social distancing, we wear masks ad gloves but are refusing to stay 6 feet away from one another. This is infuriating and confusing too. The face covering is only one measure to keep this infection from spreading further. We had to observe ALL recommendations including social distancing along with frequent hand washing to keep this shit in check.

OK, Ralphs (Kroger) pickup was a big bust. While the pickup process itself was stellar (and FAR superior to Walmart's), they cancelled half my items -- even though some of them should've been easy to substitute. And their notification system sucks big time. I got a text message saying I had substitutions to check -- when I went to look, there were NO substitutions -- just cancellations. And none of this information showed up on the website -- it was still showing my full order including the cancelled items even after I picked everything up. I won't bother with them again. Not worth the trip when you can't even get half the things you ordered (and which were shown as "in stock.") By the way, nothing I ordered was anything close to an "in demand" item (no paper products or cleaning supplies.) Maybe ground beef. But frozen broccoli? Butter? Refrigerated biscuits?

[quote]By the way, nothing I ordered was anything close to an "in demand" item. Maybe ground beef. But frozen broccoli?

Frozen (and canned) vegetables have been in short supply around me.

R49 It isn't only gas taxes, California requires refineries to make a special blend for California, which also drives up the price.

Has anyone used Dumpling (app) to hire a shopper? Unfortunately only one shopper in my rural area, but i have read some positive reviews about it vs Instacart

So far these ad hoc delivery apps are total crap-o.

It was one of those things that sounded good but u til they can train and hire full times staff and provide sanitized, clean transportation of food at a reasonable price.

...until then, it’s a bust.

My bad R53, I took that off Yahoo NEws almost verbatim. But now you mention it their "news" often something we have been aware of for months.

I hate to break it to the poster above but frozen veggies and canned biscuits/pastry have indeed become scarce items.

They were selling canned biscuits for .59 a can at Krogers about 8 days ago. They seem to always have them. Pillsbury Grands, etc.

[quote]nothing I ordered was anything close to an "in demand" item (no paper products or cleaning supplies.) Maybe ground beef. But frozen broccoli? Butter? Refrigerated biscuits?

All of those have been in short supply here for 2 months.

There's a store called Natural Grocers here in Denver that I rarely visited and wrote off as a turbo Whole Foods store - they are very much "natural" as the name indicates.

But actually had a very good experience there finding some rarities. They had paper products and even wipes that were on the CDC list as effective against the 'rona.

Also, it is NOT a crowded store, so it is likely the only store I will shop in person.

Our local Kroger brand store was doing OK on deliveries but the last two trips they've charged us for items they never delivered.

I went today and saw more people not wearing masks than I have since the pandemic started. It's not over.

Some whore on my city's Reddit swears up down and sideways that she's bought wipes from Walmart, and had them delivered, but I can't see how. All of their items are

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out of stock, and even if something was available, they have it indicated that you can only buy in store.

Report from the front: Philadelphia suburbs, Pennsylvania side, Wednesday May 6, late afternoon.

I was able to get an order from Wegmans delivered by Instacart today. I had placed the order on Friday but was in an I’ll-believe-it-when-I-see-it mode until it was shopped and delivered.

I was able to get almost everything I ordered, which was quite a lot. No problems with any of the produce or dairy. Surprisingly, I got exactly the meat I had ordered – 2 lbs of bacon, a pack of cheese sausage (don’t ask; it’s delicious, that’s all we need to know), 2 lbs of ground beef and bone-in chicken breasts. No substitutions needed in meats. The shopper had to substitute a few brands in the grocery department (ketchup, for example) but everything was available in some acceptable form.

Toilet paper – 12-roll pack of something called Royale. Royale claims to be 2-ply, but 12 rolls have about the same volume as 4 rolls of Charmin, so it’s probably crap, but buy it while you can is my motto. No paper towels, though, only dinner napkins. I told the shopper to cancel that item since I have a good supply of paper towels on hand.

The only other thing I ordered they didn’t have was Crisco. (No Crisco and no paper towels … there goes my sex life!) I assume the supply of other baking products was similar depleted but didn’t ask.

I have plenty of cleaning supplies, pasta and sauce, so I didn’t order any and can’t say what supplies were like.

Overall, the order was at least as successful as a typical Instacart order pre-COVID except the total lack of paper towels. I am pleased. I tipped well.

If this signals a return to near-normal grocery delivery conditions, life will get a lot easier for a lot of people.

Jealous that you live close enough to a Wegmans to get delivery!

Can you score me a few boxes of Tastykakes, love?

In LA Instacart is back to pretty close to normal.

R70 That isn't a Wegmans exclusive. We have them in all our grocery stores in South Carolina.

I'd be delighted to, R70. Tastykake is available everywhere here. Unfortunately, I hate it. I much prefer Hostess and, of course, Entenmann's, both of which are often crowded off the shelves the sweetened sawdust that is TK because TK is local ... not that I care.

I'd be delighted to, R70. Tastykake is available everywhere here. Unfortunately, I hate it. I much prefer Hostess and, of course, Entenmann's, both of which are often crowded off the shelves the sweetened sawdust that is TK because TK is local ... not that I care.

Apologies for the double post. Also, it's "... BY the sweetened sawdust ...".

I know TK isn't what it was, though I still like the Peanut Butter Tastykakes.

R43 is incorrect and obviously knows nothing about Corp Finance.

I've seen TastyKakes at Walmarts in CA. I ve never had it.

All them supa market commercial brand bakeries is filled with sugar, chemicals and additives. No butta, no eggs, nuthin' like real baked goods... If you eat em they rot yer stummick.

Thank you, oh proud graduate from Ebonics 101.

Walmart online has big packs of quilted northern toilet paper for delivery in stock as of a few minutes ago

As desperate as I am, I am NOT getting a Georgia Pacific product.

What corporation do you work for that is leaving the liabilities off their balance sheet?

Just because r77 owns a lawn mower and a weed trimmer and calls it a “Corp” doesn’t make them an expert.

You’re lawn “business” is going to collapse if you leave your debts off your balance sheet you stupid git.

For foggy glasses, rub a film of bar soap on both sides of your lenses and let it dry out for a minute. Then, buff it off with a dry cloth. They also say you can use a used dryer sheet but I haven't tried that one yet. That one would be nice because you could carry around the dryer sheet in your pocket and redo the glasses when needed during the day.

Still had it just now!

Thank you RescueChick

R83 a liability is debt, or account payable (etc.) . It's on the balance sheet. An expense is an income statement item. Incurring an expense would have the impact of lowering the retained earnings on your balance sheet.

Balance sheet has 3 types of items: Assets, Liabilities, Equity. Income Statement has revenues and expenses.

^ that was me, R77. I have worked in Finance for over a decade for various large corporations and actually have degrees in that field. Obviously you are either ignorant or trolling.

R87 But somehow you didn’t know that debts were on a balance sheet?

Not buying it.

hopefully it's delivered r85 and we can think of each other when we wipe our butts!

R86/R87 here. HUH? R30 stated that a company was moving COSTS from their BALANCE SHEET "to a shopper". or some such bullshit. That makes zero sense. Costs are expenses. Expenses are not a balance sheet item, they are an income statement item. A liability (something you owe to someone, such as a loan which is a form of debt) is on the balance sheet. If you're a merchant, your products are on the balance sheet as an asset.

Obviously R88 failed Accounting 101 or never took it at all.

R90 here.....I acknowledge that if someone states that a company is passing along its COSTS to the consumer, that is a valid statement if it's happening. But they are not moving something from their BALANCE SHEET. That's not where costs are on the company's financial statements. I hope this clarifies to all the Accounting 101 flunkees.

R90 here one more time because I suck at editing. If a company "passes along costs to the consumer", they are doing that by increasing revenue, which is achieved by raising prices. I am VERY UPSET about the word BALANCE SHEET being misused. I am going to stomp away now with my fists clutched.

Accountant fraucunt needs to fuck off and stop stinking up the thread.

This thread is about groceries, you stupid bitch.

I'm not a frau. Someone else started it, I was just finishing the topic. Carry on now you STUPID CUNT R93. Love you mean it.

I am excited! The 2 grocery stores where I shop have been closing at either 9pm or 10pm recently. I usually don't even start shopping until 9pm. Every time I'm about to shop I check their hours just in case something changed. Today they extended their regular hours until 11pm or midnight! Yay! This made my week. Shopping at night is heaven compared to all the drama right after work or *gasp* on the weekend.

I just wish they would take stuff off the shelves one isle at a time and steam clean the entire isle.

The entire island?

Or the entire AISLE?

Assets=Liability + Owner's Equity (+Income-Expenses). I just had to get that in too. I took 1 course in Accounting and loved it. I like hearing about how this affects our groceries!

I much prefer to shop early in the morning. Fewer germs?

r96=Donald Trump, Jr.

R55, your pickup experience is the same as mine as been at our local Kroger. They're often really short on items you don't expect them to be short on, and their website is NEVER updated.

But when you get delivery from Kroger you don't even get the text telling you there have been cancellations, you just find out later when you realize you didn't get something. I didn't realize I was missing my yogurt for a couple of days this week, but at least Kroger didn't charge me for it.

[quote]But somehow you didn’t know that debts were on a balance sheet? Not buying it.

That's the guy who freaked out about Lysol in the last thread. He's just got a new troll shtick he's trying out, probably best to ignore him.

Not sure how you get to the point to where you're trying to disrupt a boring thread about grocery shopping, but that's what he's been doing for a week or so now.

I’m pleasantly surprised. I tried Instacart for the first time last night. Very easy. They had almost everything I wanted including flour. Delivery is this morning so that’s quick. Only problem is I bought so much. Yes, hoarding. Lots of canned and dry goods. I gave a really big tip.

[quote]I gave a really big tip.

Just the tip?

No meat shortages at all in Chicago this morning. Entire meat section was fully stocked. No hand soap refills or basmati rice, but pretty much everything else was in stock.

I need some disinfectant wipes and I need them now.

NOW!

Went out to Walmart today (So Cal).

Wasn't very crowded at all. They finally had rubbing alcohol (70%), about 3 shelves full. They also had face masks, which seemed kind of expensive at 25 masks for $15.00. They only had about a dozen of those.

They also had wipes, a lot of them, but here's a tip , you really have to look around because most people didn't notice them. If you walked down the aisle where they normally have them, there were only maybe 6 packages of the 3-pack and a dozen of the larger 75 wipe containers. I noticed two aisles down, on the end cap, they had about 30 packages of the 3-pack. I don't know why they did that as it wasn't obvious and like I said, most people didn't see them.

They also did not have signs posted that there were limits so I grabbed two packages. However, when I go to the self-checkout, there was an employee who barked at me that I was only allowed one. I apologized and let her know that there was no sign there, but she said she didn't care, that the limit was the limit. I said I understood that and wasn't telling her so I could still take the two, I was telling her so she could maybe tell someone to put the signs back up... she replied again that she didn't care.

Yet she cared enough to enforce the limit!

She also wasn't wearing a mask.

R107 I would have told her to back up or she was getting a kick in the cunt.

I stopped in at a Walgreen's yesterday. The grocery section was pretty well stocked. When I was last there about seven weeks ago, the canned good/ dry good section was wiped out. Where before the paper goods had been wiped out, yesterday they had off brand toilet paper and paper towels in stock. I didn't check every last item, but things at that Walgreen's were much improved. Customers maintained distance without any resistance. I'm in Houston, FWIW.

I stopped in at a taqueria attached to a carniceria/ small market for breakfast. They didn't have any bacon available for my breakfast tacos, but they did have ham, which was freaking delicious. This was my first meal out in almost two months. In the carniceria, whole sections were empty, but they did have carne picada and costilla cargada among other things. I didn't check all the grocery shelves, but they seemed stocked up. I was impressed that everyone was good about social distancing and wiping things down between use.

I’m hitting an italian meat vendor in my town cash only to stock up on some chicken/sausage/beef. My supermarket in CT has been pretty sparse and limiting to two packs per person.

In NC there are tractor trailers going all around the state selling chicken. There are a lot of chicken houses her. Been in one...veggie now. Anyway, I bet they are from those chicken farms.

Disinfecting wipes are going for between $50-$100 on eBay right now.

Price gouging cunts.

Fly by Night Poultry!!! Poultry in Motion!!

[quote]I’m pleasantly surprised. I tried Instacart for the first time last night. Very easy. They had almost everything I wanted including flour. Delivery is this morning so that’s quick. Only problem is I bought so much. Yes, hoarding. Lots of canned and dry goods. I gave a really big tip.

Might help if you told us (1) which store (Instacart is not a store) and (2) where you're located.

....

cant store all that chicken without a separate freezer.

r107 I just paid $15 for 10 masks that I bought thru Walmart online

I saw Duane Reade/Walgreens selling disposable face mask. A pack of 50 for 30 bucks. They are disposable face mask.

masks and sanitizier on sally beauty website

R117 I think they were 10 for $15 and not 25.

One positive that came about from recent virus grocery shopping: I recently ended up purchasing Cottonelle when I couldn't find any Scott's, after being a lifelong Scott toilet tissue user (that's what I grew up on). This product is so cushiony and thick, nothing like the one ply Scott sheets. I had tried Charmin long ago, but didn't like it because it was so thick and it bloated up after hitting the water in my toilet, making a problem to flush - it would jam up. Cottonelle hasn't caused a problem so far and looks like my new favorite find.

r 121

huge turds

Turdpocalypse!

Coronapoops

To those of you who've gone to restaurants, are you worried that they are using old food? I imagine after the drop in business a lot of these restaurants didn't want to throw out older food in their freezers. I've been thinking about that now that restaurants are reopening in some places around the country.

Turdnado the Movie in 3 D!

scat troll has arrived...

Schiesse!

Just did my first Kroger pick-up and the only sub was 2 small bags of an item instead of one large bag of that item, which wound up being $1 more expensive. Everything was there. Fresh cauliflower, sugar snap peas, organic honeycrisps, avocados, organic tomatoes, organic red bell peppers, jalapeño, cilantro, frozen organic corn, pomegranate juice, and then some junk food to undo all that good work.

I think if I had been picking things out myself I would have skipped the cauliflower, since it was one of those very small ones this time.

Between having no commute, fewer interruptions working remotely, and this grocery pickup service, I'm feeling pretty relaxed.

What's with this ArtNaturals Hand Sanitizer?

Why is it the only brand that not only seems to be readily available everywhere?

I dropped into Whole foods (NYC) midtown 20 min before closing time tonight...no line and less people shopping. didn't go to all the sections but saw that they have A LOT of paper towels, 365 brand and toilet paper.

passed by Home depot and it seems they have extended their hours. They now close at 8pm...changed from 6pm.

more starbucks are opening up for mobile orders etc, I see more of those little breakfast carts and small food trucks on the side walks.

Instacart is back to 2 hour availability now that they’ve raised the minimum to $50.

Oh snap! It’s back down to $35 minimum!

I did Instacart today and the minimum was $75; however, they had a TON of openings for availability, so I took this afternoon between 2 and 5 hours. Hardly a half-hour went by before I got notification that someone was shopping for me and they were at my apartment about 35-45 minutes later. Super-fast service today.

And the icing on the cake? The shopper was hot af. Saw him through the peephole when he dropped off my bags. I gave him a good tip but not the tip I *wished* I could have given him!

barf... r134

Geez R102....it's DL. I'm bored out of my fucking mind, feeling like a caged animal, and just being stupid all in good fun. No need to be sooo serious.

The problem is when you're incapable of realizing that no one finds you entertaining or funny...

Ok, well you're not either R137. So I guess that makes us even. Enjoy your grocery thread. *rolls eyes*

Has anyone seen quinoa lately? I can't find it anywhere and it's on my very last nerve.

