Thursday, September 19, 2013

My Grocery Shopping Dilemma

    Every Wednesday afternoon here is the grocery run. I'm involved as the taxi driver and as my manager says, "You eat here too." So that means that I participate in grocery shopping and I don't really have a problem with that. We do the one shopping trip and don't make little trips every time we run out of something.

    At our place we eat three meals a day at almost fixed times. Our breakfast is a cereal, toast, coffee, juice type of breakfast.  Lunch is some combination of soup and?or sandwiches . We also have raw veggies and fruit.

    Dinner is a cooked meal. This meal usually lasts for a couple more days.

    We eat well.
    
     So if you eat like this you have to have the groceries on hand. 

    Now here's where things fall part. My manager looks through all the grocery fliers for the week and picks out all the specials and that's what's on the grocery list. So we get to the store. Oops, we can find the first special. After a while we find a staff member to ask about the product and wow, it didn't come in this week! The next item we look for and find that there's nothing on the shelf as they have run out of it. The next item we look for is not in this store but another store. Some more oops. The next product on special doesn't look too good so we won't buy it. So the manager gets about half the things on her list. 

   Then we look for the basics like bread, milk and fresh produce. Much the same thing happens here, but there's more to choose from.

   I realize that there's more than one way to shop for groceries. I dislike my manager's method and every once in a while I whine about it. So I'm challenged  by the comment, "Well, how would you do it?"

   Well, this is my proposal. I would make a menu for the week. I would make a list of what is needed to produce this menu. There are some regulars like bread , milk and fresh produce. I would find these products and that's my shopping trip. Yes, I would have to pay attention to specials. Cold cereal is sometimes on sale and I can eat anything when it's cold cereal. There's usually some kind of jam on sale. My favorite soup goes on sale from time to time.

    My key point is that the menu is where you should start your shopping trip rather than the grocery fliers that come in the paper.

    Oh yes, I admit that I don't like shopping.

    What do you think about grocery shopping? What method works for you? 

    

45 comments:

  1. The method that works best for me is to not go when I am hungry ... I tend to not over buy if I go when my stomach is full. lol I know that doesn't help with having a list though does it !

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    1. There's a lot to that situation. It's a well known fact that we buy more when we're hungry.

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  2. I hate grocery shopping and avoid it whenever I can. That said, when I do shop I write out a weekly menu and buy what I need to create that menu. And I never shop when I'm hungry.

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  3. I am absolutely on your side on this. Your manager's way sounds frustrating and non-productive.
    I don't even make a menu for the week. I just shop, paying attention to things on sale that I regularly buy. I have meat in the freezer and cereal and other supplies in the pantry. I make up my meal plan each day.

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    1. You mention that you have a basic supply of some items. We are the same as far as cereal and such things are concerned.

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  4. I agree with you--I buy for what I plan to eat/cook. I don't like to grocery shop, but if I do, I try to figure out beforehand what I want to eat over the next week or so.

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    1. I think we eat better with a loose menu in mind. I think we can watch for a balanced diet.

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  5. I don't plan ahead. When we run out of something, I put it on the list for the next trip to the grocery store. I don't plan menus - and I don't always cook an evening meal. We just don't require the big meals much anymore.

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    1. You're right about appetites as you grow older. When we go out we usually split a plate. it's just too much.

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  6. I rely on my hubby to get the basics and cook them. I get the extras and usually get a little bit each day on my way back from my workout. It seems to work out pretty well. I sure don't like your manager's style. :-)

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    1. I think many people check in at the grocery store on a daily basis. Just watch when people are on their way home from work. They stop in to get something for dinner.

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  7. I dis like shopping. We go about once a month. 2 cart shopping. I have a list. Cameron gets the big stuff and his stuff. I get the groceries and my stuff. Then its about once a week to the little store in town for milk, eggs and bread. We live 75 miles from any big town. 25 miles from our small town.

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    1. So if you forgot something you might have to go hungry! I would think you would have a large basic supply so that substitutes could be made.

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  8. I wish I was even twenty percent as organised as you. Some days I forget to eat altogether.

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    1. I believe you would forget to eat. When you get your head far into some soft ware I can see that you would forget. However, you do describe some pretty appetizing meals.

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  9. I too hate shopping with a passion. I do shop with a menu in mind and check the pantry for what I already have on hand. I only use specials if it's something I would normally buy.

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    1. The pantry? Yes, a good place in the house. Today many people do not have a basic supply of groceries. We don't have a pantry but store a lot of things in the basement.

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  10. Interesting post :) Greetings and welcome to Us Patricia & Daniel

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    1. I would think grocery buying in your country might be quite different.

