In article >,
Pennyaline > wrote:

> On 2/20/2010 10:36, Omelet wrote:
> > Never heard of BJ's...
>
> When we lived in New York State, we had BJ's and Sam's Club. I didn't
> encounter a Costco until we came west.

We have Sams and Costco. No BJ's.
--
Peace! Om

"Human nature seems to be to control other people until they put their foot down."
--Steve Rothstein

Web Albums: <http://picasaweb.google.com/OMPOmelet>

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On Feb 19, 4:11*pm, Cindy Fuller >
wrote:
> Ranee's post about the non-availability of good kosher hot dogs at
> Costco brought up an interesting sidebar. *She said that she and Rich
> had let their Costco membership lapse. *The SO and I have debated for
> years about the value of getting a Costco membership. *I briefly had a
> Sam's Club membership many years ago, but I let it lapse because there
> wasn't one nearby when I moved from Dallas to Ithaca in 1986. *Our
> neighbors are big Costco aficionados, and my relatives back east are
> devotees of BJ's and Sam's. *To my thinking, a membership doesn't make
> much sense for the two of us. *We don't have oodles of space to store
> large quantities of stuff. *Anyone in a small household want to chime in
> one way or another?
>
> Cindy
>
> --
> C.J. Fuller
>
> Delete the obvious to email me

I'm on a friends business membership. Several of us all slpit the cost
of the dues and we think it's worth it...at least for the hot dogs!!

On Feb 20, 8:23*am, Stu > wrote:
> On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 06:05:13 -0500, Old Harley Rider
>
>
>
> > wrote:
>
> >Doug Freyburger wrote:
> >> Jean B. wrote:
> >>> Cindy Fuller wrote:
>
> >>>> ... *She said that she and Rich
> >>>> had let their Costco membership lapse. *The SO and I have debated for
> >>>> years about the value of getting a Costco membership. *I briefly had a
> >>>> Sam's Club membership many years ago, but I let it lapse because there
> >>>> wasn't one nearby when I moved from Dallas to Ithaca in 1986. *Our
> >>>> neighbors are big Costco aficionados, and my relatives back east are
> >>>> devotees of BJ's and Sam's. *To my thinking, a membership doesn't make
> >>>> much sense for the two of us. *We don't have oodles of space to store
> >>>> large quantities of stuff. *Anyone in a small household want to chime in
> >>>> one way or another?
> >>> ... *MY debate was
> >>> whether to go for the more-expensive membership, and I decided the
> >>> kickback was worth at least that amount.
>
> >> We shop regularly at Costco. *In some years we've had overlapping
> >> memberships in both Costco and Sams Club and that wasn't worth paying
> >> the extra fee.
>
> >> Costco has better meat than any of the local groceries, less expensive
> >> than any of the local butchers. *We get most of our meat at Costco and
> >> some at the local butcher now. *They also have a lot of products that
> >> have better price or are just not available at other stores. *The larger
> >> package size rarely matters to us. *If we lived in a downtown tiny
> >> closet sized place it might matter but we live out in the burbs.
>
> >> Our question now is should we downgrade from the fancy Executive
> >> membership to the regular membership. *We don't quite spend enough in
> >> the year for the fancy membership for pay for itself and *I don't recall
> >> using any of the other extra services. *This is a function of just being
> >> the two of us now.
>
> >The wife and I have a Sam's membership. We use it strictly for gasoline.
> >We very seldom go in to the Sam's store. Sam's is only about a mile
> >away. You have to buy large portions of groceries at Sam's. We just use
> >Walmart for 90% of our groceries.
>
> We haven't shopped at wally world since the early 90's, *because most
> of their products are from china.
>
> Stu
>
> More than your average recipe website ..http://foodforu.ca

I wouldn't shop at Walmart no matter how cheap they are.