Unlike you, R138, I didn't claim to be.

Get some self awareness and realize people will laugh and have fun when someone is.... funny.

Cans of low sodium black beans were on sale. I bought some. And some tortillas so I can make little burritos. I put the tortillas in the freezer so they won't go bad.

Yes, R139. I just bought three, four lb bags last week.

They have it at both Costco and Sam's Club.

R140 I didn't claim anything about my sense of humor. I think it was you who felt the need to comment on it. Now turn that frown upside down.

Ugh, that's the problem R142.....I don't go to either of those. Maybe I should. Thanks.

What kind of cheese should I put on my little black bean burritos?

Uh... You literally justified someone calling you out by saying oh gosh golly you were just having fun!

The only person you were entertaining was yourself, toots.

R144 they have plenty of options on Walmart.

Ok R146. Move it along now toots. You have demonstrated your unhappiness. You "literally just" proved your misery. Hope you smile soon about something in life.

Thanks R147! I don't have a Walmart near me so never think of it.

r132 r133 r134 Again, Instacart is NOT A STORE. Please tell us which store you were shopping, and where you're located!!! Their rules vary regionally and by store, so telling us about these changes is useless.

I finally made bread today! Turned out OK, and was kind of fun to make.

Lately I buy more groceries at Target than the supermarket. They have more stuff than I realized.....all these years I never once bought groceries there until March.

I've never tried the Whole Foods pickup system before so I thought I'd check it out. It's kind of annoying -- you can't pick a time until after you've started ordering. Not sure if you can go back after you've started your cart and it saves your time. Very frustrating. Also, the location nearest me doesn't even offer it. I have to go even farther. I'm not a regular WFM shopper, but I do have Amazon Prime so at least I could get some discounts and deals there. But their stuff is so overpriced (plus they charge$1.99 for pickup.)

R151 where did you find flour? I haven't seen it here since March. But...some restaurants are selling ingredients to customers now so I may go "shop" there.

I always smile at the clueless.

Quinoa is also readily available on Amazon... surely you haven't been looking that hard!

That's why you're not smiling R155

Just in the stores R156. But due to some of the valued suggestions on this thread I will soon be blissfully happy, supplied with an abundance of quinoa! Thank you all.

That's why you're clueless.

Someone made this valuable post in the other thread:

[quote]Because he's a bored and stupid troll who discovered that being hostile in a helpful thread gets a lot of replies, and he's emotionally stunted so he's acting the exact same way he did when he was in the behavioral resource room in grade school: he doesn't care if he gets bad attention or good attention, he just wants attention, so he'll throw his own shit and call himself a genius for it.

Some people are desperate for attention. Understand that and you'll be better off.

Truth. Enough with the distractions.

The only grocery items I think most stores are out of seem to be flour and yeast.

Aside from those things and disinfectants, anyone notice anything else that's scarce?

I finally got my hands on (40lbs of) unbleached AP flour from Costco (north Dallas) yesterday, via Instacart.

I had been getting by with Aldi bleached AP flour, which was all I could find. It did the trick (I'm the one who posted a picture of my challah in one of the previous threads which I made with $1.19/4lb bag Aldi AP flour) but I prefer unbleached.

I meant to buy quinoa for my Mourning Dove family yesterday, but I was drunk when I placed my order and I forgot. Today I ordered them some unsalted sunflower seeds from Aldi.

I read some article that said yeast should be back in supply in the next couple of weeks.

r154 Walmart shipping. (Not the store.) I got 10 lbs. of King Arthur bread flour, 10 lbs. of White Lily self-rising flour, and 10 lbs. of sugar. Very reasonable, and free shipping. Took about a week to arrive. And I got yeast from Amazon (it hasn't arrived yet, but I had a couple of envelopes from Aldi on hand.)

Check the expiration on the yeast from Amazon if/when you get it. Apparently there are a ton of complaints that yeast being sold on Amazon, particularly from third party sellers, have been way past their expiration dates.

[quote]Aside from those things and disinfectants, anyone notice anything else that's scarce?

I've tried for six weeks and still can't get refrigerated biscuits from anyone (Aldi, Ralphs, Walmart.) Now beef is becoming harder to find -- very little selection when I did my Walmart pickup order this week. Mostly just ground beef and some specialty cuts. No round steak, ribeye, etc. Same for lamb.

40 lbs of flour will have mealy bugs in it before you use it all.

need yeast? buy a beer.

Tsk myself. Twenty pounds, not 40. One of the 10lb bags is in the freezer.

Again with the "use beer for yeast..."

That's not a thing so I don't know why it keeps being suggested.

Cook your flour and you won't have to worry about the bugs.

[quote] I've tried for six weeks and still can't get refrigerated biscuits from anyone (Aldi, Ralphs, Walmart.)

I wonder if that is a regional/California problem? Because here in GA/SC I see coolers full of can biscuits and frozen biscuits. Though, it could be because many of us make our own biscuits from scratch.

Beer bread

Beer bread can be a simple quick bread or a yeast bread flavored with beer. Both beer and bread have a common creation process: yeast is used to turn sugars into carbon dioxide and alcohol. In the case of bread a great percentage of the alcohol evaporates during the baking process.

Beer bread can be made with simply flour, beer, and sugar. Some bottled beers, especially craft beers, may intentionally have visible live, but dormant, yeast sediment at the bottom of the bottle.

Instacart is back to $35 minimum, Wegman’s, Northern Virginia, Miss Thread Monitrix.

So, mix some craft beer and sugar and leave it out overnight.

Have you ever had beer bread?

It's not a thing.

Are the yeast trees back in bloom?

I'm not the use-a-beer DLer, but "not a thing" sounds so mommy-bloggy and it is starting to grate.

Your complaint is not a thing, R178.

R167 are you doing all your shopping via online/pickup?

One thing I noticed in my attempt to do grocery deliver/pickup is that I kept being told they were out of stock, and yet when I decided to actually go to the store, they had the item I was looking for.

It makes me wonder if there are certain items they reserve for in-store customers.

Right, R179. Tomorrow you'll try beer bread and your pinterest-speaking ass will be all over Frauddit posting about how you just invented beer bread and it is A M A Z I N G

Wrong, R181.

I've already had it. It's disgusting and not a thing.

r180 Yes. I refuse to go into stores. I'm in LA County, which has more than half the cases for the entire state. And lots of people who don't follow rules.

Can you microwave flour to get rid of the bugs?

R183, understood. LA here as well so I think you might be experiencing the issue of certain items being in-store only. The last time I was in the store, I did see canned biscuits, etc.

I’ve found it helps to put notes on some items about where they are to be found.

I don’t think my shopper knew what a marinated artichoke looked like, so now I note that they are in the canned vegetable aisle.

R184 just freeze it.

My freezer is always full.

r186 When I ordered from Ralphs, they have their own store employees do the picking (same as Walmart) so they should know where everything is. And they have more of a vested interest in finding the item, as their employer gets the profit from the sale, unlike Instacart.

R189, Walmart workers don't really give a shit about a company that doesn't give a shit about them.

Instacarters are incentivized because their tip is often calculated as a percentage of the total purchase. My shopper couldn't find two specific types of garden hose at Aldi today, which took over $30 off my bill, meaning around an $8 cut in her tip IF I didn't alter her tip later to a set amount, not a percentage (which I did as I'm sure she really looked for the hose knowing it would really ding her tip).

I noticed there was a run on "witch hazel" whatever that is. It's always next to the rubbing alcohol and hydrogen peroxide. I guess people thing that since it's in the vicinity and in a similar bottle it must do something. I have no idea what it's used for and don't feel like googling it. I am simply too tired from this day.

R191 Witch Hazel is an astringent.

R192 What does that do, suck shit out of your pores or something?

Today I was HORRIFIED to discover that I was down to my last schmear of orange marmalade. I ONLY buy a brand imported from Scotland. I don't know how I can possibly have toast tomorrow. I may just need to throw out the bread.

[quote] Can you microwave flour to get rid of the bugs?

R184 , unless you're desperate, I'd throw out the flour. Even if the microwave killed the bugs, you'd still have dead bug bodies in your flour. You could sift them out, but bugs take a crap, too. There will be bug crap in that flour.

Heating flour isn't there to kill the bugs that appear in it. It's to kill the eggs that are already in the flour so they don't hatch.

I hope your marmalade is thick cut.

Any finer cut is very non-U.

If flour contains bugs, bug eggs, or bug feces, it is garbage and should go in the incinerator at once. It cannot be salvaged without risking extreme horrors to one's personal health.

Where do some of you live that you are still having difficulty find toilet paper? Costco has an abundance, as well as Rite-Aid and Walgreens. Even the local supermarkets have tons of toilet paper.

Costco has been limiting certain items to one per customer. They are only allowing two people in per membership card. My local Costco is only allowing 40 people in at a time, they were doing this the last time I was there, about two weeks ago. Their site says they're back to regular hours.

Most stores are still out of alcohol. Guess some morons are still hoarding that?

r190 That's a good point, but I would imagine that Walmart and Ralphs employees would get dinged if they had a pattern of a lot of cancelled items which were actually in stock. Although I guess most stores don't have sophisticated enough inventory tracking for them to know that for sure.

R199 pardon my ignorance. By alcohol do you mean isopropyl (rubbing alcohol) or alcohol like vodka, gin, scotch?

Thanks for the comments on the flour. I have a whole bunch now, and while it doesn't currently have bugs, I don't want any potential eggs to hatch. So does microwaving work? For how long?

I know whole wheat flour can go rancid easily; I've had some in my fridge for several years. It's probably no good anymore.

Toss it, r202.

[quote] Thanks for the comments on the flour. I have a whole bunch now, and while it doesn't currently have bugs, I don't want any potential eggs to hatch. So does microwaving work? For how long?

Do you really want to eat microwaved insect eggs? Unless you are desperate, I would put that in the trash.

Oops, yes R201, I meant isopropyl alcohol. I cannot find it anywhere. I also shop for my elderly mom, she's been asking me to pick her up some.

In my state, Costco isn't allowed to sell liquor, there's a separate store on their lot which sells 'spirits'. That store has been opened and mobbed, it's considered an essential business. I've actually noticed lines to get into the liquor store!

[quote]I was drunk when I placed my order and I forgot

Story of my life.

After weeks of curbside pick up at Shoprite in ct (which has been fine but problematic in terms of crappy substitutions lately) I went in. Mid afternoon and it was a shit show lots of empty shelves, senior citizens blocking entire aisles and a lot of young people shopping with their masks around their chins. But they had the few wacky things I needed like tapioca, Goya stuff, burrata, fresh Basil etc.

Very little meat except for organic or weird cuts, but they had ample toilet paper and flour. In comparison shopping at Aldi in person was a PLEASURE. Next time I’ll just go to Aldi, much less crowded and much more stock.

Stop 2 the Italian wholesale meat store in New Haven. FANTASTIC. Chicken cutlets hand cut, lean ground beef, in house made italian sausage, pork cutlets No limits, next time I will call ahead with my pick up for curbside pick up. Cash or check only but way cheaper than I have seen in my grocery stores.

Hy-Vee sent out an email to everyone (nationally, I believe) saying they were limiting meat purchases to two per customer.

For those of you still looking for flour and yeast, check out a Panera. I have been seeing that they are willing to sell you what they have to make your own bread.

Last night I started an Instacart Costco order and was told that I could get a delivery time today (Friday), so I went ahead and submitted the order, selecting the 'fast/flexible' option. Costco must now have special hours just for Instacart shoppers because I got a text at 7:00am that my shopper had started shopping! (Costco opens to the public at 10:00.) I received my order at 8:30am, and got everything on my list, including paper napkins and baby wipes, both of which have been out of stock the past 2+ months!

(The baby wipes are for my dog's paws, thanks for asking.)

Went to Target here in Norcal yesterday evening - HORRIBLE. I had a pretty good experience the last time I went a few weeks ago, both in terms of finding items and the overall store experience, but this time was the opposite. SO MANY people in the store, even an hour before closing - lots of babies and kids and whole families using it as an outing for fun. Some masks but not nearly enough, I saw at least two people wipe their noses with their bare hand as they shopped. Social distancing? What's that?

The stock was crappy too. None of the in-demand items - absolutely no paper products except a few small boxes of Kleenex. Cleaning products wiped out, and laundry stuff not much better. My sole prize was a bottle of laundry sanitizer. Mother's Day cards were wiped out too, as was the crafts section, of all things. What a mess.

My advice to anyone thinking of doing a shopping expedition this weekend is, unless you absolutely must - don't. Everyone has their money right now and it's not worth the trauma to get out into it unless you need something badly.

normal store hours are a bad idea along with restricting the amount of patrons shopping at one time. Stay home if you can.

For those in CA, do you think the shortage of paper products and other items is due to the increased cases in the state? I ask because this sounds like what happened in northern NJ when we started getting hit.

Once they announced that schools were closed, just about everything was wiped out. Pre-sliced cold cut section was empty; the line at the deli counter looked like gas lines from the 70s! You know it's bad when they have to refill the ticket thingy. All paper products shelves were wiped clean. I went shopping weekly and it took a while before I was able to buy paper towels or toilet paper.

Our curve is flattening a bit. My local Shop Rite is out of places to store paper products now. Everything seems to be back in stock, including pasta, beans, canned and frozen vegetables and other items. Meat cases are well-stocked but there are limits to what you can buy. I have Lysol and Clorox wipes so I haven't had to shop for them lately. Can't tell you about the stock of those items.

The Target stores near me don't have large fresh food sections so I don't shop there often. Right now, I prefer regular super markets.

R204, I don’t know how to break it to you, but all flour, grains and beans have insect eggs. All. Every piece of bread you’ve ever eaten in your life comes from flour that had insect eggs in it. That’s why people freeze flour for long term storage.

There’s a couple of other methods that are supposed to work, R202. One is dry canning, which someone mentioned upthread. YouTube is a good resource for how to do this.

For dry goods like beans and rice, you can pack them in Mylar. To do this you need Mylar bags, oxygen absorbers and a means to get the excess air out of the bag like a vacuum sealer, or you can jimmy rig a vacuum cleaner with a bit of tubing and a funnel type arrangement. Check out YouTube for different ways to do this. You couldn’t use a vacuum at home with flour, because flour is so fine. But because flour is so dense, you could try it using oxygen absorbers, shaking the package down to compress it and pressing the air out. If there’s very little air, the oxygen absorbers can pull out most of the rest. You can see if the air is out because the bag shrinks after about 24 hours and you can see the grains or texture of the product inside. You would have to press it down from the top and seal it very close to the flour. Some people use a 2x4 on top to help get the air out. But if you push too hard, you can tear the bag so don’t overdo it.

If you decide to go the Mylar route, read up before you do it and don’t cheap out. Thicker bags have a better seal and the product will last longer. Oxygen absorbers come in different strengths so make sure the ones you buy are stronger, or use more. Mylar bags come in several sizes. Smaller may be easier to handle for you. People often store the Mylar bags in five gallon buckets with lids. Oxygen oxidizes the product which is how it spoils. You sometimes see preppers claim you can store beans and rice for twenty years with this method. I wouldn’t depend on that, but you can definitely store it for extra years that way. The lack of oxygen kills bug eggs as they need oxygen to live. Also, plain bucket lids are more airtight that spinner lids, but much harder to get off the bucket. There’s a tool that pries the lid off the bucket that’s very useful. They sell Mylar bags , oxygen absorbers and the bucket lid tool at Winco. But they aren’t the highest grade bags and oxy absorbers. Try online.

