a little and a lot

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

3 Rants and a Rave

1. The NBA season lasts way too stinkin long. Every week for the past two months is the same scenerio:

(Nick flips the channel to an NBA game)
Me: Oooo...is this the finals?
Nick: No...semi-finals. But they play [insert a ridiculous number] games before they advance to the finals.

How many games do you need to play against the same opponent to decide that you're better than them? Evidently it's like 21 or something. Gimme a break.

2. Does anybody else have the problem of not being able to grocery shop in JUST ONE store? Maybe it is indecisiveness or pickiness on my part. But yesterday I went to Target, then next door to SuperLow (cheap grocery), then Fresh Market (expensive awesome grocery), THEN Schnucks (another freakin grocery). Target had the dog food and Nick's toothpaste and toothbrush for the cheapest. Except they were all out of dog food and our dog had already gone a day and half without real food. On to SuperLow...I refuse to get meat from them because it seems kind of icky to me. And they didn't have pancetta, which I needed for a pizza I'm making on Friday. They also didn't have the special cheeses I was looking for. They also didn't have Owens' favorite kind of dog food. On to Fresh Market. Bingo with the first two (sometimes it's silly how much money I will spend on good cheese) but Fresh Market is "above" selling dog food. On to Shnucks (such a fun name to say). They only had a tiny bag of the dog food I needed for $5. Ridiculous, but I stand in the 15 minute long line and shell out the money because I didn't want to go to a fifth store! (PS: I also went to Michael's during that shopping trip in order to buy craft supplies for our Belize trip...so I actually DID go to five stores.)

Now, I actually enjoy grocery shopping. Believe it or not, it was my "chore" in high school--to go grocery shopping for my family (with a list from my mom), and also to shuttle my brothers to and from soccer practice. Having established in my last post that I like food (!), I also like to pick out ingredients that will all come together to make what I cook. Plus, it is pretty much the only regular time weekly that I can spend money. ha. So grocery shopping is not the problem.

The problem is driving to multiple places to do it. It is really annoying! All four of those grocery stores are on either side of my (fantastically located) neighborhood. But it still requires driving there, parking, grabbing a cart, picking your items, standing in the checkout line, loading the items into your car, and returning your cart. Blech. The closest I can come to "one-stop shopping" is SuperTarget, but alas, it is a good 15-20 minute drive away from me so I don't initially feel that it's worth it. Plus I'm able to bargain shop a little if I go to more than one place. (I know, I know...I need to try out Aldi's if I'm going to bargain shop, but again...it is not close!)

So, my friends, what do YOU do to get around the 4-stop shopping conundrum?

3. Compared to #2, this will seem short. However, I mean the intensity to be the same, if not increased: WHY OH WHY DID NBC CANCEL "STUDIO 60 ON THE SUNSET STRIP?" It was my favorite new show this past season and so what if the setting is a lot like "30 Rock?" It is just as good and a completely different kind of show. I'm all caught up in these character's lives and I don't know how I'm just going to say goodbye and let them fade into oblivion when the show is done airing in a few episodes. [sad face]

RAVE: (Even shorter) Doesn't it just make your day to put on a brand new shade of toenail polish? Girly, but true. :) (Today mine is Maybelline's Tulip something-or-other. It is the perfect shade of bubblegum pink that I've been looking for for 2 years.)

8 comments:

Larissa Smith said...

Um, no on the toenail polish thing. Freshly washed jeans, I'm happy.

TOTALLY WITH YOU ON STUDIO 60!!! Absolutely love it. What is the deal?! I swear that America is just getting dumber and doesn't appreciate the sheer quantity of witty banter that goes on in that show. I eat it up. I've never seen 30 Rock and am not interested. Something about Studio 60 just worked for me. I will grieve it.