"Nancy Young" > wrote in message
...
> PLucas1 wrote:
>> "Nancy Young" > wrote
>
>>> As a Costco member, I get my American Express through them and
>>> I get cash back from it amounting to a few hundred dollars every
>>> year. I save on Craisins, too, and soap and laundry detergent,
>>> moisturing lotion and Visine, kitchen garbage bags ... not
>>> everything is a great bargain but enough things are. The rewards I
>>> get from my executive membership and my American Express card more
>>> than cover the annual fee. Just my two cents.
>
>> What are the annual fees??
>
> I have an executive membership which is $100. You can still have
> the American Express card with the regular Gold Star membership,
> which is $50. I don't see the executive membership on the link
> you quoted.
>> http://www.costco.com.au/MV/Membership.aspx
>
> nancy
You didn't mention that the American Express Costco card deal of 3 or 4
percent back on gas is good at any gas station, not just Costco.
Janet

Janet Bostwick wrote:
> "Nancy Young" > wrote

>> PLucas1 wrote:
>>> "Nancy Young" > wrote
>>
>>>> As a Costco member, I get my American Express through them and
>>>> I get cash back from it amounting to a few hundred dollars every
>>>> year. I save on Craisins, too, and soap and laundry detergent,
>>>> moisturing lotion and Visine, kitchen garbage bags ... not
>>>> everything is a great bargain but enough things are. The rewards I
>>>> get from my executive membership and my American Express card more
>>>> than cover the annual fee. Just my two cents.
>>
>>> What are the annual fees??
>>
>> I have an executive membership which is $100. You can still have
>> the American Express card with the regular Gold Star membership,
>> which is $50. I don't see the executive membership on the link
>> you quoted.
>>> http://www.costco.com.au/MV/Membership.aspx

> You didn't mention that the American Express Costco card deal of 3 or
> 4 percent back on gas is good at any gas station, not just Costco.

Yes, the rewards are good for wherever you use your card, not
just at Costco. 3 percent off restaurants& gas, 2 percent off travel,
1 percent off other.

nancy

On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 13:25:54 -0500, "Nancy Young"
> wrote:

>Janet Bostwick wrote:
>> "Nancy Young" > wrote
>
>>> PLucas1 wrote:
>>>> "Nancy Young" > wrote
>>>
>>>>> As a Costco member, I get my American Express through them and
>>>>> I get cash back from it amounting to a few hundred dollars every
>>>>> year. I save on Craisins, too, and soap and laundry detergent,
>>>>> moisturing lotion and Visine, kitchen garbage bags ... not
>>>>> everything is a great bargain but enough things are. The rewards I
>>>>> get from my executive membership and my American Express card more
>>>>> than cover the annual fee. Just my two cents.
>>>
>>>> What are the annual fees??
>>>
>>> I have an executive membership which is $100. You can still have
>>> the American Express card with the regular Gold Star membership,
>>> which is $50. I don't see the executive membership on the link
>>> you quoted.
>>>> http://www.costco.com.au/MV/Membership.aspx
>
>> You didn't mention that the American Express Costco card deal of 3 or
>> 4 percent back on gas is good at any gas station, not just Costco.
>
>Yes, the rewards are good for wherever you use your card, not
>just at Costco. 3 percent off restaurants& gas, 2 percent off travel,
>1 percent off other.
>
>nancy

And you do not have to use the rebate at Costco. I just take the
rebate to the desk and ask for cash. If they put it on a cash card
then I can't use the Amex and get more rebate.
--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral,
48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974)

"brooklyn1" > wrote in message
>
>>Propane tanks for the grill and my shop heater save $5 a fill over local
>>places.
>>I fill 10 to 12 tanks a year.
>
> That's a very expensive way to purchase that much propane, you'd do
> much better to have a bulk tank installed, and save all those trips
> hauling dangerous tanks. Wait-a-minute, didn't you just buy a fancy
> schmancy gas stove, where does that gas come from?

The problem is location. The twin 100 pound tanks feed the gas stove, the
others are for grill and heater. Running a line from the big tank to them is
a PITA and you lose the ability to move them easily. Another alternative is
to buy another big tank for each, but that presents other problem.

Cindy Fuller wrote:
> Ranee's post about the non-availability of good kosher hot dogs at
> Costco brought up an interesting sidebar. She said that she and Rich
> had let their Costco membership lapse. The SO and I have debated for
> years about the value of getting a Costco membership. I briefly had a
> Sam's Club membership many years ago, but I let it lapse because there
> wasn't one nearby when I moved from Dallas to Ithaca in 1986. Our
> neighbors are big Costco aficionados, and my relatives back east are
> devotees of BJ's and Sam's. To my thinking, a membership doesn't make
> much sense for the two of us. We don't have oodles of space to store
> large quantities of stuff. Anyone in a small household want to chime in
> one way or another?

Even when we lived in our RV, we kept a Sam's or Costco membership
primarily for meat. We don't have Costco in our area so we have Sam's
and even though there are only two of us, we make good use of it buying
almost all of the beef we eat there and sometimes other meats.