There’s a couple of methods to seal the bags shut. Ironing it shut. Air bubbles can form which weakens the seal. A much better method is using a hair straighter to burn the top shut. Costco was selling a ton of hair straighters near me in March and April. The Costco manager near me is a prepper. What a coincidence.

Basically, you put some oxygen absorbers in the bottom of the bag, put the stuff in the bag, shake it down so it settles, push the air out as much as you can, and burn the top shut as close to the product as you can. Then it goes in a bucket with a lid. Mylar bags can tear, and with the oxygen out, any sharp pointy things inside could cut the bag, so don’t seal in anything sharp. Some people put bay leaves loose inside the buckets, because bugs from outside hate the smell. There are videos on YouTube about how to seal Mylar bags. If you want to try it, watch several first so you can profit from others’ mistakes.

For relatively short term storage items like pasta, I’ve used cleaned popcorn tins with bay leaves and not had a problem. I wasn’t trying to store longer than a year or so with that method. But one buggy package can contaminate your whole pantry, so separating risky items as much as you can by using glass canning jars with metal lids, tins or Mylar can protect items from cross contamination. Rectangular cookie tins can store pasta. Bugs can get through plastic. For storage of less than one year, plastic can be okay. Just buy thicker plastic. Commercial grade plastic food containers are better. You don’t want bugs or rodents to smell the food. Store everything off the floor.

Exactly, R214. It amazes me how people aren't aware that everything is covered in insect eggs. We obviously have a troll here who just likes to say dumb shit, but there are enough people who actually give off advice without knowing what the hell they're talking about.

Speaking of canning - I stumbled across a video of some woman giving a canning tutorial and she was canning ground beef. I had no idea people did that and I don't know if I could ever even eat something like that if desperate.

Just a few examples of FDA allowances for food:

Ground cinnamon can contain up to an average of 400 insect fragments per 50 grams.

Fennel seeds, ginger and mace can all contain up to an average of 3 milligrams of rodent poop per pound. Cocoa beans can contain up to 10 mg of poop per pound.

Up to 13 insect heads are acceptable in every 100 grams of fig paste.

An average of 75 mites are allowed per 100 grams of canned or dried mushrooms; frozen broccoli is allowed an average of 60 mites allowed per 100 grams.

Maggots are allowed in a slew of tomato products, including canned tomatoes (up to one maggot per 500 grams), and tomato juice and tomato paste (up to one maggot per 100 g for both).

Rodent hair is commonly allowed in spices, peanut butter, popcorn, apple butter, chocolate, cocoa powder, corn mean and macaroni.

For R202, if you just want to put some flour in the cupboard and plan to use it fairly soon, and are worried about bugs, the lowest tech solution I can think of would be to seal the flour in a canning jar using an oxygen absorber. Here’s what you will need to do this:

Large canning jars, preferably amber because amber blocks out 99% of UV rays, which take the vitamins out of the food.

Oxygen absorbers, a smaller size, like around 300 cc.

A canning jar funnel. I highly recommend these for everyone. They’re good for pouring food into jars or ziplock bags without making a mess, and the open part is much larger than with regular funnels, so you can use them to pour cereal or beans and keep things neat. You can find them where the canning jars are. Walmart, Ace Hardware, Target, and a lot of markets have canning supplies. Buy the metal canning jar lids, not plastic. Plastic leaks air.

Using the canning jar funnel, fill the jar about half way. Use a metal canning jar lid and close it. Then shake it down so it settles at the bottom. Do this a couple times as you fill it. Fill it pretty close to the top.

When it’s as settled as it’s going to get, put an oxygen absorber on the top and close the lid tightly. After a while, as the oxygen absorber pulls the air out, you will hear a small “pop” which means the lid is vacuumed sealed. Don’t open it again until you’re ready to use it. There’s a product called a vacuum sealer that will do the same thing for canning jars but really well. I don’t know if they’re available now though. People that buy those really like them.

When you want to open the jar, it will be harder to open because it’s vacuum sealed. Throw the oxygen absorber away because it’s used up. If you use half the flour, put the rest in a smaller jar so it’s full, use a fresh oxygen absorber and shut it.

This method pulls the air out so it is airtight and makes it much harder for bug eggs to flourish. It’s not as tight as Mylar but for short term storage it’s good. Short term = up to the expiration date, which for flour could be as short as six months. If the worst happens and bugs somehow hatch in there, it will prevent them from spreading to other products in the pantry.

For people that aren’t used to storing a lot of food, or long term storage, here’s some tips for right now:

Due to shortages, some markets may be selling lower grade or off brand products. Warehouses have roaches or rats. It’s getting hot which makes roaches flourish. The vermin at the warehouse are having a heyday right now with all this extra stuff.

It’s more important than ever to store foods carefully to prevent cross contamination. You may be storing beans or grains long term. Like R216 says, it’s inevitable there will be a possibility of bugs. Also, you’re storing more food than usual so you may have a lot of cardboard food boxes. Cardboard boxes are bad news. They’re not airtight, the plastic bags inside are thin and don’t keep air or bugs out, and you’re storing a bunch of different grains in the same cupboard. Oatmeal, cereal, crackers, flour, etc. every one is a possibility for cross contamination of bugs. You get meal bugs in your cupboard and they can go through there like wildfire. So what can you do?

When you get home from the market, take the food out of all the cardboard boxes and throw the boxes away. Now. Don’t wait until tomorrow, there’s roach eggs on the boxes. You don’t need a roach infestation when you’re storing more food than Walmart.

Decant all the cereals and grains into glass canning jars with metal lids, or temporarily store them in zip lock bags or clean plastic containers until you can get to them. This is where the canning jar funnel comes in. You should put the plastic zip lock bags in a second container, plastic food grade buckets with a lid, or a plastic *food grade* container, anything you have that’s heavy plastic. This is for temporary or short term storage. Or double bag them and straight to the freezer. Crackers store well in tins, like popcorn tins, if you can get those. Or heavy commercial restaurant food grade plastic containers. Oatmeal is a bug hazard, so freeze, canning jars, Mylar, anything with no air and no opportunity for bug migration. If you buy ten pounds of oatmeal, break it up, unless you’re putting it in Mylar. Open one jar at a time. Same with cereal.

You know all those pretty pictures of pantries where everything is delicately stored in beautiful plastic containers? It’s bullshit. Glass. Glass doesn’t allow bug spread. Glass goes in the dishwasher. I have 100 year old glass canning jars and still use them every day. They never wear out. They never retain smells. They never stain. New canning jars go in the microwave. Canning jar glass is much thicker than pickle jars, and you can buy new lids. Lids are a universal size across the brands. Plastic leaks air long term. Including plastic canning lids. Use metal lids. If you’re choosing canning jars for dry storage, like spices, “regular mouth” jars and lids are better than “wide mouth,” because the smaller opening means less air. The biggest jars are only available in wide mouth though.

Don’t store grains on the floor, ever, no matter what it’s in. It attracts vermin. They can smell through plastic. Put it on a wire rack, shelf, or in a cabinet. If your storage is limited, a clean metal trash can with a tight lid can be a rat proof container for smaller plastic containers. Rats can gnaw through all sort of containers. About the only thing they can’t gnaw through for sure is glass.

If you can smell spices or foodstuffs in your kitchen you’re storing it wrong. You shouldn’t be able to smell anything that smells like food. And grains in a double zip lock bag smell. Put a zip lock bag of grains in a plastic bucket with a lid and leave it overnight. Come back and open the lid. It smells. Vermin can smell that. That’s what they smell when you have a cardboard box of cereal. So you have to put it in a container they can’t get through even if they can smell it.

Bay leaves sealed in a plastic bucket smell very strongly. Bugs hate bay leaves. Buy them and put several in containers of grains where you would use bay leaves anyway. Pasta, rice, beans.

My advice is if you end up buying the big bags or boxes of something, break it down into smaller ones and freeze what you can. Because once you open those 4 lb bags, stuff gets stale or goes bad or you see those little mites in it.

Our local BJs today in suburban Philly had plenty of paper towels, toilet paper and even large bottles of hand sanitizer!

Thanks for changing the subject, R220.

Jesus Christ!

I just got back from Dollar Giant. I can't remember the last time I bought one of these. For economy and quality I've been depending on the reduced price baked good section of a higher end grocery store. Alas, those days seem to be gone. I saw this and thought "What the hell, why not?". I'm sure the chemical taste will take me right back to the glory days of my reign.

More storage tips:

PESTICIDE around the baseboards in your kitchen, around the doors inside and out of the house and along the baseboards all over the house. Especially around the garage door inside and out. Around the trash cans, across the front and back door. Straight across the entry of the doors. Around the doorways. Get the baseboards along the halls and along the way to the kitchen. Behind the fridge. You can just shoot the sprayer back there. If there’s a bathroom, bathtub or sink you don’t use, be sure to flush the toilet and run the water every few days, at least once a week. Water in the trap keeps bugs from outside out of the house. If the trap goes dry, you can get large bugs from outside, like roaches or water bugs in the house through the pipes.

Go outside and spray all around the front door and back door. Especially sliding glass doors, they have tiny vents at the bottom and top. Go all the way around the sliding glass door frame from the outside. Especially around the track. There’s drainage holes at the bottom. Let it dry for at least an hour before touching it. Look around for cracked or missing caulk around windows and re-caulk it.

You can buy pesticides at Home Depot and Lowe’s by the gallon that come with a sprayer.

Don’t let grains fall on the floor without wet wiping it up. It’s like birdseed for bugs.

Look at expiration dates of food when you get home and if you repackage foods, label the package with the expiration date.

Certain foods have very short expiration dates. Especially unprocessed grains like brown rice, whole wheat flour. White flour and white rice are better for long term storage. White rice can be easily stored in a Mylar bag for years, because they strip the oils out of the rice during the processing. Any food in a big bag like rice or beans should be repackaged. Those bags aren’t airtight or bugproof, or meant for long term storage.

Some foods don’t do well in the heat and will go rancid if exposed to heat very quickly. Anything with oils. Olive oil, peanut butter, nuts, brown rice, crackers have oil in it which will go rancid. These foods need to be used by the expiration date or put in the fridge or freezer for hot weather. Look at the expiration dates carefully. Don’t store them on the top shelf, it’s hotter up there.

Canned meats and fish have the longest expiration dates, canned acidic foods have the shortest, like pineapple, tomato or orange juice. Foods with high acidic contents are best stored in glass, which is why pickles are sold in glass. Foods pickled in vinegar have a high acidic content which makes them suitable for long term storage. The acid in vinegar makes it hard for bacteria to grow. Pickles and bottled hot sauce with vinegar last a long time.

Foods stored in clear glass or plastic containers can lose vitamins from light exposure, so keep them in a dark cabinet. Don’t leave pretty jars of beans in a clear glass container on the counter for display. Keep them in the dark. If you have to leave them out, put them in an amber glass canning jar, which blocks UV rays, or put them in a dark container like a plastic bin or with a dark cloth over them.

Food storage troll is tiresome and long-winded.

This is the premier OCD thread!

Food Storage Troll wants me to kill my cats by spraying pesticide around the baseboards of my kitchen. Thanks, no.

I've never, ever had an insect problem. Food Storage Troll must live in Dankest, FL.

Agree, R226. Despite living in a partly-Indian household with some-odd 60lbs of various types of specialty rice at any given time, several pounds of spices of all kinds, and 30lbs of a few different types of flour, I have yet to battle this pest nightmare as described. And I live in Texas.

...but then again, I don't house large, wheeled storage racks of food and toilet paper in my bedroom and cases of canned food under my bed, either.

R226, I have a cat and she is perfectly healthy.

I used to have a guy come and spray and he had cats and a little dog at his house. All fat and happy. Pesticide does not kill cats. Maybe if you spray it in their mouths. It’s meant to damage insect shells or in some cases it’s like warfarin. Cats are larger and don’t have shells. Commercial office buildings are all sprayed around the baseboards. Yet you’re still alive.

There are strict laws about not spraying counters or shelves where food is stored. No one stores food on the baseboards. Or outside the front door.

Yes, I know it’s very boring for you to have to read about food storage. But a lot of people don’t cook and they know nothing about food storage, much less not going out for weeks on end. This is an unprecedented circumstance for most people and they don’t know this stuff. So if it interests you, fine, if not, fine. I just posted it because some people might happen to read it and it might help them. Nobody lives like on Little House on The Prairie any more and they didn’t learn at Ma Ingalls’ knee. More like they live on fast food and store Manolos in the oven.

R229, I make fun of you and your posts but I also like you and your posts. Didn't you used to post, years ago, about freezing fucking everything, and 'hearty fall stews'?

I just re-read your post at R228, Sylvia. No, I don’t store canned food under the bed, my bed is on the floor actually. That post was for a person who said he didn’t have room for a 24 pack of toilet paper anywhere in his whole apartment, which I said before.

Don’t assume because I suggested something to a person with no space, that that’s what I do myself. I don’t live in NYC in a tiny apartment. Some people do though, and this is really hard for them.

R230, I’m not sure. I know some people were posting stew recipes, but it wasn’t necessarily me. There’s some people on here that are better cooks than me. Some people are really good gourmet cooks on here, which I’m not. Any time you see fancy meat recipes, that’s not me.

R232, it wasn't fancy cooking for sure. The persona of this poster is very like 19th-Century American Hyacinth Bucket-meets-old maid schoolmarm.

I remember the poster tutting and scolding other posters for discarding the water they boiled vegetables in rather than freezing it all in several ice cube trays because it was "chock full of vitamins!"

Nope, that’s not me. I throw the water out too.

R231 Look closer, I'm not R228 .

And I've had a cat die of liver failure after a "pet safe" pesticide application in my basement. I COULD have been coincidence, but I don't think so.

Sorry, Silvia, the speed must be making me see things that aren't there again. First it was bugs and mites in my food, and now it's your signature where it isn't!

Moral dilemma - when I got my latest delivery, they sent me two boxes of cereal and two boxes of granola bars when I only ordered one of each. At the same time, I didn't get a container of frosting that I did order. Would you complain about the missing item and 1) tell them about the extras and tell them to charge you for them or 2) request a refund for the missing item and keep you mouth shut about the extras.

I like some of the info about food storage. I never really thought about it much. But no way am I spraying pesticide all over the place. I've never in all my life needed to have a pest control person come and don't have bugs except for the rando flying insect that comes in thru a window. The cat takes care of those. He'll spend hours stalking a moth until he catches it, and then it's a delicious snack for him.

Did they bill you for the items?

I'd assume the extra were substitutes for what you didn't get, r237, and ask them if they want to make any adjustments.

R238, depends on where you live. If it’s really warm or humid it’s an issue. But spraying the outside of your house isn’t going to hurt anything.

I’ve lived places where I’ve never even thought about it. But I visited my sister in Florida and they had flying giant palmetto bugs. The most horrible things I’ve ever seen. But then I don’t live in Australia.

I have a bunch of those half-gallon (64 oz.) canning jars. I use them with the FoodSaver vacuum device to seal them. I use them for pasta (I used to get moths in my pasta all the time), beans, bread crumbs, etc. But I think I'm going to start putting flours in there too. (Sugar is not a problem)

R237 here - the extras were not substitutions and were not charged on my credit card. I guess the shoppers were distracted or overworked and picked up the same item twice w/o realizing, so these items were basically free to me.

On my way out of Trader Joe's this afternoon, without regard to my health or his own another customer chased me down to snatch the shopping cart I was returning to be disinfected by the staff.

For the sake of convenience, he endangered my health and his own.

The purpose of this quarantine which has caused great financial harm to many of us (but not all) is to contain the infection rate of this virus.