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  11. Oh I know the approach well. My Manager adopts a similar one. Why is it that 10p Off something you didn't want is more attractive than what you did want at its normal price?

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    1. Obviously they know something we don't know.

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  12. I never, never shop for food when I'm hungry. I make a list and go to the store and get what I need. I buy things on sale if I need them and I shop early before most people are still having that second cuppa. ha,ha

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    1. I'm sure the store would be empty when you shop. Here Super Store is open 24 hours. I'd like to go in after midnight to see what is happening.

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  13. Oh I never use the flyers it may seem like you may save money but in the long run you waste a lot of time. B

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    1. You do save some money but you're dead on about the time. People have other things to do rather than hunts for the specials.

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  14. It looks like you may end up doing both the shopping AND the cooking if you aren't careful Red. Kudos to your wife for doing the sale search! I am not one to menu plan I'm afraid!

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    1. I do much of the cooking now and all of the dish washing.

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  15. i'd never survive your boss's method, either. stores are too unreliable. i try to go to walmart when i need a ton of stuff as it is cheaper than my local store that is 12 miles away. but walmart cannot be relied on to have everything every time.

    i do try to stock up on dry goods when they're on sale - especially if i'm going to use them eventually. but i don't shop fliers.

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    1. Well, you can have Walmart. They aren't my favorite store. Stocking up is a good idea.

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  16. I keep a lot of basics and buy meat when I need it, and whatever else rings my bell.

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    1. A good basic inventory keeps things in order.

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  17. I really dislike grocery shopping! I fail to use coupons because I am lazy. Half the time they do not have what I want anyway!

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    1. Yes, I forgot to mention coupons. Yes, my manager uses lots of coupons,

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  18. I do about 99% of the grocery shopping, so I am the manager and taxi driver :)

    I think your idea is great. I tend to shop according to what I think I'll be cooking that week, but don't really stick to it too rigidly. I work with a budget rather than sales, and as long as I stay within it, I'm fine.

    The specials that I pick up are usually the type that I can store long term. In other words, if canned soups, paper goods, cereals, rice, shampoos, etc, are on sale, I'll stock up on them for future use. I rarely run around picking up sales unless I'm going to buy in bulk.

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    1. You're right. The menu would be a ball park figure.

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  19. My method is too avoid going at all costs and never complain about her choices. Unless she is sick and I fill in. Then I do a whole lot of impulse buying without a list focusing on the things I like and she usually doesn't....:)

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    1. I think I've seen guys like you in the store. Actually, I'm surprised these days to see some very well organized male grocery shoppers. I assume they live on their own.

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  20. Hm, grocery fliers and coupons are not a regular part of our culture. We just go to the supermarket and serendipitously find something on offer. Or else we're at what's called the "wet market", which is a sort of wet, dirtyish farmers' market where you can haggle. In our family, our weekly grocery list is quite unchanging and we shop almost mechanically; if there's a sale on an item, great, and we might get it in bulk, but if not, we'll still get it anyway -- I NEED my broccoli and cheese lol!
    P.S. Very glad to have discovered your blog through Martha's :)

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    1. You make a good point. Not all grocery shopping facilities are like mine. Thanks for visiting.

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  21. I think making a menu for the week would be brilliant, but it never seems to happen. I am the one who makes the grocery list, though. Because we prefer to shop in Cornwall (we like the grocery stores better than the on in our nearby tiny town), we have to plan out when, because it's a 30-min drive. If Gordon is working Cornwall, he'll often pick up the groceries. Sometimes we go together on the weekend. Sometimes I drive in and do it alone.

    I used to use coupons when I was younger but now I just don't seem to have the time or patience. We also shop a lot a farmers' markets around here, and I will buy, say, chicken from my neighbour who raises them humanely on her farm. But I think my life would be a lot easier if I planned out a week's worth of meals at a time and shopped accordingly!

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    1. so this is a history of Knatolee's grocery shopping. I'm sure everybody changes their habits over time.

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  22. You're funny!
    I don't do groceries. I make a list, when I run out of stuff.
    Hubby shops nearly every day. Our silly frige is bad with veggies. I wing it!

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    1. A typical teacher! Wing it! I like it. It brings back memories.

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  23. We make a menu for about 10 days, 14 in the winter. We shop once a week. I buy the specials if I need them or not, like salad dressing, ketsup, peanut butter, cereal etc..If it will keep on my shelf and is something we use I buy it on sale. I hate grocery shopping so going once a week works for me. If we didn't eat veggies and fresh fruits I could go every two weeks:)

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