Unless I special order it, I can't get lamb chops locally so I buy them
at Sam's. I like the quality of some of their frozen fish, too.
Individually cryovac-packed fillets are helpful for small families.

As for the giganto-packs of toilet paper, I don't use their brand. We do
get a good price on new hard cover or paperback books (when we can't get
the library to stock them) and I buy socks, gym clothes and DH's
underwear there. I've found some good prices on clothing items, too. We
also get OTC drugs and vitamins at really good prices. I save a few
dollars on inkjet printer ink, AA batteries, salt for the water softener
and other items.


--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south Texas
Spelling doesn't count. Cooking does.

In article >,
sf > wrote:

> On Fri, 19 Feb 2010 22:44:21 -0700, "Dale P" > wrote:
>
> > My contact lenses are REAL cheap.
>
> So, they have a good selection? I need to check it out.

Like everything else at Costco, they appear to have a terrible
selection. Just the basics, but at a good price, although I haven't
looked for some time.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

On Fri, 19 Feb 2010 21:29:44 -0800, sf > wrote:

>On Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:11:29 -0800, Cindy Fuller
> wrote:
>
>> Ranee's post about the non-availability of good kosher hot dogs at
>> Costco brought up an interesting sidebar. She said that she and Rich
>> had let their Costco membership lapse. The SO and I have debated for
>> years about the value of getting a Costco membership. I briefly had a
>> Sam's Club membership many years ago, but I let it lapse because there
>> wasn't one nearby when I moved from Dallas to Ithaca in 1986. Our
>> neighbors are big Costco aficionados, and my relatives back east are
>> devotees of BJ's and Sam's. To my thinking, a membership doesn't make
>> much sense for the two of us. We don't have oodles of space to store
>> large quantities of stuff. Anyone in a small household want to chime in
>> one way or another?
>>
>We have a membership but don't go very often. Basics like toilet
>paper are in such huge packages these days that it's ridiculous for
>two of us.

Nonsense, one can always find space for non-perishables... no law says
a 24 pack of TP can't be opened and spread about... I always keep a
roll in my car, I 'rearly' use it but sure is handy when you gotta
pull off at the side of the road and head into the woods... and I'd
think females would keep like 2-3 rolls in their car, and a 24 pack in
the trunk! LOL My mom never went anywhere without he rroll of TP in
her handbag... in fact she'd remove the 3/4 used rolls from the
bathroom because they more easily fit in her handbags.

I have non perishable groceries stored all over the house, in bottom
bureau drawers, desk drawers, file cabinet drawers, on book shelves
behind books, on the floor in clothes closets, even a couple cartons
of booze under my bed... there is no such thing as not enough space
for non perishables. Even though I have an entire basement to store
stuff my first choice is to keep it nearby than to first lug it down
there and then lug it back up again. Another thing I learned from mom
was to remove bar soap from their wrappers and store them in my
clothes drawers, made nice smelling pomanders and when the soap dried
it would last longer... I must have dozens of bars of soap in my
clothes drawers and plenty in the linen closet. Of course too many
people never throw anything away, more than half of what's stored in
their abode they've never used and never will use... if folks would
only toss out all their squirreled away crap they'd have plenty of
room for storing things they will use.

George Shirley wrote:

> And Phoenix area has how much population? Our little town has four
> markets; Kroger, Brookshire Brothers (a Texas chain), Market Basket
> (fancy name for locally run co-op stores), and a Misses. Misses is
> strictly local, their ancestors were Maronite Christians who immigrated
> here from what is now Lebanon but was just part of Greater Syria in the
> early twentieth century. Good people but just barely hanging on. That's
> it. Kroger is a mile from our home, very well run, clean, lots of stuff,
> the others not so much. Market Basket is actually closer and I
> occasionally shop their sales; Brookshire Bros. is about five miles away
> and nothing any better than what is closer.
>
> Seems that as I age, if it ain't convenient I don't go. <G> Besides
> Kroger never changes the position of the food on the aisles, Walmart
> does it once a week or sooner to encourage impulse buying, one of their
> strategies.

Y'all are lucky to have choices. Here in the Lower Rio Grande Valley we
have HEB and WalMart. There are one or two small, local chains which are
very much oriented to the local population which is predominately of
Mexican heritage.

WalMart's meat and produce is awful. They inject their meats with salt
solution to compensate for the distance from their distribution centers.
Their produce seems to start rotting the moment it leaves the store. I
would not be surprised if they are gassing it in the display cases.