By openly defying social distancing recommendations we only increase the risk of infection rates raising again and extend the stay at home mandates.

Social distancing measures are being openly disregarded.

You can take another person's shopping cart without getting very close to them. The six feet rule is a good guideline, but almost impossible to strictly adhere to in a shopping situation, even with reduced occupancy. Also, I've watched some of the staff "disinfecting" carts, and they seem to be doing a piss poor job. I much prefer to wipe the handle off myself with hand sanitizer. It is right a proper to try and be careful, but you seem paranoid. Unless you walked around Trader Joe's in a full Hazmat suit, you are more likely to catch the virus while in the store than from the man in the parking lot, trying to get your cart.

" we are like, just gonna get this anyway, so fuck it!"

This customer raced behind me from the checkout station where a cashier was ringing up his large purchase to purposely snatch a shopping cart from my hand.

To take this cart from under my hands he deliberately violated the 6 foot social distancing recommendation. I don't give a fuck about his health but I care about mine. He ignored the social distancing recommendation for a matter of his convenience placing me at unnecessary risk.

There were other shopping carts available for this person to choose from that had already been wiped down and did not require him to step on my heels. But to select another cart from the dozens of others that were available would be the right thing to do. People will not do the right thing, ever and because of this, covid will not be contained , the quarantine will be extended and the economic losses will continue to grow.

R246 If he was already being checked out, why did he want your cart, or any cart?

Million dollar question.

He is a fucking idiot is my answer.

I heard his tiny footsteps as I was attempting to return the cart to be disinfected but I refused to turn around. I didn't realize he was directly behind me until he snatched the cart from under my hand.

r237, I got 35 more cans of frosting than I ordered a few weeks ago :l I also got a big bag of dog food extra. they sent 2 rather than one. I may be mentioning the frosting for the rest of my life

I remember the post about the frosting thing. What did you end up doing with it?

Had it with the free octopus.

R248 - when the cart was snatched did you gasp?

r250, first I Facebook messengered the local food shelf. they never replied so I posted on our local forum. it was gone in ten minutes and then I had teo days of people shouting (email) at me that I should donate to the food shelf.

All those posts about mylar bags and what to do to your flour got me watching videos about it.

Someone said that if you vacuum out all the air in a bag of flour and throw in an oxygen absorber, you don't need to heat or freeze your flour.

I didn't gasp, I don't want covid. You do.

[quote]I like these doom and gloom postings when they use funny turns of phrase.

Why did I wade through these waters? I want for nothing in the shops.

R38, you are the sole beacon of light in this thread of misery, misanthropy, WalMarts, disinfection fanatics, people too old to drive bickering about gas prices, people who will cross international borders to save 5-cents on a bag of frozen peas, and people who use way too much toilet paper.

Those social-media do-gooders are the fucking worst. They live to admonish anyone for attempting to sell a household something online, whining "this could go to someone in NEED!" It makes them "look good" to other fake assholes for no sweat off their own sack.

There was a lady a few summers back who posted on Nextdoor that her AC was out and she wasn't going to be able to get it fixed until her payday, single mom l, seven year old son, etc.,, asking if anyone could spare a fan. This is an affluent neighborhood but you never know what someone else has going in in their life. I messaged her privately that I had a nice oscillating tower fan and she asked for the address "thx!" And that was that, but then several other people publicly posted to her that they had a fan etc, some even had window AC. Of course then everyone hearts their posts and they look like good Christian angels. SHE TOOK IT ALL. Bitch must have accepted eight fans and two window ACs. Had some fancyass hair and nails when she came to pick it up. Bet you she turned around and sold every one of them.

Later that summer I visited my dirt poor great aunt in Kansas -- she has rheumatoid arthritis and is on some prescription that makes her feel like she's burning up all the time but can't afford to run the AC much. She really could have used that fan.

Lesson learned! I know plenty of people "in need" I don't need to help out grifty strangers online. And I am leery of strangers online who would try to tell me what to do with my own goddamned stuff.

If they want the poors to have cans of frosting, let them go to Aldi and buy some; it's less than a dollar a can. Then they can post pictures of themselves being real heroes at the food bank donating sugar and transfats to people who can now only dream of dental care and get a lot of likes and hearts, because that's what it's all about!

R254, preppers used to freeze their grains in the freezer for a few weeks and then take them out and store before Mylar. It turns out, the first round kills the first layer of bugs, then there’s a second layer that are eggs that have to be hatched, revived and then frozen again. Nobody seems to know how many rounds of that you have to do to kill them all. I used to freeze mine three weeks and never had a bug, and other people online have said that too, but whatever.

Now the advice is, put it in Mylar, suck every drop of air out with a vacuum sealer or vacuum, or just pressing the air out, put in the oxygen absorbers, and the bugs die because there’s no air. No freezing, just straight to the Mylar. These days preppers swear by it. I went on Survivalist Boards Forums a couple of weeks ago to see what they were doing. Some of those guys are old guys and they’ve tried everything. They’ve all moved to Mylar now.

Here’s a short video about sealing Mylar bags with a hair straightener. She makes an important point. Once you open your bag of oxygen absorbers, you have to use every one very quickly. Once they absorb too much air they’re done. So you have to lay out everything and get it ready to go before you crack open the oxygen absorber bag.

If you do use a hair straightener, I keep a large baking pan near me to set it in for a minute when I have to put it down.

oh lawdt! why did i bring up mealy bugs?

I think it’s normalcy bias again, R259.

We all grew up taking it for granted that food and drugs are safe and wholesome in the U.S. We don’t know any different.

Trump has gutted the FDA, he’s trying to force meat packers to go back to work even though more than half of them in some plants have Coronavirus. Meat is the one thing where he used his emergency powers. And meat is refrigerated and Coronavirus can live longer on refrigerated or frozen food. He’s an idiot.

Now this moron forced the FDA to waive their regulations for Coronavirus tests and just let anybody put anything in the market. A bunch of the tests don’t work. The FDA is completely toothless at this point.

So what shape do you think the food is in? Does the FDA inspect anything at this point? You have to protect yourself because Trump sure isn’t going to do it for you. We’re lucky we’re not finding human body parts from North Korean prisons in it.

Look what he did to the CDC. He didn’t like their re-opening plan so he’s trying to hide it. That sure helps.

I can’t wait for Biden. He’s going to look like a fucking genius after this.

R258 the videos I've seen had people quickly taking the oxygen absorbers and placing them in a canning jar and putting the lid on in order to keep them for another round of use.

I decided to look on Amazon for different mylar bag options but didn't really see any of the thick, recommended ones.

Not only has Trump gutted the FDA, the pork industry is now self-regulating. I will dance in the streets when that man is out of office.

the Sweep

R261, I’ve done that, but it doesn’t really work well. I used the smallest size canning jar and jammed them in there. You can tell they’re absorbing oxygen anyway because the oxy absorbers start getting hot and sweaty.

When I was packing bags, the best thing that worked was getting a zip lock bag that was big enough to fit the whole oxygen absorber bag inside, pulling out a few at a time, and rolling the bag to push the air out, in between going for the next handful. Even doing that, they eventually started heating up towards the last bit, but not as badly.

You really want them as fresh as possible, because fresh ones suck out as much air as possible.

This is what you want it to look like after 24 hours of absorbing the oxygen inside. This looks like it could be rice. See how wrinkled it is? That’s good, it means there’s no air in there.

You know how bags of potato chips look, puffy and full of air? That’s the opposite of what you want here. I packed grits and they were so airless you could see the individual grits grains through the bag. That’s what you’re going for.

Perhaps we should start a separate canning and jamming thread?

R262, there are bad issues with industrial pork plants dumping pig urine and manure in local rivers. Some people living nearby those places say the stench is unbearable. They say it’s destroyed their own property value and the local water is probably polluted. That’s probably why Trump wants to deregulate pig farms in particular. They are owned by big corporations that are bad neighbors and they get sued all the time. So some corporate pig farm owners probably complained to Trump about how unfair it all was and he probably lifted regulations on them without knowing or caring what it’s about.

Trichinosis is just a side effect.

R264 the videos I saw had them placing whatever indicator strips in to the canning jar and showing that they were still good. Some others said that the bags don't have to look like the ones in your post because the strips only remove oxygen not nitrogen so if your bag doesn't have all the air completely sucked out, it doesn't necessarily mean that it hasn't been sealed properly.

It isn't as though there are a ton of grocery posts today.

But I'll share that I went to the grocery store today. They've gone back to regular hours, opening at 6 AM and closing at 11 AM, which makes me wonder if they're not going to be taking cleaning as seriously.

Half the people were not wearing their masks in the store, and a large majority of those people were 70.

I overheard a Senior talking to another customer talking about how she goes to the grocery store every day to get what she's going to eat for the day... because she just can't stand having extra stuff in her house.

That’s good to know, R267.

Oxygen absorber bags usually have an indicator that looks like a little eye or something and when the container is full of air, the eye changes color. So that’s what they’re showing.

But before that, the packets get hot. You can feel them start to work.

R268, elderly people like that are going to get Coronavirus. There’s a lot of them that are really stubborn and refuse to cooperate. The question is, will it kill them?

I often wonder if they were that stubborn and refusing to listen to directions when they were younger.

I overheard a Senior talking to another customer talking about how she goes to the grocery store every day to get what she's going to eat for the day... because she just can't stand having extra stuff in her house.

I used to do that too. Now I go every second day but my life is centred around collecting parcels from the post office because I order so many thing.

R268 I'm not elder but that's how I used to shop! I cut down to once a week (ish).

Yeah it's fine if someone used go to the store every day... used to being the keyword. To continue doing so now is just willfully stupid.

I meant to mention that the store was stocked in most everything except flour, pasta, frozen veggies and ice cream.

They had plenty of those Pillsbury biscuits/croissants.

went to the supermarket today in NYC to buy beer with my partner.

Some guy actually approached my partner to ask for money inside the store...I was standing 10 feet away and couldn't hear what he was saying but he was asking for money and pulled out a piece about some charity etc covid etc. total BS. I mean this was a kid, he could go get a job as an essential worker, he ain't old or disabled etc...

much to my dismay, my partner gave him 2 bucks.

I complained to a worker restocking the shelf.

Every single time I go out, I get approached for money.

I grabbed a 5 pound bag of frozen mixed veggies last week. I thought it would last me a long time but I was wrong. I keep eating them. Hopefully there will be more when I go out shopping tonight.

People should start signing their shopping experience posts with their locations because otherwise they are pretty meaningless since the experiences are so different in different states right now.

#boycottcostco was trending. It’s not people that want to boycott Costco, it’s people that love Costco and want Deplorables who refuse to wear masks to boycott Costco so they can shop in peace. Costco is refusing to let them in now.

Giant spiders, flying cockroaches (which are essentially what palmetto bugs are) and maggots, feces and other crap in our food. How did this thread about shopping turn into this?

btw, Costco has required social distancing and masks/gloves for way over a month, don't know where some of you live, I'm in NYC. There are signs outside the store and all over the store. About a month ago, some asshole without mask/gloves, was 'joke coughing' while on the outside line. A Costco manager who was allowing people in, came over and threw that asshole off the line!

Costco is not having it.

[quote]If you do use a hair straightener, I keep a large baking pan near me to set it in for a minute when I have to put it down.

You can also set it on anything silicone. The mat I bought for mine is made of it. Marble and other stone countertops can also handle the heat.

[quote]there are bad issues with industrial pork plants dumping pig urine and manure in local rivers. Some people living nearby those places say the stench is unbearable. They say it’s destroyed their own property value and the local water is probably polluted.

Probably? DEFINITELY.

[quote]I overheard a Senior talking to another customer talking about how she goes to the grocery store every day to get what she's going to eat for the day... because she just can't stand having extra stuff in her house.

My 78 year-old housemate with 3 underlying conditions is like this. He associates "hoarding" food (aka enough for an entire week) and eating leftovers with The Poors, so even now he has to actively restrain himself from going out several times a week. He admitted to me that he "gets bored" unless he goes out every day. He does nothing but watch TV and a little bit of yardwork, so I'm sure he is bored. I go out for walks and have several hobbies, which he finds "antisocial." 🙄

R281, my dad grew up in the Depression and he associated eating soup with “poor people’s food.” He absolutely refused to eat it no matter what it was made out of. Another Depression era relative refused to eat chicken for decades, because it was the only meat they had during the Depression. I’m guessing your housemate had some kind of similar family history. People must have been eating very restrictive diets in hard times.

I wonder if kids from this era will grow up and refuse to eat certain foods because “that’s Coronavirus food.”

There is another reason for going to the store more often than you should during this crisis, and that is the shortages. Sometimes you have to go several times in a week, just to get the products you need or want, depending on when the trucks arrive.

After feeling pretty good about gathering essential food this week, I treated myself to browsing Datalounge. Now after reading through this thread, educating me about flour, rice and pasta, I realize I may never eat again.

[quote]I’m guessing your housemate had some kind of similar family history. People must have been eating very restrictive diets in hard times.

Nope. He grew up middle class Italian.

That was true for a while here, r283, but I watched him pick up only 1 item of his favorite things when several were available, so I know his issue is mostly about being set in his ways.

I wonder what Darfur Orphan has to say about all this.

Costco has Emergen-C Immune Plus back in stock online! Hurry, bitches!

R282 My Dad grew up during the Depression but had a completely different attitude about the food. He enjoyed the Depression foods forever (but never without pointing out "This is what we ate during the Depression...") He would go out and harvest dandelion greens every summer like Clara here, loved it! I've been thinking of giving dandelions a try this year for the first time.

[quote]Trump has gutted the FDA

The day I learned Trump has allowed pork producers to police themselves instead of having to report to the FDA was the day I cooked up some ground pork for what was going to be some Thai noodle soup, and ended up making the whole house smell like a rancid barnyard. It only took about 90 seconds in the pan before it was obvious that something had gone terribly wrong with the meat.

That’s creepy, R289. I suppose if you look around on the internet, there’s stories of all the corners they’re cutting somewhere. Trump must be getting the support of all the big corporations who want to go on fleecing people and hate the idea of having any standards. I wonder how hard it will be for Biden to reverse all that.

FYI: I hate to break it to you, but we have all probably eaten our share of bugs in flour. That's just reality. Do you honestly believe that all those commercial bakeries have never baked a few hundred thousand loafs and there were no mites? The flour mites are teensy tiny. If your flur is over run or rancid toss it. But aside from nuking the flour don't worry about a few tiny mites.

[quote]Perhaps we should start a separate canning and jamming thread?

Yes, this is what needs to happen.

Having dealt with a pantry moth infestation in the past, I recognize the value of the information being shared (even if some of it is on the extreme side for the average person), but it's one giant block of text after another that's derailing the topic. Plus it would be easier to refer back to the information if it were separate from this long ongoing thread.

[quote]I've been thinking of giving dandelions a try this year for the first time.

Make sure not to dig them up where the grass has been sprayed with any weed killers or pesticides. That probably seems like a "no duh" to you, but you'd be surprised at how many novice foragers don't think about it.

The queues everywhere drive me insane. Queuing for groceries. Queuing to buy a new bike. Queuing to pick up said bike.

Sigh

Oh, que you, r294.

Shut your hole, R295

I just ordered another six-pack of half-gallon Mason jars so I can store my newly acquired flours. I'm thinking it should be sufficient just to vacuum seal it in to the jars -- or should I microwave first? And are oxygen absorbers needed?

So our hardship is queuing and not having 25,000 different varieties of toilet paper or body wash or bacon. Wow. It's depressing isn't it. So much hardship.

Some of us need to donate a few hours a week to a food pantry.