Grocery shopping - I take the Target/Superlo combo as my own personal Super Target. I just get Shaye out and into her stroller once and go first to Target, then Superlo. We buy cat food at Petco and get a jug of the stuff, so it lasts a long time (we're talking months). Totally don't get it on the fancy cheese; I just buy what they have. Meat, we get at Sam's and it lasts a while, so regular trips are not necessary (maybe monthly). I guess the moral of the story is that I'm too lazy to make all the stops, so I just don't.

Does Shnucks not have the stuff you get at Fresh Market? Or are both of those stops necessary? Only other recommendation is to make one or two stops each day rather than all at once.

Unknown said...

arghghghg. I had already gone through the mourning process for Studio 60, cause during our move I didn't watch any tv at all, and I heard rumors of its imminent death, and so I thought it was already gone. So then last night I switched on the tv and it was on and it was wonderful. So my hopes were renewed. And now you have dashed them and left me nothing but tulip nail polish. arghghghghg!

Tesney said...

I'm so with you on #2.
Target: baby wipes, sugar free merangues, and wasabi peas

Food World: Pilsbury cake mix with Splenda, Mayfield no sugar added Rocky Road ice cream, and Quaker Cinnamon Oat Squares cereal.

Super KMart: Spicy microwave popcorn & Clayton's favorite kind of sippy cups

Wal Mart: everything else

Greg's with you on #3. He loves Studio 60. I never really got into it.

lee said...

How is driving all over the place now any different than when it was your chore? Oh, I get it--you were pretending it was "work" then!

Until you have a sweet sixteener who begs to run your errands, you can try what I do now. Go to only one place every week and in a month's time, you've covered them all.

Re: Studio 60
Don't take no for an answer!
Schmoosh the show sponsors!
Get that email campaign going--tell
'em what you think!

Did you notice that the attorney
warned Matt that Danny didn't have legal rights to the newborn?
Shades of Howard K Stern vs Larry Birkhead ala Anna Nicole Smith's baby girl?

sjkigy--this word belongs in the dictionary; how would you define it?

Blessed said...

I'm with you on #2. Much harder now with a baby!!! I can't really go to a zillion stores like I used to for groceries. Even though it was a pain, I kind of miss it now that I don't have the time! I love:
1.Target for most groceries
2.Wal-Mart if it's a BIG shopping trip for stuff we haven't bought in forever
3. Fresh Market-for their cut up fresh fruit. Expensive, yes. Worth it to feel healthy and save time chopping, OH YEAH! But, now that baby is here, a stricter budget is too, so I can't really do this as often. :( And, I can't really resist their meat or desserts, so I get into trouble once I'm there.
4. Aldi-Their fruit is sometimes good and much cheaper than FM.
5. Sam's-Rotisserie chicken for my chicken salad They sometimes have it at Wal-Mart, but not always, so I hate wasting a trip when they are out of it.
6.Kroger-currants for my chicken salad. Hard to find anywhere else.

Julie said...

We are so with you on Studio 60!!! We loved that show! I thought Matt and Danny were hilarious and loved that Harriet was a Christian and wasn't portrayed as a total freak.

I hate grocery shopping and refuse to dignify it by discussing it any further. It is the bain of my existence.

Miss you...

Katie Land said...

I never grew up watching sports and was not a fan, but I am now b/c for first time i understand the games...especially football. I really like to watch sports. Now the NBA play offs, yes, they are long and each team plays up to 7 games before advancinng. It is the winner of 4 games. They might win them all in a row like the Spurs did, or they might have to play 7. Anyway, that is why I have our tivo on our bedroom tv. I can go back there when I can't possibly hear a basketball bounce one more time or hear the squeeks of shoes one more time or hear the announcers voice one more second and watch my shows. Grocery shopping....I refuse to go a bunch of places...I have never let myself start shopping at fresh market b/c I really don't want that extra step. I get everything at Kroger or Super Target. I will not go in Wal mart anymore..I thinkI could be better about saving money, but by the time I drive all over the place I have used all that $ in gas and time and it defeats the purpose in my opinion.....

melanie said...

Jess...I am missing your comedic wit...I need a post. I hope you can soon!

melanie cagle jones


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