When we do shop in WalMart, it's for things like toiletries and their
own brand of alcohol swabs which DH likes. He also goes there for the
sugar-free Blue Bunny ice cream that he loves. HEB doesn't carry Blue Bunny.

I'm fairly happy with HEB, but I do wish we had a Krogers. We had
Albertsons but HEB kicked their asses out of way-south Texas.

--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south Texas
Spelling doesn't count. Cooking does.

On Feb 19, 8:02*pm, "Nancy Young" > wrote:
> - Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -Jean B. wrote:
> > Cindy Fuller wrote:
> >> Ranee's post about the non-availability of good kosher hot dogs at
> >> Costco brought up an interesting sidebar. *She said that she and Rich
> >> had let their Costco membership lapse. *The SO and I have debated for
> >> years about the value of getting a Costco membership. *I briefly had
> >> a Sam's Club membership many years ago, but I let it lapse because
> >> there wasn't one nearby when I moved from Dallas to Ithaca in 1986.
> >> Our neighbors are big Costco aficionados, and my relatives back east
> >> are devotees of BJ's and Sam's. *To my thinking, a membership
> >> doesn't make much sense for the two of us. *We don't have oodles of
> >> space to store large quantities of stuff. *Anyone in a small
> >> household want to chime in one way or another?
> > With fairly minimal purchases, mainly Prilosec, Splenda, and
> > Craisins, I get a nice kickback in the fall. *MY debate was
> > whether to go for the more-expensive membership, and I decided the
> > kickback was worth at least that amount.
>
> As a Costco member, I get my American Express through them and
> I get cash back from it amounting to a few hundred dollars every year.
> I save on Craisins, too, and soap and laundry detergent, moisturing
> lotion and Visine, kitchen garbage bags ... not everything is a great
> bargain but enough things are. *The rewards I get from my executive
> membership and my American Express card more than cover the
> annual fee. *Just my two cents. *

What are the annual fees??

Costco has just 'moved' to Australia, so I'm creaming my pants at
getting all excited over yet another way to emulate being an american
and also
become a compliant consumer of unnecessary goods. Pretty sure they'll
situate
themselves within walking distance from a bus stop.

Oops!! No matter........ GIMF.

http://www.costco.com.au/MV/Membership.aspx


I qualify for the $5 poverty membership.



Are those membership fees comparable to the US's?

--
Peter Lucas
Brisbane
Australia

Join us Google Groups posters.........

http://groups.google.com/support/?hl=en

http://www.freeproxy.ru/en/free_proxy/howuse.htm

Pennyaline wrote:
> On 2/20/2010 10:36, Omelet wrote:
>> Never heard of BJ's...
>
> When we lived in New York State, we had BJ's and Sam's Club. I didn't
> encounter a Costco until we came west.
>

Costco used to be called "Price Club", IIRC from when we had a
membership in New Jersey. It was the only one of its kind for quite a
while then Sam's Club came in. BJ's didn't happen until the mid 90's.

--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south Texas
Spelling doesn't count. Cooking does.

Subject: Costco membership
From: PLucas1 >
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking

"gloria.p" > wrote in news:hlngqr$ujb
-
september.org:

> Cindy Fuller wrote:
>
>
>> To my thinking, a membership doesn't make
>> much sense for the two of us. We don't have oodles of space to store
>> large quantities of stuff. Anyone in a small household want to chime
in
>> one way or another?
>>
>>
>>
>
> There are just two of us. I love Costco's cheese selection, their large
> bags of shelled pecans and almonds, mushrooms, fresh figs in season,
> baby salad greens, smoked salmon, whole beef tenderloins (for the
> extended family visits or guests), cry-o-vac boneless chicken breasts,
> large pkgs of yeast, multi-packed batteries, artichoke and jalapeno
> spread, and multi-pack canned tomato sauce. Since our neighborhood
> Albertson's has closed along with their pharmacy, I am about to transfer
> our prescriptions to Costco. We have three Costcos within 10 miles of
us.
>
> I do try to go only once or twice a month because I'm like a kid in a
> candy store there.
>


They even give you coupons to shop there!!!!! (Well, I know you
*would* have
coupons over there, but it's a 'new thang' over here - soon we will be
as good as america!!)

http://www.costco.com.au/Resources/c..._FEB_FINAL.pdf


Someone mentioned Raisins before.......... $47 off a 1.3kg bag.....
but
they don't give you the actual price of the items.