Two hour wait to get into Target this morning. I know we have nothing but time in quarantine but I couldn't justify the wait. Everyone waiting in line social distanced and wore masks. This is Mother's day weekend and people are shopping for this occasion?

Yup. People with families) have died painful deaths from this disease alone and were buried quickly at funerals sparsely attended. Some people didn't even have funerals because the funeral parlors couldn't handled the overflow. We can consider ourselves lucky if the worst thing in life is no toilet paper, we can do without toilet paper if we have access to clean running water.

Okay I searched, but don't see any threads about canning, jamming and preserving, so I've made a separate thread for all you:

I've also put in the posts from this thread that were pertinent to the Official DIY Canning, Jamming and Preserves thread so you wouldn't have to scroll through this one to get to the info.

Bless you, r302.

I have serious doubts about eating romaine lettuce this summer. Food inspections are being cut and I'm sure we're about to get another e-coli scare again.

gotta grow your own lettuce. It's nightmare here in the US. If you become ill from food poisoning and then exposed to covid, covid may take you out! coovid is offing people with underlying health issues.

I mean the people/person complaining about a derailed thread over 10 posts about canning.. all while NO ONE was talking about groceries... derailed the thread more than the canning talk ever did.

Don't talk about gardening! You're derailing the thread!!!!

I've posted about my various Peapod and Instacart order experiences before. I have an update. Available delivery times have greatly increased now on both sites. There are next day deliveries on Instacart for most stores and only a few days from today delivery dates on Peapod. It seems more people are either going back to the super markets or they've stocked up on groceries for a while. Either way, it's good for anyone who still doesn't want to go out right now.

I had both a Peapod and Instacart delivery this week. My last Instacart shopper wore a mask, so that issue seems to be improving. The last one did not wear one, which was a big no no. The peapod delivery guy wore a mask and gloves, which is even better. Most of my items came, but there were significant lacks of poultry and meat in the stores. I only got a few steaks and some ground beef, but no poultry at all from either order. No chicken breasts, no chicken wings, no whole chicken, no turkey breast, no duck. Nothing. Fish seems to be more readily available, so I'm going to mostly focus on eating that, veggies and fruit, with occasional meat.

The next thing I'm going to try is Instacart pickup. My grocery store of choice is going to be Stew Leonard's. I'm going to see how it goes and write a review about it in either this thread or the next one to let you all know how it went.

Oh and for anyone who is curious, like R150, my Instacart order was from Shop Rite.

I shop in store. I have not observed shortages of chicken meat in store. The red meat section has been light but never completely sold out. I would recommend staying home until we get the all clear.

R308 I wish I was close enough to do instacart at Stew Leonard’s. I live just a little too far.

I'm going to miss putting hot Italian sausage in my tomato sauce.

My Publix in Atlanta had plenty of eggs, beef pork and chicken. Bacon too. I got a dozen eggs. But there was no toilet paper at all, and only three two-packs of paper towels. No cleaning products except for a few bottles of dishwashing liquid.

Such stereotypes about the Depression era. Are the people you are describing Wasps? I grew up working class, then middle class, in an Italian, French and Scottish household in NYC. Growing up, there was always an abundance of food at both my grandparents home and in my parents home. Sunday family dinners were at my dad's parents, there was always tons of food, cakes and homemade Italian cookies. Homemade bread too, my grandfather owned a bakery. And no, no one was obese, possibly because there was no corn syrup and other garbage ingredients added back then, especially to homemade food.

That's one area my family never skimped, on food. In fact, my mom cooked way too much meat for my liking. There was always roast beef, London broil, steak and all that crap. I stopped eating meat in my 20s, I still eat poultry.

All the women in my family, especially my dad's side, were great cooks and bakers. The Italian aunts made manicotti and lasagna from scratch. Soup was never considered "poor people food". One of my aunts made an amazing soup with pulverized carrots and other vegetables. This soup was her own concoction, she also added either beef or chicken chunks. It was basically a variation on a stew but with a thicker soup base.

Some of the comments here are weird. Guess it depends where you grew up in the US? If you are a good cook, you can manage to make almost anything taste good.

We have fabulous FArmers MArkets in the South. I think from now on I'm buying my poultry and beef and pork from the farmers. Organic farms, too. Same with lettuce and celery. A friend is growing celery and herbs and leafy greens. I feel inspired.

Does anyone use Fresh Direct any more? I haven't seen any reviews of them since this thread started.

looks like a fucking rip off!

Nah, r306. Count me as another who grew weary of the canning/jarring back-n-forth. And it was more than 10 posts. Definitely belongs in a separate thread.

Thank you, r301/302!

Where in the country is there still a toilet paper shortage? Raise your hands...

Went to Safeway in CA today for sliced turkey and bread, broccoli, and a sweet potato. Everything seemed about normal, except everyone wearing masks and some wearing gloves.

I had to wait in about a 20 yard line first out front, each of us about 6 feet apart for ten minutes. I thought of being in elementary school again, thirty children of mixed temperaments, waiting for teacher to open the door.

I found paper towels at Home Depot. I've seen toilet paper return to the shelves but not paper towels. Six large roles of Bounty for $16. CVS had two large roles for $8.

For awhile Home Depot was limiting the number of people allowed in the store. They seemed to have stopped that but there was still someone at the door I assume to ensure everyone was wearing a mask.

A friend of mine was just at one of the Home Depots on Staten Island. He said most were not wearing masks and there was no social distancing, it was like everything was normal.

I have heard from neighbors that in Brooklyn there is mostly no social distancing or mask wearing. This is mostly in the Russian and religious Jewish neighborhoods. That covers a hell of lot of neighborhoods in Brooklyn.

Yet every day Cuomo is bragging how people are following the rules or laws or whatever they are. Why doesn't he send cops into these areas and fine all these fuckers. We might be down to 0 cases if not for these people but they will keep spreading it and we'll fucking be in this mess forever! I tweeted Cuomo and emailed him but I'm sure they both went unread.

R319 There is still a semi-shortage in South Carolina. You can find basic store brands, but any sort of premium TP is like finding a four leaf clover.

It appears that paper towels have replaced toilet paper as the shortage-du-jour. Toilet paper seems to be reappearing in shopping hunts, especially when ordering online through services like Instacart.

R324 I haven't noticed about paper towels, because I use the Member's Mark 15 roll pack from Sam's Club, and they have been having them in stock. They are limiting members to one pack a day. I've bought a few over the past few weeks, just to make sure I have enough, but not an excessive amount. Plus, they are individually wrapped. I have given rolls to elderly people, I know, who can't get out.

I was at the grocery store last night and saw a couple with the woman pushing a pram. Both Mommy and Daddy wore masks. I didn't actually see Baby so don't know if it was also masked. Another thing was what seemed to be undercover cops staking out the store.

Okay so 17 posts out of 320... and 15 complaining about them...

I can see why people would hoard TP as a necessity... but why Paper Towels?

This thread has certainly been about more than just groceries. We've also had conversations about masks, which has been very helpful. I sort of think of these threads as sharing helpful tips for all sorts of things people might help people be better prepared because who the hell knows how long this is all going to last.

R326, staking out the store for what? People not wearing masks? People not social distancing? People taking more than the established limits?

R328, most people clean with them I guess. Also, they are right next to toilet paper. *shrug*

Yeah, I just figure people can also clean with a rag that can be washed so I personally just don't see the panic buying for Paper Towels.

R331 People clean with them and they are also useful for microwaving. Many people prefer cleaning with paper towels especially in the kitchen. For instance if you use a cloth towel for cleaning up any sort of grease, it is recommended that you don't put them in your washer and dryer. Even after washing, grease can remain and catch fire in the dryer. I know someone who burned down their house that way.

Jesus, that's terrifying, R333.

R334 It is, she thought for sure washing the rags was enough. The fire investigators, explained to her that there was no amount of washing that could guarantee that all the grease would wash away.

Give it a rest, r327.

She obviously needed to soak it in a degreaser!

R336 stop derailing this thread! It's making me grow weary!!!

Freezers seem to still be out of stock.

That's generally what I do, R332, but I got paper towels when I was having trouble finding detergent for a while and needed to ration my laundry loads. Managed to get some All "pods" which are apparently all the rage and confess I actually like them, something about them gets stains out better than the plain liquid does.

I always dried my towels even if they got cooking oil on them, but I won't anymore, yeesh.

I had luck stalking paper towels on costco online but haven’t seen them in a store since March 10 or so. I broke down and bought A dozen washable micro fiber cloths for my simple counter washing duties. Messier cleanup I’ll use paper towel.

R337 No, the same investigator informed her most, if not all, degreasers are themselves flammable. So, unless you are going to line dry your kitchen towels, it is just simply easier to use paper towels and throw them away.

R330 - I assumed they were undercover cops. Otherwise one was just cruising me, watching me in the ice cream section and then watching me at the self-checkout.

Through the summer things are going to look like they are getting back to normal but the virus will still hang around some because we opened too soon. But people will become comfortable. Again I am going to tell you to slowly stock up thru the summer so that you can get thru the entire winter without having to go shopping if you can. They think it is going to come back with a vengeance starting around Sept. so be prepared. This time you will know what you need. If you think you have too much stuff don't worry because you will eventually use it all as long as you don't buy too much that can spoil. Paper goods will always keep. Even if we wake up one day and it has disappeared think about how you won't have to go shopping for a while. I think worrying about running out f items causes a lot of anxiety so better to have too much than not enough.

No shortages of toilet paper, kleenex or paper towels in NYC. Toilet paper? Have not seen it sold widely since March. No hand sanitizer either excluding Whole Foods selling 1 ounces of the stuff for 3 freaking dollars.

R345, I've seen hand sanitizers at Duane Reade and CVS. They even sell face masks. They are behind the cashiers.

r344, they don't know for certain that the virus will slow down during the summer.

re: r345, paper towels, kleenex and paper napkins= no shortages. Toilet paper= shortages. Toilet paper shortages are a minor nuisance and not worth waiting in line for two hours to get. I can use kleenex or worst, hop in the shower and give the shower a spray of bleach after.

Online, both Home Depot and Target are selling industrial paper towels--the kind they have in public bathrooms, on big rolls or folded to fit in dispensers. Home Depot is also selling industrial toilet paper.

r347 sorry, I was saying it will slow down. They said it will come back big in Sept. so I guess it would have to slow down if it comes back bigger.

Funny thing - flour is available on the regular Amazon site, but when you try buying it off Amazon Fresh (their grocery division) 90% of it is "out of stock". The downside to getting flour from Amazon is that 1) it's mostly large sizes - 10 to 50 llbs. 2) It's more expensive. For example they're charging $20 for 10lb bag of Wheat Montana AP flour /$10 for 5lbs of White Lily flour.

r351 I got 10 lbs. of White Lily self-rising for $5.40 and 10 lbs. of King Arthur bread flour for $7.14 on walmart.com (free shipping with a large enough order.) Not sure if they still have it -- this was a week ago. (I also got 20 lbs. of sugar for $9.88.)

Shopping related, but for car service: last Friday I had brake repairs performed at my dealership. Their website assures customers the Service Team is devoted to following COVID-19 precautions. Well, not so much....

When I arrived at the dealership, I noticed no one in the service department wore masks, not even the clerks in the tiny front office. Inside the waiting room, where most of the chairs had been removed to accommodate social distancing, I joined two waiting customers. All of us wore masks and sat far apart. One customer, a tall woman dressed in scrubs, told her service advisor guy that she was a nursing assistant, and she had just finished a long night shift. A couple of hours later, the tall woman's car was ready, but she began arguing with the advisor about her repair bill. They were standing next to the office window (occupied by a clerk less than four feet away), and yelling in each other's faces. Their similar height meant their mouths were pretty close together, droplets flying everywhere. Perhaps they didn't realize or didn't care they were putting each other at risk, but I felt bad for the office clerk who probably got side-sprayed.

They had 4packs of TP. Emergency averted.

[quote]Their website assures customers the Service Team is devoted to following COVID-19 precautions.

Yeah, all these reopening businesses claim to be following safety protocols.

Mark Cuban sent in a team of secret shoppers to Dallas last weekend -- and found that 96 percent of business owners were not complying with at least some of the state's mandatory coronavirus safety protocols.

I think if we have a second wave of this Covid-19, we will be better prepared in a lot of ways because of how we have suffered. It's a geat idea for stores to place limits on popular items from the get go.

R353, she should have worn a mask but these car dealers are crooks. When you bring it to the service department, they will charge you astronomical prices and try to screw you at every opportunity.

32 oz of germ ex sanitizer one per customer= 6 dollars target. wholefoods one ounce sanitizer = 3 dollars.

20 minute wait to shop, Monday 9 am. When I went on Saturday it was a 2 hour wait, on Sunday it was four hours. I didn't realize this was Mother's day weekend and there stores had more traffic.

Most customers wore face masks but there is always that one or two literal mouth breathers who refuse to comply.

No face covering= FUCK YOU.

These cashiers and store clerks who worked all during this quarantine are deserving of hazard pay. They have to enforce policy that should be second nature to anyone with a functioning brain.

There is no reason why anyone should have be told to wear a face covering this far into this health crisis. I have even seen homeless people wearing face masks!

If anyone needs any disinfecting wipes, the Kroger online website has one kind of Seventh Generation available to ship to your house only, you can't get it in store. You also have to buy 2 or more, but the shipping was only $4.99.

This link should work but you have to have an account with them to add it to your cart.

Does that 7th Generation one really work? If it's just like vinegar or something we can make that ourselves? It's unfortunate, but you really need chemicals to disinfect.

According to their website it does R360

The Seventh Generation wipes with thyme essential oil are the ones that kill 99% of pathogens.

Just thought I would share this in case it helps someone...

For Mother's Day my mom wanted to get food from Denny's, so I went to their website to order it for her - and I noticed that in addition to their menu they now also have a grocery section ('Denny's Market') where they're offering staples like eggs, bacon, chicken breasts, steaks, deli meats, toilet paper, etc. all obviously from their own supplies. We'd talked about local restaurants doing this but this is the first I've seen of a corporate one doing it. Denny's are so ubiquitous in some places that it might help out some of you who are struggling to find those things.

Thank you R361 and R 362, thank you very much.

Whoops - I put the Denny's link in the wrong text box up above:

Damn, Denny's is charging $3.50 for a dozen eggs. Those better be some magical eggs. Is anyone even having problems getting eggs? I mean, it's nice and all but they're price gouging.

I know both Waffle House and Huddle House are also doing the grocery thing.

r366 A lot of stores have raised their egg prices too. Or you can only get the "special" ones, like brown, or organic, or Eggland's Best, which are all pricier.

Thanks for the Kroger disinfecting wipes tip. I saw it too late and they’re out of stock now.

I signed up for a free one month trial of Webrestaurant Plus to get free shipping on some mixing bowls. It’s normally $99 a month, so I’ll have to cancel.

But they do have (not in stock presently) antibacterial wipes that they only offer to Plus subscribers, I just found.

Webrestaurant wipes

I normally get all my frozen chicken, frozen vegetables and cooking cheeses at webrestaurant dot com. I am placing an order for canned pumpkin (libby's for my dogs) and cheese soon and looked at the vegetables to see if I needed any. they don't have a single frozen vegetable on the site. I don't really need any but found it weird. no hormel pepperoni stick either.

I managed to get a 12 pack of Cottonelle toilet paper day before yesterday. It's in my cargo space in the car right now.

Where are all the disinfecting wipes??

Well??

I found some Antibacterial Wet Ones at Target this morning. And GermX hand santizer along with Lysol multi-purpose spray at CVS.

*sanitizer

Antibacterial wipes don't kill viruses.

I’m trying to get disinfecting wipes shipped so I don’t have to go out.

