I don’t know about you, but at my local CostCo this is a sight that is rather rare:
A five-pack of Clorox bleach wipes. They are, apparently, some sort of magical talisman that keeps the Kung Flu at bay. Or, at least, thats what one might reasonably suspect from the way these things are snapped up within moments of hitting the floor. Other than their rather convenient disposable nature, they don’t do anything a bucket of water/bleach and a rag won’t do. However, I do track their availability everytime I am at CostCo because I’m curious to see what is and is not flying off the shelves as people get the hoarding bug again. oh, and of course these were marked as one-to-a-customer.
What was I at CostCo for? I needed to pick up another 50# of rice. I have about five or six large gallon pickle jars on the shelf that I keep my rice in. They sit on the shelf in the kitchen and it gets used up in the course of things. When I get down to the last jar, I pull one of the Gamma Seal-ed buckets from storage and refill them all. Then it’s time to refill the bucket. So…a couple bags of rice. Which, by the way, do not appear to have been depredated yet.
And one final thing about COstCo before I drop the subject entirely – it isn’t even Halloween yet and there are freakin’ Christmas items out for purchase. What the hell, man?
Not surprised to see Christmas shopping season starting; I was wondering last night about turkey sales/shortage? Thousands of folks won’t be going to the restaurant for their turkey dinner fix, how many more will be cooking at home?
It’s Costco… theoretically, it’s for “business” purchases and the like. So they’re always “in time” with the holiday stuff… meaning 2-3 months ahead of it.
Costco is for larger purchasing retail customers. Restaurants buy from Restaurant Depot, Sysco,Reinhart, McLane and other supply houses(usually mainly delivery services).
Due to a change of employment I am no longer shopping Costco during the week but on weekend. The difference is vast, on a weekday it is fairly populated with very attractive suburban milfs. On weekends it is a slog through the shallow end of the gene pool.
Well, Halloween ‘cancelled’ because it’s an outdoor activity & people are already wearing mass, etc. Thanksgiving is hanging by a thread. Skip it all & go straight to Christmas!
I hear ya man. Noticed the Christmas swag at home depot this week. The Mrs. went to sams for a “stock shop” today and observed the same. This loooong year 2020 seems to have strangely gone by quick. Maybe not quick enough for some. It’s been like a trial run of communism. The fact that clorox wipes being in stock is notable enough to blog about says it all.
I keep a pack of clorox/kirkland bleech/wet ones in each vehicle. I have for a long time. They work really well for cleaning your hands after changing a tire. And if you were in some sort of accident or stopped to help at one, they are great for cleaning up any mess that got on you.
Since March though, I use them to clean my hands when I get back in the truck, before I touch anything else. The kirkland ones have a rough and a smooth side. They are very effective at removing dirt.
n
You may want to change to baby wipes, Clorox wipes are not recommended for skin use. Should also wear gloves when using them to clean.
Before covid I used baby wipes, but kept the clorox wipes for biohazards… Now I just use the clorox/kirkland wipes. They don’t irritate my skin, and I haven’t noticed any other effects. The actual Clorox branded ones in the tube will attack the plastic in your vehicle, so I wouldn’t use them on dash or steering wheel. At least they did mine.
n
Well the merchandisers are pushing the calender hard this year. They know its more than likely will be a dismal Christmas season. Especially if the CPUSA/DNC steals the election.
But Dollar General in my small town had Halloween candy out before the 4th of July. Thanksgiving decorations followed and then yup. Christmas. Seems to happen earlier and earlier each year. As of yet the local yards and lots that sell the trees have stayed barren except for the Halloween pumpkins that have been passed over. Heading out tomorrow for groceries. I wonder if the turkeys will be on sale yet. Wouldn’t be surprised if the candied fruit for fruitcake and marshmallow for Fantasy Fudge will be in the center aisle at Wallies.
Won’t be surprised if it’s so.
Well the turkeys were present in the freezer aisle. And the fixin’s for fudge and fruit cakes were showing as well. The entire garden department was devoid of hoses and sprinklers having been exchanged for snownen and candy canes of plastic. A virtual wonderland of the Yule tide season.
The marketeers must be nervous. Myself. I spent a bit heavier than normal. More canned food and a bit more of everything. Didn’t see anything in the way of shortages. Shelves were full and everything seemed in good supply. My cat is happy S his menus selections were expanded today. Except for the bottle return having half the machines on the fritz everything else was normal.