--
Peter Lucas
Brisbane
Australia

Join us Google Groups posters.........

http://groups.google.com/support/?hl=en

http://www.freeproxy.ru/en/free_proxy/howuse.htm

In article >,
"Ed Pawlowski" > wrote:

> "Omelet" > wrote in message
> > Since there are just two of us and I also don't have tons of space to
> > store in bulk, a Costco or Sams membership makes no sense to me either.
> > And there is a Sams less than two miles from where I live.
> >
> > I just don't see the point.
> > --
>
> Not everything is in huge packages. Yes, some paper products are, but
> coffee, a gallon of milk, an appliance, a book, are all the same package as
> every other place. Meats are typically 20% to 50% less than the supermarket
> so big savings there. You do have to buy 4 pounds of butter to pay $1.68 a
> pound compared to $3.50+ at the supermarket.

Not true for the Costcos I've been to:

coffee - three pounds or more
milk - two gallon jugs in a box
meat - minimum six steaks, six pounds of hamburger, etc
butter - yeah, four pounds shrink wrap of four boxes

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

Stu > wrote:
>
>Toilet paper (we buy Scott) are in 35 roll packs, we buy two and are
>set for six + months.

I've never seen a 35 roll pack, Scott TP is always in an *even* number
pack... the largest I've seen is a 24 pack, although you can buy a
carton of multiple packs, like 8 six packs, making a carton of 48.
Still I've never seen an odd number pack/carton of TP. There aren't
many items that come in an odd number pack... at Sam's Club I see
three packs of jarred pasta sauce, but that's odd and also rare.

In article >,
Stu > wrote:

> On Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:11:29 -0800, Cindy Fuller
> > wrote:
>
> >Ranee's post about the non-availability of good kosher hot dogs at
> >Costco brought up an interesting sidebar. She said that she and Rich
> >had let their Costco membership lapse. The SO and I have debated for
> >years about the value of getting a Costco membership. I briefly had a
> >Sam's Club membership many years ago, but I let it lapse because there
> >wasn't one nearby when I moved from Dallas to Ithaca in 1986. Our
> >neighbors are big Costco aficionados, and my relatives back east are
> >devotees of BJ's and Sam's. To my thinking, a membership doesn't make
> >much sense for the two of us. We don't have oodles of space to store
> >large quantities of stuff. Anyone in a small household want to chime in
> >one way or another?
> >
> >Cindy
>
> Do you own a business?
>
No. We're wage slaves, although both of us have done freelancing in the
past. We don't need to purchase electronic equipment (knock wood) in
the near future. The cat food and kitty litter would be advantages to
having a membership, I suppose, along with some other items.

Cindy

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

In article >,
"Nancy Young" > wrote:

> Doug Freyburger wrote:
>
> > Costco has better meat than any of the local groceries, less expensive
> > than any of the local butchers.
>
> Their meat is the reason I joined Costco, I was having trouble finding
> decent pork chops. Now I mostly buy chuck roast from them, it's always
> great and they come two to a package. Freeze one and make one.
> They look much better than anything I find at the supermarket.
>
> They also have something labeled chuck short ribs, which makes
> terrific stew meat or braise them whole.
>
> > some at the local butcher now. They also have a lot of products that
> > have better price or are just not available at other stores. The
> > larger package size rarely matters to us. If we lived in a downtown
> > tiny closet sized place it might matter but we live out in the burbs.
>
> Same here, though I don't find that buying paper towels, toilet paper
> or soda there is the cheapest alternative. Kleenex, yes.
>
Kleenex? Now there's something that we could save significant coin on,
between allergies and colds. With our early spring, the pollen is at
astronomic levels for February. (As my next-door-neighbor says, "Damn
fornicating trees!")

Cindy, currently recovering from a nasty cold

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

blake murphy wrote:
> Andy wrote:
>> Old Harley Rider wrote:
>>
>>> The wife and I have a Sam's membership. We use it strictly for gasoline.
>>> We very seldom go in to the Sam's store. Sam's is only about a mile
>>> away. You have to buy large portions of groceries at Sam's. We just use
>>> Walmart for 90% of our groceries.
>>
>> I belong to BJ's Wholesale club. They don't sell gas. First I've heard of
>> that! My club is pretty small compared to CostCo, Sam's, etc. Membership is
>> $40/annual.
>>
>> I usually visit once annually mostly for paper, plastic and cleaning
>> supplies. I never bothered to figure out if the cost + $40 dues is a
>> bargain, compared to what? No way to tell really.
>>
>> Andy
>
>yeah, jeez, that would call for math and thinking and stuff.