I guess that’s impossible.

R376, I know, but was glad to have something. At least they can wipe some of the virus away lol.

Where are eggs scarce? We're overrun with eggs here in Illinois. They're on sale for 99 cents a dozen.

Eggs are scarce? Not in NYC. My local Costco has their regular eggs and the brown eggs, Bravo had all their eggs on sale.

I did notice that Costco was low on their own Kirkland brand items, The last time I was there, they didn't have the large bag of plain mixed Stir Fry Vegetables, there was no Kirkland plain Greek yogurt and a few other other Kirkland items weren't available.

In April, Costco did not send out their usual monthly sale booklet. Not sure what's happening for May.

There was a shortage of eggs a few weeks ago, it is one area that managed to fix the problems quickly. The USDA quickly allowed egg producers who normally sold to food service and other such processors, sale to the retail market for the duration of the health crisis.

r338 = a truly pointless bitch

R380, at Sams Club they quit sending out the discount booklet. An employee told me they had the discount information on the website instead. That’s probably what Costco is doing too. Check the website.

Speaking of pointless...

Thanks for that pointless post R384

You're welcome!

No YOU are welcome R386

NYCTechie which CVS did you find the Lysol spray, there are 3 CVSs in JC.

R376 the Clorox Wipes does kill viruses, which is why they are so popular.

R380 I received a home items / furniture brochure for May from costco but no regular booklet.

Big thank you to RescueChick--our Walmart toilet paper delivery arrived yesterday, thanks to your tip. Much, much appreciated.

The governors talk to one another and they did have a strategy. When it was clear no help was coming from Trump, the idea was to impose shelter in place, quarantining, and slow down the spread of the virus. There were two things they watched, "Contact spread" and "community spread." In February they believed they were still dealing with traceable contact spread. But it was already spreading in the community.

The testing and the tracing was critical then, and is critical now. In the early days they hoped they could contain clusters and isolate hot spots. But that proved futile because they were undermined by the fucking federal government. They were frantic to try to slow down the rate of hospitalizations. Not enough PPE, not enough ventilators, not enough beds, etc. The front line, essential workers in healthcare, police, fire, trash collection, and food supply chain workers started dropping.

Then you have Jared literally stealing medical supplies from the states. Now de Vos is bankrolling the agitators, and the disruptors. All these protesters are part of a strategy. They want to bully us into reopening the economy but there's no rational way to do that with the virus spreading and killing. So then they start talking about acceptable losses, and "people will die anyway..."

But this entire thing rests with Trump. Trump pulled the Pandemic teams and the entire apparatus out of China by 2018, dismantling everything Obama put in place. Our government knew and wrote a fucking report on our lack of preparedness back in October, 2019. When China began dealing with Wuhan, we were supposed to intervene.

And please do not give me any shit about the Chinese didn't tell us. We have NEVER relied on them to "tell us". Our teams would have known and would have intervened to help the Chinese control and contain it. Trump was getting intel reports in December, November, January, February. HE KNEW. He stupidly sent China medical supplies to help them back in February.

Never ever forget. Putin has a hand on everything that goes wrong. He does. I'm not being paranoid. His entire Intel operation is always focused on chaos. Always. He didn't start the virus spread. He most certainly encouraged Trump's lack of response. He most certainly encouraged the protester strategy and the disruptions. He & Trump talk to one another regularly. They talk all the fucking time.

Trump is a Russian asset. When a fucking General, like McRaven tells you publicly that Trump is at war with the United Sttes, he is not using figures of speech. Trump is not here to govern. This isn't abput incompetence or arrogance or venality. And the complicit Repubicans in Congress and in the courts are there to support him. They have agendas to enact. .

JCGuy/R388: The one at 70 Hudson Street - near Exchange Place. If they are sold out, go back on Monday between 8am and 11am (that is when their shipment arrives).

The only item I don't have is a disinfectant spray

thanks NYCTechie

Pretty sure you mean another account.

I live out past the Salton Sea in So. California so once a month I trek into Coachella or Indio for shopping at Cardenas, a grocery chain that caters to a mostly Mexican clientele. They have plenty of the hard to find items that are mentioned here. Also fresh fruits and vegetables are plentiful. They personally sanitize your wagon and give each customer a squirt of Purell. I tried the closet Costco but to line up for entry in the broiling 110 degree sun for 30 minutes was not worth it. The town of Brawley, which is close by, has a Wal Mart that is fairly well stocked as well.....but out of random products like shaving cream, cold cereal, bars of soap, Tums, Windex, Planters peanuts.

People who won't wear masks are basically the same type of people who throw their shit around on threads trying to disrupt. They're pathetically begging for attention and hoping someone will engage them because no one in their everyday lives will.

R391 can you please post that on every covid thread and politics thread on DL. You nailed it, all of it. Bravo!!

Went to the stores this morning. Walmart and Sam's Club.

Lines at both have really died off. No wait to get in to either.

Walmart had TP, Paper Towels, Hand Sanitizer, the Walmart brand of disinfectant spray, and Wipes.

They had gloves (which were not placed in an aisle you would generally find them. They also had masks, a couple of bags of 50 for $30.00.

I saw a woman check out and she apparently bought two packs of the masks. From what I could gather, she didn't realize she had two in her cart and immediately tried to take it over to customer service to return it. They wouldn't let her. They didn't say she couldn't return it they said she had to return it after the pandemic was over... which I thought was odd since by not letting her, someone else who might need it can't get it.

Sam's Club (both these stores are in CA), had their brand of TP and Paper Towels. They finally had rice and beans back in stock. However, all their canned vegetables as well as their fresh produce was out of stock. They had beef but no chicken (fresh or frozen) and no pork.

They also had face masks available.

I noticed at both Sam's and Walmart that half the people weren't wearing masks. I also noticed that a lot of the employees at both stores were wearing their masks under their noses.

These wipes keep going in and out of stock on Amazon in case anyone needs them and wants to check.

I'm nervous about the Amazon Fresh site. I've been putting things in my cart here and there, waiting till I had enough for a sizable delivery. For the last few days, every time I open the site it shows that I have $194 in groceries in my cart, which is incorrect - I have maybe $100 of stuff. I've used AF for about 8 months and this is the first time I've seen a glitch like this. I don't want to be overcharged and then have to fight with their customer service to get this reversed.

I’m feeling victorious! Just happened to open an email from Nextdoor. Half the time I delete without reading but the word flour caught my eye. The grocery store ten minutes from me has Gold Medal Flour one per customer! This was posted at 1:14 PM. I walked out of the store with one of the last bags twenty minutes later. Short line. Everyone behaving themselves. . I live in Western Massachusetts and the store was a local chain called BigY.

I meant to mention that while I was at Sams and Walmart (in CA), they had Flour back in stock. Seems like that's an item that will be on the shelves again at most stores soon... for the time being.

Re: Costco and their coupon book. I got an email from Costco last month that said they were not going to be sending out the coupon books during the Pandemic but that it would be available online.

[quote] I tried the closet Costco

A Costco just for guys who haven't come out yet?

I shop there all the time R405

R401: Check your "order history" for unauthorized purchases.

I go for months without using Amazon, and recently found someone from PRC had hacked into my Prime account and bought a number of items for a total of under $5.00. They even had the gall to attempt to post reviews for a couple of the items (which Amazon declined to post). Needless to say I deleted all financial and contact information associated with the account.

Amazon's reaction? They couldn't have cared less. I am closing the account at the end of this cycle (monthly subscriber).

KIng arthur flour has 5lb bags available at their online store.

Check Winco for flour if there’s one nearby. Look in the bulk foods department in the far corner.

They have 50 lb bags of flour, 25 lb bags of oatmeal, black and red beans, brown and sometimes red lentils, garbanzo beans and depending on the store, some other types of beans and rice. I bought some beans and lentils. Everything was very fresh and in good condition. They also sell five gallon and 2 1/2 gallon pails and lids for storage in the bulk foods department.

I went to Sam’s Club a couple of weeks ago and they had no toilet paper at all. Costco has toilet paper. Has anyone seen toilet paper at Sams Club recently?

Yes, R409. I was at Sam's this morning (In CA) and they have TP in stores, but only their brand.

Online they have some available.

Trader Joes had TP in stock for the first time in 3 months. 12 rolls = 6 dollars. Give your local store a call before heading out, there wasn't much stock available. Target had toilet paper in stock 6 rolls= 6 dollars. Whole Foods had 7th Generation TP in stock during my last visit a month ago, 4 rolls= 5 bucks. I am furious about Whole Foods prices and will only shop there as a last resort.

R395, you live in the land of film noir, horror movies and ‘50s B&W sci fi! That’s so weirdly glamorous. Do you have neighbors? Are they regularly (a) murdered by homicidal maniacs; (b) witnessing alien invasions, but no one will believe them; (c) experiencing demonic possession; (d) meeting rough-but-handsome strangers with shady pasts and shoulder holsters, accompanied by gum-chewing, bleach-blonde bimbos who adore them but whom they barely tolerate?

I have only passed through your part of the world once, but I was fascinated by the emptiness of it. Do you like living there?

I wonder what kind of mask Joan would wear.

R413 one with the Pepsi logo, but soaked in vodka.

I finally found both tp and paper towels, but tonight I am out of vanilla.☹

My yeast arrived today! A one-pound brick of SAF Instant Premium "High Power" yeast. Now I'm not sure how to use it ... the information on the manufacturer's site mostly addressed commercial baking. I assume it can replace regular instant yeast, but I guess I'll find out!

r415 Cook's Illustrated found that imitation vanilla is actually just as good as real vanilla in most applications (at least in baking or where it's cooked.)

R413 Thank you for that! Seeing Joan Crawford shopping in a market with the gloves over 50 years ago, with a talkative little girl! Perfectly this DL thread.

I'm amazed at the bow tieson the men and the sprayed hairdos on the women.

R417 Thanks but just HAD to have my Massey's vanilla!

I've ordered from this company before (fragrance free shampoo), so don't freak out if your browser says it's a bad site (maybe they fixed it on Firefox), but they have bulk hand sanitizer in stock.

The King Arthur Flour online store has bread and whole wheat flour (as R408 already mentioned) and they also have SAF instant yeast in stock.

Target online has some of their house brand Good & Gather flour available (wheat and white).

My Instacart shopper on Monday added $25 of stuff to my order that he kept for himself, and Instacart insists they can't see the receipt and therefore can't verify it happened, so tough shit, no refund.

I don't know what he was thinking, my order was only $86 in the first place, it's not like I wouldn't notice an extra $25. It was a gift card so clearly he's scamming. I have my receipt plus the credit card charge showing it happened, so I'm filing a police report if I can do it online, someone from the police station is supposed to get back with me this morning about that.

R422 holy crap I wonder how often this happens? You do get the itemized receipt from Instacart shoppers, no?

No receipt, R423. The Instacart website has wiped all my receipts off my account, and when I mentioned that to them, they said they won't give paper receipts to customers "because you get too confused by them." They never explained why all my Instacart online receipts have disappeared, though. They kept pretending I was asking about paper receipts, which was suspicious.

I do have the itemized online receipt from the grocery store, because I used my Kroger store card for the order and the store card is linked to my Instacart account. Instacart claimed they couldn't access that but they did have their scan of the itemized paper receipt (the one I "wasn't supposed to get") and it didn't have the gift card on it, so therefore it didn't happen.

But I have the grocery store receipt, the store itself has a separate record of all gift card purchases which shows that it was bought using my store rewards card, AND I received extra fuel points from them because it was a gift card purchase, so I have that confirmation, too. The Kroger receipt I have even has the last four of the gift card on it, so whoever uses the card will be easy to identify (provided the police care enough to look into it).

Such a dumb thing to steal, and Instacart is stupid to defend the thief shopper. I'm petty and angry, I'm reporting the whole thing to my state Attorney General's office, too.

JCGuy: I just left Shoprite on Marin. They have a lot of Clrorox all purpose spray and a few Lysol all purpose spray. No line - almost empty at 7am - 8am in the morning! If they sell out before you get there, tip for next Wed👍

SAF yeast behaves the same as any other bread yeast. It's just a brand name, like Red Star or Fleischmann's. That's all. It measures the same.

*Clorox (typing w/o glasses🧐)

NYCTechie thanks for the tip. I went to the CVS you mentioned during my daily waterfront walk I spoke to one of the store employees she said their truck will make a delivery the Monday after next Monday they should be stocked with antibacterial wipes and sprays if you need to lay in additional supplies.

Thanks JCGuy! Will do👍

...Huge case of Clorox wipes at ACME by Target in JC. Limit 1 per customer though.

Shopping is 'different' these days. When I needed toilet paper and Target had it but was limiting it, I just went to three different Targets. Same with Eggs at the supermarket. We have a family of five including two teenagers quarantining in this house and you do what you gotta do.

Walmart online has scads of toilet paper right now. Scads!

I've been getting one pack every week I get my grocery delivery to stock up for what I figure will be a harsh fall and winter. Same with things like rubbing alcohol, hand sanitizer, paper towels, detergent.

R431, I'm so glad that I'm not living with a bunch of people right now, especially teenagers and young adults. I'd be freaking out all the time about running out of everything. Just have my old parents here and they don't eat a bunch and mostly just putter around and watch tv.

[QUOTE]...Huge case of Clorox wipes at ACME by Target in JC. Limit 1 per customer though.

Thanks NYCTechie Have 2 3packs of Clorox wipes and a supply of hand sanitizers I only need a can of disinfectant spray to complete my supplies. My condo board has ordered extra disposable gloves and masks for everyone.

R431 i hear you on teens, bought a huge container of protein powder for my son because i am not sure i can find meat/chicken every shopping trip.

CNBC: Amazon made several recent moves that indicate it’s recovering from coronavirus-related delays. The company informed sellers on Saturday that it would no longer restrict new shipments of nonessential goods by quantity.

Additionally, earlier this week, Amazon added back the featured deals section and the “Frequently bought together” widget on product listings. These services were restricted for the past few weeks, as Amazon sought to limit additional purchases from shoppers.

One of Amazon’s last remaining roadblocks will be to restore one- and two-day delivery options. Next-day delivery is now starting to come back online for select cities in the U.S., but it’s not yet restored nationwide, which shows Amazon’s warehouses haven’t fully recovered.

FWIW R436, a bunch of random non-essential items I ordered from Amazon this week showed up much earlier than Amazon had initially indicated they would.

Two hour wait at Target (10 am ) this morning. Waiting in long lines IMO, increases the risk of contracting this virus, I can't do it. If you must shop in person, it has to be done at 8 am or earlier to avoid crazy lines. Most people but not all wore face coverings and kept their distance.

I just got back from Dollar Giant with a 12 roll pack of toilet paper. They had plenty of packs.

R438 2 hour wait on a weekday? Who is doing this? Are you in SoCal?

Two hour wait (10 am) NYC. I can only conclude people in quarantine have more time to shop at the few stores that are open for business and can endure and even welcome the wait. I can not justify waiting two hours to shop.

Re R436 and R437, I too ordered some stuff from Amazon last week, all of it non-essential, not food, 4 items. Items arrived in 2 shipments, which were both delivered before the earliest promised date for delivery. In Georgia.

OMG I JUST GOT LYSOL WIPES ON WALMART.COM!!

If it helps.....SoCA here, and I go to Target in the evening at 8pm (they close at 9pm). Hardly anyone in the store, no lines, and still reasonably well stocked. The only thing still completely wiped out was rubbing alcohol.

Amazon still seems the worst (both Pantry and regular) for hard-to-find stuff. I usually have to go back-and-forth between Walmart (grocery pickup and shipping) and Target (shipping) for things. Today I was able to get liquid hand soap and nonfat dry milk, both of which have been hard to find.

