In The Line Of Fire

Grocery shopping should be an enjoyable experience, right?  Seems this week I've been in the line of fire on several fronts.  Yesterday I escaped by the skin of my teeth!!  Here's the sight of the first encounter ... the Magic Kingdom of Bingo.

The second encounter took place at one of two places to purchase groceries in this area ... well three actually, but as you go down the totem pole, the names on the cans become unrecognizable and the vegetables look like rejects from the harvesting wagons.

Since I needed pillows and dog food, an odd combination, I first stopped in at Petco.  Food for my dogs has officially become more expensive than what I eat.  Nutro, which used to sell for $30 (22 pound bag) has "reformulated" their product to be all natural, grass fed non GMO (whatever that is) lamb with no-pesticide rice.  That same 22 pound bag now runs $50 ... but WAIT ... you get $5 off for being a Petco customer.

The bag I ended up with was 30 pounds and cost me $59.  The canned food I add (just a couple of tablespoons) used to be 99 cents each, lasting about 4 days.  The price just jumped up to $1.99 per can.  

I could buy cheaper dog food, but in case you never noticed, what goes in, comes out.  The better food you buy, the less there is to pick up, not to mention the "bad food that can kill your dog" factor.  Maybe I should start feeding them primo hamburger ... I think it would be cheaper.

Next stop ... the big W.  There are two in this area, one of which you never step foot in the door for several reasons.  There seems to be an inordinate number of stabbings and shootings, not to mention lots of stealing.  You will find dozens of empty makeup packages hidden all over the store while the products went home in someone's purse.  

If you buy anything at all that comes in a box, if it isn't sealed (which it never is) parts will be missing guaranteed!!  I can't tell you how many things I returned things to that store.  The new Supercentre built not far from my house is a tad bit better, and even though I KNOW better, I went to get groceries there yesterday.

With half a basketful, I went looking for a checkout counter.  Should be easy to find, they have 25 of them.  Trouble is, only two are open.  As I wandered down the aisle past the first one, I spotted FIVE management type employees standing there looking at the two open lines, each with seven people waiting to be checked out, carts full to the brim.  Maybe they could call someone?

It's okay though, I'm not in a hurry, so I wait patiently.  HA!!!!  Fifteen minutes later NOT so patiently, I watched as the checkout girl ran eighteen WIC tickets through her machine.  I took out my phone and took pictures of the lines and the management types just standing there (which I won't post due to privacy and all that stuff).  When they saw me pointing my phone at them, they jumped into action.  I should have done it earlier.

Suddenly there was a new checker heading to the cash register, followed by three baskets full racing to see who could get there first.  I got caught in the line of fire.  They crashed into my cart and shoved me aside as they fought to be first in line.  Good grief!!  You take your life in your hands when you shop here!!

By the time I got home, it was 90 degrees outside and most of my groceries' pull dates had already expired.  The good news is I was safe and sound in one piece, and the puppies liked the new food, which is probably just the same as the old but with a new fancy bag to hold it.

While in Petco I did find something for Cooper.  I'm definitely NOT into dog clothes, nor are the dogs, but this little bow tie collar was just too cute to pass up.   

With a totally uninteresting rest of the day, the puppies and I watched the Giants take the series from the Dodgers in their own stadium last night.  It was a fitting end since the Dodgers beat the Giants 13-5 on Tuesday.  It's also pretty amazing, since most of our guys are hurt and several are Rookies to the field.

Although I'd like to stay home today, OUT of the line of fire, I really need to head off to the big town of Fresno to gather the paperwork on my embroidery machine.  With a high of 93 forecast for today, I think summer has arrived!!