You must really love those No-Legs mick threads. lol

On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 08:15:36 -0500, "Nancy Young"
> wrote:

> If you don't make enough to cover the extra $50, they'll refund that
> portion of your membership.

Huh. I didn't know.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

brooklyn1 wrote:
>
> I have non perishable groceries stored all over the house, in bottom
> bureau drawers, desk drawers, file cabinet drawers, on book shelves
> behind books, on the floor in clothes closets, even a couple cartons
> of booze under my bed... there is no such thing as not enough space

So much easier to find when the room is spinning.

On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 09:57:24 -0600, Stu > wrote:

> Javex diluted 50-50 with water in a spray bottle.

As far as I can tell, that's straight bleach. Am I wrong?

> We used this to kill mold in bathrooms before priming with zinsser.

I want it for grout and was hoping to get away from straight bleach...
it beats up my clothing.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 07:43:11 GMT, Wayne Boatwright
> wrote:

> Use one of the spray products that contains bleach. Most bathroom grout
> stain contains some mold, no matter how clean you keep it. OTherwise, use a
> white toothpaste and brush.

Thanks.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 07:41:04 GMT, Wayne Boatwright
> wrote:

> On Fri 19 Feb 2010 10:33:43p, sf told us...
>
> > On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:03:20 GMT, Wayne Boatwright
> > > wrote:
> >
> >> I don't know how often you can get a "guest card" at Costco, and I
> >> believe there's a dollar limit on purchases, but you might try that.
> >> Our membership has expired, and I think I'll try getting a guest card
> >> next time.
> >
> > I don't remember a dollar limit on what you can buy with a guest
> > membership, but you'll need to bring cash because they won't take
> > checks or credit from nonmembers.
> >
>
> Or debit card?

I doubt they'll take anything other than cash from non-members. If
they did, why would you join?

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

"Cindy Fuller" > wrote in message
...
snip
>>
> Kleenex? Now there's something that we could save significant coin on,
> between allergies and colds. With our early spring, the pollen is at
> astronomic levels for February. (As my next-door-neighbor says, "Damn
> fornicating trees!")
>
> Cindy, currently recovering from a nasty cold
>
The coupon books that come out once per month have coupons for Kleenex at
least every other time. I have a box of Kleenex in each vehicle, one in the
laundry, each bathroom. I understand the 'sniffles.' ;o{
Janet

The Cook wrote:
> On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 13:25:54 -0500, "Nancy Young"
> > wrote:

>> Yes, the rewards are good for wherever you use your card, not
>> just at Costco. 3 percent off restaurants& gas, 2 percent off
>> travel, 1 percent off other.

> And you do not have to use the rebate at Costco. I just take the
> rebate to the desk and ask for cash. If they put it on a cash card
> then I can't use the Amex and get more rebate.

Great minds think alike. Heh. I cash the check and then shop and
use my card to start on next year's rebate.

nancy

Cindy Fuller wrote:

> "Nancy Young" > wrote:

>> Same here, though I don't find that buying paper towels, toilet paper
>> or soda there is the cheapest alternative. Kleenex, yes.
>>
> Kleenex? Now there's something that we could save significant coin
> on, between allergies and colds. With our early spring, the pollen
> is at astronomic levels for February. (As my next-door-neighbor
> says, "Damn fornicating trees!")

(laugh) I hear ya. I go through a lot of tissues. Of course, you
need a place to keep that 8 pack of (larger boxes than you find
at the supermarket) tissues, but I'm usually surprised at how
quickly they disburse around the house.

> Cindy, currently recovering from a nasty cold

That stinks, sorry to hear it. Knock on wood I've avoided one
this year so far.