The one thing Walmart never seems to have is cuts of beef other than ribeye and strip steaks and ground beef. No roasts, round steak, stew meat, etc.

My latest hellacious shopping for groceries experience was when trying to exit after doing self-checkout and the store's security guard was blocking the way. Again. Today I was no mood for it as I had cut my leg at the post office (another story). So I stopped and did a Mr. Burns exclamation of disgust and the guard smiles at me. Then I said "Back off" and he did, and I added a "fucking idiot" as I went past him.

glad you got it r390!

mine ordered before yours, has yet to ship. grrrr, no good deed yada yada. joking - I have one roll and can snag a roll or two from the office when I go in on Friday.

You know, most of these people working in retail, Target, Kroger, etc. make minimum wage. They would not be working there if they had a choice. And all day long they have to deal with rudeness and complaints and contrarian asasholes who piss and moan and bitch about every little thing all the fucking time. And now there's the added stress of COVID-19 and the possibility they could catch it. So y'all think about that when you get your panties in a twist and feel like you want to brag about how shitty you were today.

Exactly, R448. When I tell people about how some of the employees at the stores wear their masks under their noses or neglect social distancing when restocking or bark at you for any number of reasons, they often tell me I should yell back at them or complain, etc.

My response is why? These people deal are most likely dealing with horrendous fucking customers all day and would probably rather be at home , safe.

I can totally give it a pass and be glad that I'm not having to deal with what they do.

They bad part is that the people who work there are probably on edge from the moment the store opens. Because everyone walking in that door is a potential problem.

Philly guy here. Did my three week's worth of shopping this morning at my local Shop-Rite. Save for the paper aisle(all they had was single rolls of one brand of tp, some kleenex and a few Bounty paper towels, the store was packed out full( no rubbing alcohol or peroxide, but that's a given) Treated myself to some strip steaks, BR ice cream and UTZ dark pretzels.

Did TJ last Sunday. Only seniors for the first hour the store was open. Merci beaucoup! Everything was fully packed out, the only thing they didn't have was their organic sour cream(I was dying for onion dip) so I settled for their conventional. Beautiful berries at great prices, stocked up on canned beans, eggplant & tomatoes, marinara sauce and breakfast cereal. Staff was their usual chipper selves, the nice young lady who checked me out particularly so. I offered her one of the masks I make, and she accepted readily.

Will hit up Kaplan's bakery next week, getting low on rye and Italian whole wheat bread and chall-ettes.

Been thinking about going to Stock's bakery for their terrific poundcake and a few chop sueys. Will have to call to make sure they are open and if I have to do an online order.

I find that since Ive been limiting the number of days I leave my house, when I do go out I have a ton of errands to run.

I also saw on the news that grocery prices are going up. This is the most grocery I've ever had to buy, so the bills have been more expensive anyway. I cant leave the store without spending $125-$150. I live alone and grocery shop maybe every 10 days or so.

The shelf fillers wear shirts with social distancing rules on them and there are circles on the floor to ask customers keep a distance from the checkouts. So why the hell can't the security guard follow the same rules?! Anyway they should be at the entrance and exits, not at the checkouts.

R452 you make me feel better. I have spent $280 so far this month and it's only the 13th. I try to limit my time out in public too so yeah, every ten days or so, longer if I can manage. I did all my "big" shopping around the first of the month, so next time I go out all I'll need is some bottled water, toilet paper if I see it, and dishwashing liquid. Then some fresh produce. But I have noticed prices going up since at least mid-April if not earlier. I have a feeling the winter months will be exceptionally bad. I think we need to prepared for a big mess, so I'm going to pick up a little something here and there. I wish I had a freezer or at least a larger refrigerator. Stuff like big boxes of oatmeal, evaporated milk, bisquick, frozen veggies. I've decided to get my meat & poultry from the local farmers. No more commercial meat processing plant beef or pork or chicken. I think beans and pasta are a good idea, and soups and broths. I think limiting supermarket purchases to eggs and milk and yogurt, along with fresh produce will be as good as it gets once October comes around. Maybe even sooner.

If you have the freezer space, you can freeze your eggs. Just crack them individually in to ice cube trays (or something similar), freeze until solid and then transfer them in to a baggy. They'll keep for a year.

R455 true but they will need to be used in baking or as scrambled eggs because the yolk changes a little when they freeze. I have 2 dozen in the freezer right now.

I totally agree with r454 and will be picking up an extra pack of rice, flour, pasta, tp etc each time I shop now and tuck it away. I am also looking into dehydrating zucchini/broccoli/peppers/Onions/strawberries during the summer when produce is readily available to use in the winter. I am slowly emptying my chest freezer of superfluous things so I will be able to fill it with chicken, meat, cheese before autumn. Things will get rough again for a few months I suspect Oct-December.t

[quote]They bad part is that the people who work there are probably on edge from the moment the store opens. Because everyone walking in that door is a potential problem.

There was a comment on Paul Krugman's column a couple of days ago in the NY Times by a Target manager, who begged people to make an effort to be kind and show some patience, for that reason - the people working these jobs are under an enormous amount of stress and pressure right now. And a lot of it is coming from the customers themselves, either because of their refusal to wear PPE and practice social distancing or their angry demands and attitude. None of those people would be working right now if they didn't absolutely need their job. Working from home, having everything delivered and not leaving the house for weeks on end are luxuries these people don't have.

The manager also told people to stop bringing their entire goddamn family to the store with them, for which I could have hugged him.

Has anyone ordered frozen food for delivery? Does TJ's offer curbside pickup?

The TJ's by me seems to always have a line. The only thing I really want is their frozen vegetable stir fry. Not sure it's worth standing in line just for that. I have a farmer's market within walking distance. I can get plenty of fresh fish and vegetables there.

Also for the person who said they waited 2 hours to get into a store, I'm a little surprised at that. I would think that most people are either working from home or home-schooling their kids during the day. I'd think the stores would be a little emptier.

R449 if you have an issue, complain to the management not the individual employees. Nobody is saying to pile on the low-wage workers. They get enough crap.

R422, THEY WON’T REFUND THE MONEY??

I would keep calling and escalating. Also, contact local media and scan social media for others that this happened to. Get a class action together.

Don’t take this crap lying down. These corporations are OUT OF CONTROL right now.

I have received over $260 in refunds, credits and double your money back guarantees just since April. You have to stay calm and in charge and keep pushing.

Remember that these corporations make billions in profits so don’t feel bad. Just be nice to the staff, but make sure you give the proper people absolute hell for treating customers like cattle.

No excuse!

[quote]I have received over $260 in refunds, credits and double your money back guarantees just since April. You have to stay calm and in charge and keep pushing.

Everyone hates you, you know that, right? Insufferable.

Also, if you see dirty floors, windows, shelves etc... TAKE A PICTURE. Name and shame these cheap business that are cutting corners and risking lives to save a buck.

They won’t spend a dime on cleaning unless they are forced. Cleaning buggy handles and credit card machines are not enough.

Part of the laws of reopening state IN WRITING that stores need to be regulary cleaned.

[quote]I have received over $260 in refunds, credits and double your money back guarantees just since April.

Are you Mike in Palm Springs?

Ahhh, they push-over door mat has arrived.

How many hedge-funder mansions have you single handedly paid for by being such a meek, sitting duck for conglomerate chains?

Look, if you want to buy these hedge funders a new yacht on your time and with your money, no one is going to stop you.

I noticed Target’s website had King Arthur whole wheat flour available for shipping this morning. Just last night I caved and bought their new house brand of whole wheat flour, but don’t feel like making the $25 purchase minimum again to get the KA.

I got a refund this morning from the Kroger store for the gift card, even though it was an Instacart employee who stole it. That was nice of them but Kroger shouldn't have to eat the cost of the stuff these Instacart shoppers are stealing.

They a re claiming that prices have gone up in general, about 2.6% since the end of March. But for specific items, like eggs, for instance there has been a 16% jump in prices. So yes, grocery prices have gone up, it's not our imagination. But if you feel like there's price gouging, report them to your state AG's office. Most states are keeping an eye on that.

I'm thinking things will start getting very bad by end of September/October and get even worse in December, January, February, March. With any kind of luck, we will have a vaccine by the Fall of 2021. Yes. I don't believe any reliable vaccine will be available before then. They're rushing right now and with science rushing is not a good thing. Beware of the private big Pharma companies who are driven solely by profits. I have more confidence in the Universities. But of course a lot of their research is funded by big pharma..... WTF.

I think it’s important to share your ordeal with others in case they are getting ripped off as well.

Obviously this punk knew he could get away with it. Obviously instaCart knows this is going on, which is why they gave you the runaround.

Instacart is letting this happen and covering it up. The lid needs to be blown off this scam.

I just got a delivery from Amazon Fresh and the delivery person mumbles that several of my items were "damaged" at the warehouse and are missing. I can see how eggs could be damaged, but I don't understand how cheese slices, milk, bacon and ground turkey gets "damaged" and not in my drop-off. He says they will contact me about them. Instead of waiting for that to happen, I contacted them on their chat bot and they're refunding those items. I hate to be suspicious but I wonder if the delivery guy is picking out items for himself, knowing that Amazon will refund for them.

Dang, I was looking forward to cereal, but I ain't got my milk!

I'm thinking the curb side pick up is going to be my shopping experience. I'm not comfortable using Instacart or any of the other shoppers. I'll go online, do my shopping, then go pick it up. And honestly, I've been to the stores about 4-5 times since March 15th. And I always go to more than one. In my earliest shopping venture, I went to Costco, Whole Foods, Target Krogers and Publix all in one day. Exhausting. Spent $300.Haven't done that since. But I do manage to go in to two stores when I'm out. The trick is to go at off peak times. Early mornings work best. And never shop on weekends. Saturday is out,...unless to arrive when they open . But the main thing is make sure yu have a list. Know what you want and if possible where it is located, and get in and out quickly. Wear a mask. I also wear gloves.

amazon is having problems with their workers. the workers have legitimate complaints about lax workplace safety precautions meager wages and no incentives. it would make more sense to heed workers demands during this heath crisis. this virus isnt going anywhere and amazon has made record profits as more people shop for everything online now.

amazon is having problems with their workers. the workers have legitimate complaints about lax workplace safety precautions meager wages and no incentives. it would make more sense to heed workers demands during this heath crisis. this virus isnt going anywhere and amazon has made record profits as more people shop for everything online now.

I don’t want my food being handled by people that don’t give a crap.

Ask a friend or neighbor to get you some items if you can’t go yourself. I can see if you have no other choice.

It’s basically like putting your food in a dirty Uber for 15 minutes and hoping it’s safe.

Curious..... Do you all wipe down all your grocery products? For me, I leave canned goods, TP, tissue, cereal boxes, drink containers etc. in the trunk of my car for a week before they come in the house. Frig items, milk cartons, meat packages etc. are wiped down and fresh produce cleaned as I use it. Too paranoid? I have yet to see masks, gloves, shave cream, hand sanitizer, alcohol, or thermometers out here. But we’re ass high in avocados and broccoli.

It’s probably better to cut out Silicon Valley when possible. They are always trying to get a piece of every pie, even when the ideas are hairbrained and short sited.

*hare

I am washing everything with hand soap before putting the stuff away. I wash each banana before eating it. I am paranoid.

I am washing everything with hand soap before putting the stuff away. I wash each banana before eating it. I am paranoid.

R479 that's reasonable. Washing everything here, unless I can just empty the box's content and toss the box.

I keep everything I can in the garage for a week and wash/wipe anything that needs to come in sooner than that.

[quote]Has anyone ordered frozen food for delivery? Does TJ's offer curbside pickup?

Trader Joe's not only doesn't offer pickup, they don't even allow Instacart shoppers in the store, so there's no way to shop there other than going inside, which I won't do. So no TJ's for me for a while.

Read an article where an infectious disease doctor said that food is not classified as a source of infection. He said that you don't really need to wipe down items from the grocery store, but if you're concerned about it you can down perishables and things you are going to eat right away.

You only need to rinse produce under running water. Food safety experts say that rinsing with water is just as effective in cleaning produce as soap, diluted bleach and commercial produce washes.

I have four spray bottles of Lysol and Clorox disinfectant that I purchased back in March. When I bring my groceries in, I use my own personal canvas shopping cart. I have a very specific area where I dup out everything. I'm weBTW. then I sort out the fresh produce, eggs meat, etc and place them on the counter, and I spray a light (very light) mist over the cans bottles jars and boxes that will go in the pantry and let them sit I wash off my gloves with hot water & soap while I'm still wearing them. I remove them, to air dry, I then soak some paper toweling in disinfectant and carefully wipe off the outer container /packaging of the meat and eggs. My fresh produce gets washing in cool water with some dishwashing soap. I couple of drops not much. I leave them in the basin for maybe 3 minutes. or less, then give them a thorough rinse. I wipe off the pantry items with the toweling. Then I wash my hands. Yes. It's exhausting. It's time consuming. But it is worth it because I have peace of mind. It is part of the new normal for me. Just as the way w e shop is different now.

Trader Joe’s is probably the cleanest store you can be in at the moment.

We have a particular area we bring "dirty" groceries and things like prescriptions into, then we wash them or mist with hand sanitizer. (Ordered a sanitizer a while back that they shipped in a spray bottle, and it works well, though it smells like grain alcohol!)

Packages we mostly leave in the hallway for a day or few days. Whenever we do open it we open it right near the front door (in an apt) and keep all that near the entryway - we don't bring any of it into the living unit.

One other precaution I have developed is to have a tissue or washcloth near me at all times. I have allergies and often used washcloths in lieu of handkerchiefs during allergy season. Now I keep them around so that if I have an urge to itch my face or rub my eyes, I use the washcloth instead.

r478 TJ makes a great fruit and vegetable wash. It's amazing how dirty the wash water gets by the time you're done. Wash EVERYTHING, not merely because we're in the middle of a pandemic, fresh produce is prey to all sorts of germs, fungi, yeasts, dirt, etc. Get rid of whatever you can.

Especially important for berries(makes them last longer in the fridge), tomatoes, grapes and other things that won't be peeled. I also wash the berry containers and grape bags.

It's great for getting rid of the wax on citrus fruits if you plan to zest them. The difference in skin texture after being washed is quite apparent.

Remember to wash melons thoroughly before you cut into them, no use dragging external microbes onto the flesh you'll be consuming.

Atlanta (CNN Business)

Tyson Foods will be discounting prices on certain products for the remainder of this week. The price reductions will vary, but Tyson (TSN) told CNN some beef items sold to grocery stores, restaurants and other customers could be discounted by 20% to 30% through Saturday. "We're doing this because we want to help keep beef on family tables across our nation, especially as our beef plants return from reduced levels of production," said Gary Mickelson, the company's senior director of public relations. Tyson's announcement comes as American grocery store price tags are soaring. Overall, the price of groceries grew 2.6%, including seasonal adjustments, in April. That was the biggest increase from one month to the next since 1974, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

R483: Until it is...They keep changing their "findings" every week. I would err on the side of caution.

The thing is, I am so high risk that I am essentially housebound. I go for a few short walks a week, but otherwise, nada.

Going to a small store like TJ's is impossible.

Some stores are stocking wipes and a few necessary items, but none of them will SHIP them to me, so I am still without.

R490, yeah, don't go...I read a while back that a few employees at the chelsea TJ's got the virus.

R489 is right, with this administration in place definitely err on the side of extreme caution.

