Good God, I went to the grocery store to buy some trivial, unnecessary items (like, you know, food), and I cannot believe how much things cost. I’m trying to eat a healthier diet of lean meats and fresh vegetables, but it seems that just about everything is some ridiculous price like $5.99 a pound. And that’s not even going near the even more insanely overpriced organic stuff, which all the stores are promoting to the sheeplike shopping public. I’m pretty sure that’s one reason food costs are going up — they figure if idiots will buy spotty, smaller “green” produce for a third again the price of something grown in, I guess, fields that aren’t dirt, then they can jack up the prices of everything. And of course there is the ethanol scam and fuel costs in general. I am officially over this recession/non-recession whatever it is.
Anyway, here’s how I feel now every time I go food shopping:
I’m seriously thinking of growing my own vegetables in pots. If only I didn’t have a black thumb…
5 Responses to “Sticker Shocked”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
August 2nd, 2008 at 11:44 pm
Fuel costs are affecting everything. The cost of shipping a package by UPS or FedEx as nearly doubled in the last 3 or 4 months, but that’s an obvious one.
How much gouging is going on with everything else would be hard to pin down, I’d guess, but I’m sure it’s a part.
For what it’s worth, I grow my own fruit: apples, peaches, apricots (way too many!), grapes (although a major heat wave a few weeks ago did a lot of damage to the vines and shriveled about half the crop), and cherries. There is nothing sweeter and juicier than home-grown cherries. Unfortunately, the damn mockingbirds got most of them this year.
August 3rd, 2008 at 8:58 am
Not having a yard I can’t do that (and I think Orlando is still too far south for apples to grow, sigh). But I can get a little lemon tree for my patio… Mmmm, lemons…
August 4th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
I had to buy a new pot for my datil pepper plant this year. It cost nearly $40. I’d planned to buy more pots and grow more vegetables, but not at that price.
August 4th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
Not to mention tomatoes, lettuces, spinach…all work pretty well in pots, from what I hear. My tomatoes & cukes are about done for the season – much too hot for them now, but will be putting something else in soon!
Is there a farmer’s market near you? That’s where we shopped in Texas, but it was an awful long time ago (gas lines & jimmy the peanut) & I don’t know if there are still such things.
August 4th, 2008 at 10:49 pm
Food is overrated anyway. What I’m most concerned about is the potential for this ethanol scam boosting corn prices to the point where it affects Bourbon. Price Maker’s Mark out of my reach and there’ll be blood in the streets! ADM and the other corporate welfare clients can ignore starving Mexican peasants, but American Bourbon drinkers all have guns, live up here already, and are not inclined to suffer nonsense.