nancy

"Ranée at Arabian Knits" > wrote in message
...
> In article
> >
> ,
> Cindy Fuller > wrote:
>
>> We don't have oodles of space to store
>> large quantities of stuff. Anyone in a small household want to chime in
>> one way or another?
>
> Even us, with our large household, found that we could get the same,
> or better, deals by shopping at Cash and Carry, Grocery Outlet and
> Trader Joe's. Between those three we saved at least as much money, were
> able to buy in large or small quantities and didn't have to pay for
> membership. We did our research for a few months before we let the
> membership and found that almost everything we bought at Costco could be
> bought for the same price or lower and at the same quality or better at
> another store where we already shopped. The one thing that kind of made
> us linger was the gas prices. However, we got a Fred Meyer credit card
> that we started putting everything on which not only gave us a better
> gas deal on their gas, but since we pay it off each month we don't have
> any interest to pay and since we use it for everything we possibly can,
> we get about a week's or more groceries for free in their rebate checks
> each quarter. It has worked for us.
>
> Regards,
> Ranee @ Arabian Knits
I definitely have not found the meat at Cash and Carry to be as good quality
as Costco. The prices are cheaper for sure. The other drawback to C&C is
that you have to buy huge packaged hunks of meat. I don't mind cutting and
dividing the meat, but sometimes you just want a steak or two instead of the
primal cut. Cash and Carry is closer for me and I buy dairy there because it
is the freshest. I buy produce when I can't get to Costco even though the
Cash and Carry produce is not as good and does not last as long. There are
other occasional items that I buy at C&C, but I prefer Costco for quality
and freshness.
Janet

On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 11:10:50 -0800, Dan Abel > wrote:

>In article >,
> "Ed Pawlowski" > wrote:
>
>> "Omelet" > wrote in message
>> > Since there are just two of us and I also don't have tons of space to
>> > store in bulk, a Costco or Sams membership makes no sense to me either.
>> > And there is a Sams less than two miles from where I live.
>> >
>> > I just don't see the point.
>> > --
>>
>> Not everything is in huge packages. Yes, some paper products are, but
>> coffee, a gallon of milk, an appliance, a book, are all the same package as
>> every other place. Meats are typically 20% to 50% less than the supermarket
>> so big savings there. You do have to buy 4 pounds of butter to pay $1.68 a
>> pound compared to $3.50+ at the supermarket.
>
>Not true for the Costcos I've been to:

I just got back from Costco in northern NJ
>
>coffee - three pounds or more

2 lb bags

>milk - two gallon jugs in a box

Individual gallons of organic or regular whole, 2%, 1% and skim.
Individual quarts of half & half or heavy cream.

>meat - minimum six steaks, six pounds of hamburger, etc

4 rib steaks/pack.

4.5-5lbs of burger

>butter - yeah, four pounds shrink wrap of four boxes

As it alwyas has been.

In single and shop at Costco all the time and love it!

Has saved me money on so many things!

Pays to have a small freezer tho!

sf wrote:
> On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 07:41:04 GMT, Wayne Boatwright
> > wrote:
>
>> On Fri 19 Feb 2010 10:33:43p, sf told us...
>>
>>> On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:03:20 GMT, Wayne Boatwright
>>> > wrote:
>>>
>>>> I don't know how often you can get a "guest card" at Costco, and I
>>>> believe there's a dollar limit on purchases, but you might try
>>>> that. Our membership has expired, and I think I'll try getting a
>>>> guest card next time.
>>>
>>> I don't remember a dollar limit on what you can buy with a guest
>>> membership, but you'll need to bring cash because they won't take
>>> checks or credit from nonmembers.
>>>
>>
>> Or debit card?
>
> I doubt they'll take anything other than cash from non-members. If
> they did, why would you join?

Guests pay an additional percentage on their purchases, something like 5 or
7% added to the final tally.
--
Dave
What is best in life? "To crush your enemies, see them driven before
you, and to hear the lamentation of the women." -- Conan

sf wrote:
> On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 09:57:24 -0600, Stu > wrote:
>
>> Javex diluted 50-50 with water in a spray bottle.
>
> As far as I can tell, that's straight bleach. Am I wrong?
>
>> We used this to kill mold in bathrooms before priming with zinsser.
>
> I want it for grout and was hoping to get away from straight bleach...
> it beats up my clothing.

That's what those cheap, plastic rain ponchos are for :-)

--
Dave
What is best in life? "To crush your enemies, see them driven before
you, and to hear the lamentation of the women." -- Conan

"Ed Pawlowski" wrote
> "Cindy Fuller" wrote

>> devotees of BJ's and Sam's. To my thinking, a membership doesn't make
>> much sense for the two of us. We don't have oodles of space to store
>> large quantities of stuff. Anyone in a small household want to chime in
>> one way or another?

> BJ's here.

Here too. There's a SAMS but seems the same.