Got my Walmart pickup order this morning. Their service really has improved. I guess there are either fewer people using the service or they're staffed better. I'm shopping for myself and ordering things for a friend who's in a board-and-care facility. Got most of the stuff on my order, but they cancelled English muffins, almond milk, frozen broccoli and flavored sparkling water. I did finally get some refrigerated biscuits.

Some stuff wasn't available when I placed the order. They never seem to have any lamb other than a large pre-seasoned leg. No beef other than steaks and ground beef. They did have liquid hand soap (but only the expensive kind -- no SoftSoap or store brand) and dish washing liquid. They substituted Kleenex for store-brand tissues.

[quote]It’s probably better to cut out Silicon Valley when possible. They are always trying to get a piece of every pie, even when the ideas are hairbrained and short sited.

Double "oh, dear" for that second sentence. (The words are "hare-brained," and "short-sighted.")

And Amazon is not in Silicon Valley (assuming that's what you were referring to, since your comment gave no clue.)

Why are grocery prices going up? Except for certain industries, supply hasn't been affected. Demand is the same or less when you consider restaurants have been taken out of the equation to a pretty high extent. Farmers are dumping milk and eggs and vegetables and fruit due to a glut because of the lack of restaurant purchases. Prices should be going down.

[quote]I noticed Target’s website had King Arthur whole wheat flour available for shipping this morning. Just last night I caved and bought their new house brand of whole wheat flour, but don’t feel like making the $25 purchase minimum again to get the KA.

I don't understand this. Do you mean you bought the store brand in the store (as opposed to online)? I ordered the store brand online, but I added enough other stuff to get to the $25 min. I find I can always order enough non-perishables (laundry or cleaning supplies, snacks, baking supplies, canned food, etc.) to get myself up to $25, but I realize that's not feasible for everyone.

R493 I liked their delivery service a lot, but then they cancelled a bunch of times in a row, so I haven't used them.

R497 They cancelled complete orders on my TWICE in a row, and I was about ready to give up, but now they've been great three times in a row. I think they just weren't prepared for the overwhelming demand at first.

R498 Thanks for sharing, maybe I will give them a try again. I think they were obviously overwhelmed but things might have settled down.

Got my first Instacart order last week. They had all purpose flour when I ordered which surprised me but I forgot to say no substitutes. What I got was Red Mill Gluten Free 1-1 Flour which I wasn’t thrilled about but I had a brownie craving so what the hell. It’s mostly rice flour but you use and measure it like all purpose flour. I was skeptical but it turned out ok. Maybe more cake like than fudgey but still quite edible. Asked husband what he thought and he said (as he reached for his second one) they were good but he thought they tasted a little like rice. This was before he knew about the different flour. He obviously has a more sensitive palate because I didn’t get the rice flavor at all. Going to try blueberry banana bread next.

Why is Gold Medal flour available everywhere but King Arthur flour isn't? Is there a shortage of White Lily flour too? White Lily makes the best biscuits.

[quote] I wash each banana before eating it.

Could you demonstrate your technique for washing a banana?

Remember this when you hesitate to complain.

Kroger Pays CEO $21 Million After Ending Store Workers' 'Hero Bonus'

Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen and other top executives got their very own hero bonuses, to the tune of many millions of dollars. Not because they're out on the front lines risking infection by idiots who think viruses aren't real, but because they've done so well at bringing in big money for the company.

HA HA HA! It's a clinical procedure, I'm mostly washing my hands with a banana in it! Not sexy at all.

Remember that, doormat Debbies. ^

We are in this situation right now because we refuse to the right thing. Store clerks, delivery men and workers making and distributing our foods and medical supplies are frontline workers, worthy of more. These are the people holding all of this together, this= society. Kroger has 450,000 employees, if they had paid each front line worker a 1000 dollar bonus, there still would have been enough loot to give the chief sitting on his ass an unhealthy and undeserved bonus.

We are in this situation right now because we refuse to the right thing. Store clerks, delivery men and workers making and distributing our foods and medical supplies are frontline workers, worthy of more. These are the people holding all of this together, this= society. Kroger has 450,000 employees, if they had paid each front line worker a 1000 dollar bonus, there still would have been enough loot to give the chief sitting on his ass an unhealthy and undeserved bonus.

Boycotting those FAT FUCKING WHORES.

Sounds like I'm an exception here, but I don't do anything different with my groceries when I get home. I just put the bags down on the kitchen floor like I always have. I wash my hands, then put stuff away. Then wash my hands again and go about my day.

R496 no, I bought the Target brand flour online and added a few things to reach the $25 minimum, then this morning noticed the KA flour was available, but don’t really want to buy another $20 worth of stuff to reach the minimum. Earlier this week I went shopping for other necessities so I’m already well-stocked. I’ve just been on a search for whole wheat flour since I’m one of those suckers who made a sourdough starter and bake to pass the time (but I also hate commercial breads and there are no good skerries in my area, so it works out). I made it with a bag of KA whole wheat I had stashed away before the virus hit but it’s finally run out, and the bitch is hungry!

Incidentally, my Publix (in north FL) has White Lily flour, and the last time I went to Target in person they had restocked KA all purpose. There must have been 20 or so bags. I also went to a health food store in search of whole wheat flour and found some packets of Red Star yeast, but the price tag stopped me from buying. $2.60 for 3 tiny packets! They usually cost about 90 cents at Publix/Aldi.

R510 that’s what I’m doing too. I did the whole wipe everything down routine for a while, but it was exhausting. ...but I’m not someone with preexisting health conditions.

My elderly grandparents are wiping everything down that comes in, leaving shelf-stable items on a table in their garage, etc. and I’m so grateful they are being overly cautious.

* no good BAKERIES. Or really, any bakeries at all.

r511 I got the 1 lb. of Saf-Free yeast on Amazon for around $10. And White Lily self-rising and King Arthur bread flour from walmart.com (shipping, not store pickup.)

Couple of things:

1. Thank you R359--ordered those 7th Gen wipes from Kroger and they arrived today. Did not realize they delivered outside of their zone, but we are on the east end of LI and they delivered here no problem.

2. RescueChick--that really sucks re: Walmart. I looked, I ordered on the 6th and they shipped on the 10th.

3. Thank all of you, this has been a great source of tips and its great to see most everyone working to help each other.

4. That video from the plump hippie doctor in Michigan that got all those views on YouTube about needed to disinfect all your groceries has been deemed largely unnecessary by experts. He was, IIRC, a GP, not an infectious disease specialist, and there have been several articles posted on DL from legit sources like NPR saying infectious disease specialists thought it was overkill and not necessary. (That said, we still take any bags and boxes outside as soon as they are unpacked and wash hands thoroughly after touching them.)

To those leaving canned goods in your car, make sure that it isn't too warm in your area. Remember, temperatures in your car can double what the outside temperature is. It's probably more effective to bring them in and wipe them down with a disinfecting wipe or with soap and water (although probably not an option if you have a paper label on the can).

Same for those using sprays and wipes on jars and other plastics. Use soap and water when possible and save your sprays and wipes for some other time you may need them.

When I go in the supermarket, I take some of their plastic bags and fill them up as I go along. If it's a big trip I put them in the cart, if I only need a few items that aren't heavy I don't even use a cart.

I just recieved a shipment of 70% isporopyl alcohol I got on Walmarts site. Can I put this in a spray bottle and use it to spray down groceries, surfaces etc just as I would a disinfecting spray like Clorox or Lysol?

When I go in the supermarket, I take some of their plastic bags and fill them up as I go along. If it's a big trip I put them in the cart, if I only need a few items that aren't heavy I don't even use a cart.

I just recieved a shipment of 70% isporopyl alcohol I got on Walmarts site. Can I put this in a spray bottle and use it to spray down groceries, surfaces etc just as I would a disinfecting spray like Clorox or Lysol?

R495, the supply chain is different from restaurants with different companies wholesaling. So the surplus at restaurants does not help the residential shortage.

Also I think it's still important to take all precautions regardless of what is determined as, pre-existing conditions or high risk groups. There are a lot of unknowns about this virus and it seems every few weeks they discover something that contradicts what they've discovered previously. If children are now getting sick and dying, without pre-existing conditions, we all have to be cautious.

I had to wait 10 or 15 minutes at Pet Supermarket. But Publix and Target never have a wait. I usually go mid to late afternoon.

R518 I think you're supposed to mix 2 parts alcohol with 1 part water in a spray bottle if you want to use it as an effective disinfectant spray.

This, to me, was the most common sense thing I'd read about protecting yourself. It was posted on Linked In of all places, and someone shared it here. It was published back on April 7, and maybe some of it is out of date now, but I really appreciated his low key, don't panic attitude.

R518 if you want to remove all the labels from the groceries, sure. Isopropyl alcohol is a good glue solvent.

R522 sure, mix it with water if you want to make sure it's ineffective. If it's less than 70% it will be just that.

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

[quote]sure, mix it with water if you want to make sure it's ineffective. If it's less than 70% it will be just that.

[quote]Mix 2 parts rubbing alcohol to 1 part water in a spray bottle, and use it to disinfect points of contact and other germy areas. You can even use it directly on a cotton pad to clean your earring posts, thermometers, and any other personal items

[quote]DIY All-Purpose Cleaner With Alcohol

For this recipe, you'll grab the vodka and some essential oils. If you don't have vodka on hand, you can use rubbing alcohol as a substitute.

In a glass or plastic spray bottle, fill about 1/3 of it with vodka. Fill another 1/3 with hot water. Add 30-50 drops of tea tree, thyme or cinnamon essential oil. Fill the remaining third with vinegar. Shake well. Spray down any surfaces that you need to clean. Let it dry for a few minutes. Use a rag to wipe. You will want to be careful using this around granite or marble surfaces, but it is safe for general antibacterial and viral cleaning. Additionally, you can also choose to substitute rubbing alcohol, but remember to use caution since it can be irritating if breathed in or ingested.

Alcohol has to be diluted at below 50% to make it ineffective. The optimal concentration to make alcohol most effective for killing bacteria, etc. is 60 to 90%.

So the 2 to 1 ratio sounds about right.

^Of course that depends on what concentration you purchased.

Does Target have paper towels available in the store during the afternoon? I'm tired of getting up early to shop.

R530 depending on how badly you don't want to go out and shop you can order some paper towels on Walmart. They have it in stock for shipping. Free delivery if you throw in some other items.

R527, vodka is not strong enough!

That's why you sub it for rubbing alcohol.

That's why you sub it for rubbing alcohol.

r532=Karen Walker

Hunny get your ass up and go to Home Depot. You will find all the paper towels you need. Now scoot!

If you dilute 70% rubbing alcohol with water in a 2:1 ratio, it will not be effective at disinfecting. Someone may produce some magical "link!" that "proves" that someone with an incorrect understanding posted on some rando mommy blog. But remember, just because it's online doesn't mean it's true. Perhaps the guidance from the CDC is more reliable?

You're welcome to provide links for us.

here's a good link for you, R538:

www.google.com

[quote] White Lily makes the best biscuits.

I disagree, Martha White Self Rising with Hot Rize makes the best biscuits.

Try again

I was just trying to order some simple stuff (for shipment, not pickup) and tried Amazon, Target and Walmart. Walmart kicked the other two stores' asses. Amazon has NOTHING. Target's not that great either, and searching their site is a nightmare. I found lots of stuff on Walmart and had no problem meeting the $35 threshold for free next day delivery (which I didn't even care about.) Paper towels, spray cleaner, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and a few other items. I added in some snacks to get to the $35 minimum.

Try again. Click the link. Then research whatever you want. And question the reliability of the source. Hint: mommy blogs probably are not that reliable.

Again, you're welcome to share links, otherwise, don't.

God, the tedious, desperately seeking attention troll is still desperately seeking attention.

Shocked.

Exactly.

I shared a link. Click it. Don't click it. I don't give a fuck, troll.

Yeah, R542, Walmart has generally been in better stock than the other stores.

I don't know if their delivery has improved though. Early on, even, "Next day," delivery was being delayed.

I have an item I purchased back in March that is still pending delivery.

The irony of saying you don't give a fuck when clearly you do.

Stop feeding it.

There is no rubbing alcohol anywhere to be found.

Just to piss off the tedious troll.

Wipes are available to order right now on Walmart!

I see the "TROLL!!" troll is here again. Please go away.

R551 I scored some from a medical supply company recently. Agree it's very hard to find.

R549 is a troll. Very obvious.

R551 you might have to go in store to find them. My local Walmart had several shelves full of rubbing alcohol.

One has a helpful history the other not so much.

If you can't find alcohol, peroxide is available.

R552 not available.

They are N E V E R available for shipping. Never. Ever. Ever. Not in 3 months.

The grocery store near me has an abundance of those brown peroxide bottles. They even set up an additional little display in the middle of the aisle. For some reason the isopropyl alcohol is still always sold out.

R559 where are you located? It says it's available for shipping for me and it says that there are 2 left.

^ R554 (not R556) - sorry

I just tried the link at R552 and it said available but when I put it in my cart a message popped up saying, "This item has just gone out of stock."

Some other bitch on here might have just snagged it R563. It wasn't me!!

Yup.

They always go out of stock by the time you try to put them in a cart.

And I've had $35 or more sitting in a Walmart cart for months now (since the few things they will ship only ship with $35 or more orders.) I try 10x a day or more to search. No luck.

Goes to show how quick you have to be to grab those items.

You just have to be quick about it. I've gotten them off Walmart twice. Not the 3-pack, but the larger one can.

I see them on eBay but for $$$$$$$ and I cannot count on their quality.

Do you have bleach? You can make your own.

R569 No, and that's another thing none of the stores will deliver or ship, sadly. Or even allow for store pickup.

And I don't want 400 cases of any of it. Just enough for me.

R570 you can try your luck on this. It's showing available now for shipping.

Target also has their brand of bleach, the 64 ounce size, available for shipping.

Harmons in Chelsea,NYC has all that stuff in stock last week. Give them a call before heading out to confirm.

Just scored the Walmart Great Value bleach.

Added a bunch of things like ziploc bags and the like to hit $35

Thank you again DL

I must live somewhere where they don't want to ship, because the bleach at Walmart and almost everything at Target comes up In Store Only. (I am logged in to both now)

Try this friend

A helpful tip is to keep stuff you might need in your carts at various stores so you can check out quickly and get items you want/need.

R575 where are you located?

Thanks R576, that one worked!

R578 I am in Denver. Which isn't Siberia, but I have noticed since moving here a few years back that the supply chain even in best of times is a bit janky. They don't have a lot of brands that are easy to find in CA and/or most of the country east of the Mississippi.

Happy to help R579

This thread is making me a hero to my family!

You rock!

Yeast is starting to become more available however they're tripling the cost.

Yeast prices are too high?

I can help!

Actually, that's 5x the normal price at Costco, R582.

I just clicked on the previous link with the Wipes on Walmart and it says in stock again.

Well hurry up and check out R585! Or some bitch on here will snatch them away again!

The bleach is also back in stock.

Funny, in the section of, "If you're looking for this... you might like this..." they've shown me Duke's Mayo... after looking at bleach.

BAHAHAHAHA R588. They know.

They have some really weird suggestions. It's almost as bad as substitutions at the store.

If you like hand soap you might like.... Wheat Thins!

Someone needs to make a site for all of the weird substitutions stores were doing.

What was that one? Tang for oranges!

There was also unsalted butter and a gallon of milk for butter milk.

What was the octopus a substitute for? A loaf of bread?

Well as long as when you put in fish it doesn't suggest certain personal care products.

Someone was looking for paper towels earlier?

New thread:

is there a part 7 ?????

Same, r575.

ATTENTION SHOPPERS THIS THREAD IS CLOSING SOON

New thread:

IS IT CLOSED YET???

BYE!

New thread: