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Friday, April 24, 2020

TIME TO REPLENISH THE PANTRY


My grocery list was fairly long, but I’ve learned that it’s the need for bread and milk that sends me to the store. The last trip was Tuesday, April 14 – ten days ago. Looking back, our trips for groceries during this pandemic shutdown have been at 10-day intervals. That’s about as long as two gallons of milk will last us if we're careful.

So, with mask, hand sanitizer, and disinfectant wipes, I left the house just before 9:00. Mike was working on projects and didn’t care to go.

Arriving at the store, I tied on my mask and laughed at myself for having carefully applied lipstick before I left home. I carried a disinfectant wipe with me to wipe down the cart, but this time I noticed that the store does supply them.

“Albertsons is paranoid,” observed a son, and it’s true that they are well regimented. A greeter stands at the door to keep customers from crowding at the entrance. All employees, including stockers from other companies, wore masks. At check-out, only one order at a time is placed on the belt, which keeps the next customer from pressing in. I rather like that. One of my pet peeves is people who move in before I’ve finished my transaction.

The store still isn’t well-stocked. I have no idea whether this is because it sells out rapidly or if their stock isn’t being fully replenished. I rather suspect the latter. I noted gaps in canned goods, especially soups and vegetables, as well as dairy and cheese. They did have flour – just one package per customer, please. (In retrospect, if I could only have one, why didn’t I take a larger package?) And they do have some toilet paper of various brands, still one package per customer.

I was not there during hours for the elderly and at risk, but I noticed most of us were older. Frankly, I think the clientele at this store probably is older – people who, like me, are willing to spend more for better personal space and service. Most women shoppers were wearing masks. Most men were not. And I even saw two guys greet each other with an enthusiastic handshake! (They’ll probably be just fine.)

I can’t help but wonder if pandemic practices will change us forever. Before all this, Mike and I tried not to run to the store all the time, and at the farm, we definitely didn't. Nevertheless, in town, if we thought we needed something, one of us would go – you know, for a lemon, a tomato, hamburger buns, a can of baked beans. And I know we shopped at least once a week -- maybe oftener. We would even shop for fun! Now I know I can make it ten days with some judicious management and making do, I might just continue that. And I take pride in saying I haven’t bought more than my share or hoarded a thing. KW

2 comments:

  1. I don't know how I do it, but sometimes we don't get to the store for two-three weeks. Guess it's that "not a shopper" part of me. I do make all our bread, so there's that, but somehow milk seems to last quite a while at our house, and we usually buy several at a time. I was talking to someone yesterday and she said she hopes that after this stores will continue to limit how many shoppers they let in at a time because she didn't like how crowded Costco and other get sometimes. That really shocked me. If a store did that during "normal situation" times, I think I'd stop shopping there. Just pick a less busy time to go!! Of course, I didn't say that to her.

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  2. To some extent, I think we just can't alter the way it turns out, but if we really had to, we would drink water and our supplies would last a long time.

    I agree. Stores would lose business in normal times if they made shoppers wait outside. We can visit at less frequented times. I try to do that now.

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