> Just two of us and I save enough to pay for the membership many times
> over. Do you want to pay $1.79 for a boneless pork loin or $4.49 at the
> supermarket? Having a freezer helps, but even without, I could buy enough
> to save.

Same also though there are 3 of us. Oh and 2 4footed members, soon to be 3
4footed members. Extra freezer and a vacumn sealer.

> Make a list of the "every month" items you buy and compare prices. I'm
> the only one that eats peanut butter so that we get at the local market.
> Same with many and things of that sort that we use little of. Meats,
> cheeses,

I have a garage so not worried about larger volumes. That 16 pack of canned
tomatoes goes out there and I refill the kitchen cabinet from it as needed.

We investigated this years ago and decided not to join. There is not
much there I want to buy, it would be a loooooong trip, and people
have told me it doesn't pay for a couple to join.

My neighbors belong, but their house is jammed with crap they'll never
live to use up.

"Andy" wrote
> Old Harley Rider wrote:

>> The wife and I have a Sam's membership. We use it strictly for gasoline.
>> We very seldom go in to the Sam's store. Sam's is only about a mile
>> away. You have to buy large portions of groceries at Sam's. We just use
>> Walmart for 90% of our groceries.

> I belong to BJ's Wholesale club. They don't sell gas. First I've heard of
> that! My club is pretty small compared to CostCo, Sam's, etc. Membership
> is
> $40/annual.

Actually Andy, BJ's does but not at all locations. Mine does.

> I usually visit once annually mostly for paper, plastic and cleaning
> supplies. I never bothered to figure out if the cost + $40 dues is a
> bargain, compared to what? No way to tell really.

Sunroom addititon, 3,500$ off best price anyplace else local from BJ's. I
made my money back for life ;-)

Chemo the Clown wrote:

>
> I wouldn't shop at Walmart no matter how cheap they are.

My sentiments exactly.

gloria p

In article >,
Janet Wilder > wrote:

> Pennyaline wrote:
> > On 2/20/2010 10:36, Omelet wrote:
> >> Never heard of BJ's...
> >
> > When we lived in New York State, we had BJ's and Sam's Club. I didn't
> > encounter a Costco until we came west.
> >
>
> Costco used to be called "Price Club", IIRC from when we had a
> membership in New Jersey.

Price Club and Costco merged in 1993, and were named PriceCostco. In
1997, the "price" was dropped from the name.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix....ol-homeprofile

[click on "historical highlights" to see the .pdf with a timeline]

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

On Sat, 20 Feb 2010 16:14:21 -0500, "cshenk" > wrote:

> There's a SAMS but seems the same.

I hope the people who shop at Sam's realize that Sam is Sam Walton of
Walmart fame.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

"Dan Abel" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> sf > wrote:
>
>> On Fri, 19 Feb 2010 22:44:21 -0700, "Dale P" > wrote:
>>
>> > My contact lenses are REAL cheap.
>>
>> So, they have a good selection? I need to check it out.
>
> Like everything else at Costco, they appear to have a terrible
> selection. Just the basics, but at a good price, although I haven't
> looked for some time.
>
> --
> Dan Abel
> Petaluma, California USA
>

As to contact lenses, I used to wear an unusual prescription that had to be
ordered no matter where I purchased them. It takes a couple of days to get
them in. Current prescription is in stock.

Many of the other things at Costco do come and go, but the produce, meat,
fish, cleaning supplies are always there. When we are out of apples I know
that it is time to go to Costco. I bought some grocery store pears last
week, and hated them. The Costco ones are always great.

Dale P

"gloria.p" > wrote in -
september.org:

> Chemo the Clown wrote:
>
>>
>> I wouldn't shop at Walmart no matter how cheap they are.
>
> My sentiments exactly.
>


I actually picked up a couple of belt buckles from a Walmart (somewhere in
California.... around Venice Beach-Marina Del Ray area IIRC). Great
buckles, heavy pewter type, with an Indian on it.

Gave one to a mate who was returning to Italy, and kept one for myself.
Good bargain too.

The place seemed pretty good.

But that was in 91-92.

Things have changed, I take it?


Funny thing was...... (same period, early 90's) we were riding around on
our motorbike, and I spotted a KMart and stopped to get some stuff from
there, as I sometimes do here in Australia.

The wife (at that time) said "You're not going in there!! Only Mexicans
shop at KMart!!"


--
Peter Lucas
Brisbane
Australia

Killfile all Google Groups posters.........

http://improve-usenet.org/

http://improve-usenet.org/filters_bg.html