This is not a new thing – at least in my area.
A casual observer will note that this trend began about twelve years ago, and really started getting traction around 2010. It’s unironic that the big stores saw what might possibly be coming and decided to get a jump on things. They just haven’t let go yet, and here we are again.
These are one of those times that define generations. We’ve had the Great Depression, war vets, baby boomers, hippies, and the various others. I guess now we’re gonna have pandemic COVID kids, too, which suits me fine if it opens their eyes a little.
This PANDEMIC hasn’t really had any effect one way or the other, except for the fact that I’ve been about as busy as I ever have been – trying to accommodate, adjust and avoid what is expected of us nowadays.
I wouldn’t worry about things. The kids are still going out begging on Halloween, the sun will still come up tomorrow no matter what the Costco barometer says. Maybe we’re reading into every little detail a bit too much.
Haha! The sun will always come up tomorrow at least for another 4 billion years or so until the sun become a red giant. I guess the point of prepping is to see as many sunrises as possible without starving and freezing!!! At least that’s my goal.
This, exactly. The PANDEMIC has made me realize that I’ve been preparing all the while without even realizing it for decades, stocking up here and there when a good deal pops up or an opportunity arises and I’m in a good position to take advantage of either. Once the “internet” became a thing, I realized that I was kind of lumped into this group of people who kind of do the same thing to a greater, or lesser extent, which eventually brought me here.
I get the whole idea of selling stuff early, or even whenever! If you have it and don’t need it, sell it while you can. At the end of the day it’s just stuff.
I’m looking for more sunrises, too, and I encourage almost everyone I meet to do the same, and make arrangements to do so just as comfortably as they can.. The more people on the right track, the better.
I work for HD, and I can confirm that my store actually put its Christmas Decor out for sale…..LATE this year. Previous years we’d had Christmas out for sale as much as two weeks prior. Not joking. This year it was out for sale the first week of Oct.
The reason stores put it out this time of year? People buy the damn stuff the instant it hits the floor. I was fielding phone calls several weeks before we put it out from people looking for it. I hate it, but as long as people are buying it that early the stores will continue to put it out that early.
I’ll also note, people are buying both Christmas and Halloween decor at rates I’ve not seen before. People are SPENDING MONEY this year. We’re damn near sold out of Halloween, and it hasn’t even gone 25% off yet.
Saw the same thing at the local Wally World 2 weeks ago.
Went there to find something for Halloween and it was all Christmas stuff.
Up here in the Great White North if I can still use that politically incorrect “W” word, we kick off Christmas Nov 1st or the closest business day to that. A constant barrage of Carols and flashy displays that burn out any Christmas joy with in a couple of weeks. By one December I am done with the whole thing. Commercialism has ruined what used to be a fun and magical time of year. Too Bad. TTFN
Instead of sanitizing wipes and storing chlorine bleach (which deteriorates surprisingly quickly), I purchased a chlorine bleach generator. Admittedly, I bought mine when it was about half the current price, but I’m very happy with it. I have a solar power system, so the electricity isn’t a concern.
This thing takes plain water and table salt (the non-iodized variety) and uses a 12 VDC electric current to generate ~10% chlorine bleach. It’s primarily sold for purifying drinking water, but the 10% solution is perfect for disinfecting surfaces as well. Storing the salt in empty soda bottles means it will last for thousands of years, and it’s cheap.
MSR makes this one, but it’s pricey:
https://www.msrgear.com/shop/global-health/se200-community-chlorine-maker/10275.html
This one is made by a missionary group for a fraction of the price:
http://swimforhim.org/chlorine-producing-unit/
Unfortunately, the electrolysis unit needs to be plated with a very exotic metal that is quite challenging to obtain, so while it’s possible to make your own, I doubt you’d save any money, and in fact I think that it would cost you more.
Sams club, same sort of,thing in our town – Clorox wipes disappear when they hit the floor. TP – two months ago, the pallets emptied within the hour. Now there seems to be tp available the past month or so every time I visit. Generators – they have tons right now, even had them in stock when Hurricane was nearby 2x. Water in stock. Non perishables in stock. They got a $400 power bank ( 2000va battery backup basically) that is now available- you can do the same for 1/2 price using an UPS instead. Veggies seems well stocked. Meat was on the low side, but that could be because it was Friday. Sams club batteries were low, but energizers were aplenty.