cshenk wrote:
> "Samois2001" wrote
>
>>> one works. If it works for you, swap when it saves money. Be sure to do
>>> as
>>> Dmitri says and check unit prices. Sometimes a sale can make the store
>>> brand more expensive.
>
>> I'm definitely trying to do my homework and watch unit pricing as
>> Dmitri thoughtfully suggested.
>
> There have been several threads here on wise shopping and Dmitri's advice is
> good though I didnt see him type in the other threads.
>
>> I have a Dominicks and a Jewel both
>> within walking distance but the distance to Jewel prohibits buying
>> refrigerated items with the current outdoor temps, unless I take a cab
>> home blowing any savings.
>
> Grin, you just hit a serious help with that one. I just moved back about 6
> months ago from Sasebo Japan. For the first 4 years we lived outin town and
> did not have a car. Due to 9-11 results, no taxis were on any usable route
> for getting groceries home. Had a car the last 2.5 years but then we moved
> to base housing and were so close, we didnt really need it!
>
> I used a pull cart, slightly larger than a large paper grocery bag. This
> cart was vinyl and had pockets here and there which we could put 'blue ice'
> bags in. It is frequently 115F in Sasebo and about 100F is the norm for 3
> months of summer. (Web looks will not show this as the monitor station is
> the other side of a mountain in a cooler zone).
>
> http://www.atrendyhome.com/foshca.html
>
> Thats a decent one from the picture. If you need to carry food back, you
> can put blue ice bags in there from home and it will keep things cool well
> enough. I cant tell if this one is waterproof (mine is since I often had to
> walk home in the rain with groceries).
>
> Do *not* get the loose open metal frame @$^%@$^ carts. They are not only
> cheaper and will break (often at the wheels), they have no insulation from
> the heat and no way to really add any.
>
> I used more often than not, a bicycle to get about and had a nice basket at
> the front for small trips.
>
> Grin, foot based shoppers learn that sometimes it's better to get a smaller
> box for a higher price so it fits in vice having to use a cab to get home.
> In your case, possible net savings the others may not think of. It worked
> out for us that we saved 1,200$ a year on car costs (gas, Japanese
> insurance, taxes in Japan) but spent an extra 35$ or so a month due to
> selecting smaller sized boxes we could carry home. About 800$ a year saved.
>
> We turned a neccesity into a family outing and used it as entertainment
> value, just shopping our way down and back. Charlotte's 'backpack' also has
> wheels and she'd bring the bulky but light stuff, I'd use my cart, and Don a
> backpack. All frozen food went in my cart with the ice packs.
>
>> I'll definitely try the one store brand product at a time approach.
>
> I find at least 60% of the store brands work for us. Our selection criteria
> is often based on sodium levels (Don had a mini-stroke some time back and is
> sodium restricted). Some store brands are very sodium high so have never
> been tested, but others are _radically lower_ and are better tasting than
> the 'name brand' stuff.
I shop almost exclusively at Kroger's and find that they have many
varieties of canned goods with "No Salt Added" on the label. I've been
sodium restricted for about 25 years now and don't miss it. Kroger has
their card that, supposedly, saves you a percentage on each purchase. It
also tracks your purchases and I get a mailing once a month with several
dollars worth of coupons from them. One was $12 off on a $100 purchase,
that was nice. In addition I buy my gasoline at their fuel stop. By
using the card I get ten cents per gallon off the listed price. That is
also nice when you realize my truck takes 20 gallons to fill up. It all
adds up in the long run. There's a regional market on the way back home
that often has good deals on meat. I often stop there and buy things
like rump roast, buy one get one free of lesser or equal value. I make
sure it's equal. I then take them home, cut them half, vacuum bag them
and use them to make meals for the two of us down the road.
>
>> The Dominicks is hit or miss with
>> accepting online coupons as well which is frustrating.
>
> Unfortunately many scammers have made it so that online coupons are often
> not accepted at all. People learned how to edit them.
>
>