"Nancy Young" > wrote:
> Exactly! I have to make a list because just the sight of all that
> stuff when I walk in the door makes me forget at least on item I
> need. Sad, but true.
>
> I make a list usually in this order: I go through the weekly circular
> and write down what I want that is on sale. Then I decide on at
> least a couple of meals and add the ingredients to the list. After
> that I take a look at what I have to make sure I am not running out of
> other stuff I expect to be there ... I hate when I find out the hard way
> I'm out of Worchestershire or something. Grrr.
>
> When I go shopping, if I feel like it, I wander the aisles and pick up
> whatever I forgot I needed or just decided I felt like getting. I'm
> something of an impulse shopper. Like that one time when short ribs
> looked so good and I suddenly had to find a way to make them. They
> were coming home with me.

I'm very much like that. I do write things down as I notice I am starting to
run out of them. I try never to run completely out. On some items
(nonperishables) I like to keep an "inventory" on hand and only buy them
when they are on sale.

I then go through the weekly circular and see what sale items I might want
and add them to the list. If am feeling like having something particular
that week (which I usually do), I put those items on the list.

When I get to the store, I almost always go up and down every aisle, unless
I am pressed for time. I'll get the items on the list, but sometimes make
substitions on the fly. If the chicken looks a lot better than the beef, I
might change my plans. I also note if there is anything on sale that's not
in the circular, and pick it up if it's something I'll need and it's a good
deal.

I also look for things I've never seen or used before to get ideas. If I
find something interesting that I can use, I'll buy it. One item in that
class was sour salt. I stopped at the Jewish foods section one day and
picked a container up to see what it was. Then I realized it was citric
acid. I had been getting it at the health foods store for a much higher
price. If I hadn't stopped to look, I wouldn't have made that discovery.

In spite of the lists, I still forget things. And often enough, it is the
one item I really needed. A somewhat regular item I forget is the Sunday
paper. They have them right at the end of the checkout aisles, and I still
forget as I am unloading my basket right next to them! That happens if
anything distracts me. So I try to pick up the paper first thing going into
the store now.

--
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