Express Lane

I am a damn good grocery shopper. In the grand scheme of things, that's not a huge deal, but I know that if it came to it, I could get a job with Shipt and it would be easy squeezy.

It's a skill I got from my father.  He taught me meal planning, how to pick produce, meat, bread... and I retained it.

I need to get back into one of my best habits - making a list based on the layout of the store.  That keeps me from walking back and forth a few times based on something I forgot.  Currently, I'm not making paper lists - I'm using the Memo app on my phone.

Here are some of the highlights of today's trip to Kroger.

1. I got a damn good parking spot.  Apparently, I hit it in a sweet spot.

2. My first cart was shitty, had a bad wheel.  I dithered for a minute, then returned it and got a better one.  Go, me!

3.  Red grapes  -  88 cents a pound.  Done.

4.  I used my father's tip for buying broccoli - look for tight, compact buds in the crown of it.

5.  Kroger has started carrying the Smithfield ham steaks like the ones I get at Aldi - comparable price, too!

6. Found some stir fry meat on the cheap and since the snow peas looked great, we'll be having that this week.  This is where I wish I had paid more attention - Dad made THE BEST stir fry on the planet, and I never paid attention to how he did it.  He didn't do it often, because it was a pain in the ass, but...

7. Progresso Soup - super deal alert - 99 cents a can if you buy eight or more.  We eat a bunch of their soups, so I loaded up on those.

8.  I picked good eggs on the first try.  I have a funny story.  Last year, I was picking eggs, and I opened the carton and they were all good, so I put them in the cart.  This guy stops me and asks what should he be looking for when he opens the eggs.  I explained you just check to make sure none are broken.   I am nothing if not helpful.

9. I found a new crossword puzzle book.  We've been on a crossword kick recently, and so it was nice to find one.

9a.  The cat coloring book people have another one out:



It's a follow up to these two:






I need to bite the damn bullet and buy one or possibly all of them.



10.  Although I walked slowly through the Easter candy, I didn't put any in my cart.  I did see some stuff that hit me right in the nostalgia bone, but it's nice to see old friends.

11.  Although the La Croix water was totally picked over, they had store brand plain seltzer water in cans.  I bought that, and I'm glad to have it.  Some day, we might get a SodaStream...

12.  I didn't have to wait in a long line.  They had enough cashiers.  And!  I didn't have to go through the line of the super sassy one who always snaps her gum and tells me to have a "blessed" day.  And I didn't have to go through the line of the angry woman with the crazy hair who is constantly bossing around all the other cashiers. 

13.  I put my groceries on the conveyor belt in a very specific way.  Heavy stuff first, cold stuff together, dry stuff together... it's very logical.  The kid who bagged today did a decent job of putting it in more or less the right order.

14. I made it home, got it all put up, and still got to watch most of the Preds game.  They won again.

All in all, a good trip.

ae

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