# Grocery Shopping



## Gary O' (Jan 2, 2018)

I rather enjoy it
Have my favorite stores, target brands
...and carts

This little guy has revolutionized shopping for me;





It’s rather zippy
I call it the Mini Cooper of the aisles
With it, I can zip thru the lanes, passing ol’ ladies and mothers with children like they were standing still (because they were).
Sadly, they just aren’t plentiful enough. 
So, before I even enter the store, I’ll scan the parking lot horizon, and have been known to trek to the opposite side of the store or lot to snag one.

Another sad note, not all stores have them.
One of those stores is Cash&Carry, a left coast poor man’s Costco. They, like Costco, have what I call the dray, that big a$$ cart with the directional wheels on the wrong end.
No matter, all I get there is their 20 roll thousand sheets per roll TP (best buy in the west, btw).


See, thing is, my lady’s knees give out half way thru our weekly big city, hard pavement tour, of which is 50 mi from the cabin.
So she saves herself for yarn and fabric stores, while I, under her protest, ‘got this’.
Everything I do in repetition has a system.
Grocery shopping is no exception.
I know which stores have the best buys and where the stuff is.
I don’t ‘shop’ per se
I get, go
I begin to pester her on what we are low on two days before the trip.
I have lists of lists
One for tools, building materials
One for groceries, dry goods
One for wants (not needs)
We never forget anything
Not on my watch


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## Aunt Bea (Jan 2, 2018)

I love them too!

We have one major grocery chain that keeps them locked up until all of the regular size trolleys are in use.  I suppose that some executive commissioned a study that says people will spend more if they use a giant minivan of a trolley instead of an efficient little sportster.

I particularly like them in the mega stores where they serve as a rollator for me when I make my long laps around the store.

I live smack dab in the middle of a great shopping area with all the big chains competing against each other for business, three no frills stores, a dead bread store, Walmart, Trader Joe's, etc...  It is fun for me to check the store flyers and the coupons each week to plan my stops at the various stores when I'm out running errands.  It allows me to shop the dips and deals in each store without making special trips and wasting gas.  I will really miss grocery shopping when I have to stop driving and transition to home delivery but I'm glad that it is finally becoming a mainstream offering available at many large stores.


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## Ken N Tx (Jan 2, 2018)

I always need a cart when shopping with the Mrs!!
.


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## RadishRose (Jan 2, 2018)

I too, love those mini-carts. My favorite moderately priced supermarket got in a bunch about a year ago. Little by little their numbers diminished. A clerk told me they had all been stolen over time. They tried a sign telling customers to ask for one, but they lost them all anyway. 

However I did see a Youtube video on how stores get you to buy more and BIG carts was one of their tricks.


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## Mrs. Robinson (Jan 2, 2018)

Our Safeway now has two cart sizes. One is just a little smaller than the regular ones-not as small as the one pictured above. It`s perfect for me-even when doing a weekly shop for the (right now) 4 of us.


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## hollydolly (Jan 2, 2018)

We have had those little ''trolleys'' here for decades...as well as the larger deep trolleys. Every supermarket has them..except Costco, and the other Cash & Carry stores, because the idea is for you to buy as much as possible and fill the trolley in those stores. We almost always use the shallow trolley in the supermarkets  


here in the UK, our trolleys in most stores are chained up and you have to release them with a pound coin, which you get returned when you take the trolley back to it's station.

It serves 2 purposes, one that none are left floating around in the car park rolling into and damaging cars, and 2) that people don't steal them  as they did prior to the charge for use coming into play many years ago... 

I've learned that in the States it costs just a quarter for the deposit here in the UK it costs a POund which is over a dollar... however we can buy trolley ''coins'' for a £1, so we're never without 'change'' for the trolley...


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## CeeCee (Jan 2, 2018)

We have the smaller carts at Vons (Safeway) but there aren't as many of them as there are of the bigger carts.

The only place I've ever seen where you pay a quarter for a cart is Aldi.  Fresno doesn't have an Aldi though but Ive seen them in Illinois.


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## applecruncher (Jan 2, 2018)

Here in the US ('the states') I only know of one grocery store chain that charges fur using it - Aldi's - and I've never shopped there, but I hear the fee is a quarter which is refunded.  I've shopped at a lot of different grocery stores throughout my life and I've never had to pay to use a cart, although I can see where people taking them can be a problem.

I hear that some stores have some type of wheel-lock mechanism that automatically prevents people from taking the carts off premises. Family Dollar has some type of long BRIGHT RED rod attached to carts which would make it difficult to take the cart.

As far as the smaller carts, I like them  for fewer items, but the stores don't seem to have as many. If I just need a few non-heavy items I use the plastic baskets and carry in my arm, or I use a re-usable shopping bag - usually have one with me.


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## Pappy (Jan 2, 2018)

Haven’t seen the smaller carts in any of our grocery stores, but our Lowe’s has them.


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## hollydolly (Jan 2, 2018)

yes the few  stores here that have no deposit system have the wheel locking system which means you can only wheel them a few yards from the exit door of the store..not even as far as your car...


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## RadishRose (Jan 2, 2018)

Only Aldi here asks for the 25 cent deposit on carts. But the chain department store Homegoods has that locking system if the cart goes outside the second set of doors.


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## terry123 (Jan 2, 2018)

I can't walk very far so I use the electric cart and even drive it out to my car.  Walmart, Krogers, HEB and Foodtown have them so I use them. We don't have them at the Dollar Tree so I buy a few things and go back another day to finish shopping.  I do a lot online from Walmart so that's a big help. I have seen the small carts and they are very popular at Krogers here.


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## Aunt Bea (Jan 2, 2018)

terry123 said:


> I can't walk very far so I use the electric cart and even drive it out to my car.  Walmart, Krogers, HEB and Foodtown have them so I use them. We don't have them at the Dollar Tree so I buy a few things and go back another day to finish shopping.  I do a lot online from Walmart so that's a big help. I have seen the small carts and they are very popular at Krogers here.



I'm not sure if it would be of interest to you but Dollar Tree offers online shopping with free shipping to a local store for pickup.

https://www.dollartree.com/custserv/custserv.jsp?pageName=StorePickup


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## SeaBreeze (Jan 2, 2018)

I like those tiny mini carts but don't use them that often.  Usually I find that I'm buying too much to fit in it and have to use the lower level, which I hate to do.


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## NancyNGA (Jan 2, 2018)

I like the mini carts, or just hand carry baskets.  Here Walmart is the only grocery store that has no hand carry baskets.   Their excuse is they get stolen.  I don't think so.  I think it's the psychology about buying more, that has been mentioned already. 

One Family dollar has those tall poles bolted to the side of carts---too tall to get out the door.  Buy more than you can carry in one trip and it's a real problem getting your stuff to the car.


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## rkunsaw (Jan 3, 2018)

I don't like the small carts. When I go shopping I stock up so I don't have to go every week. I do like to go shopping except that walking around a big store like Walmart wears me out.


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## Ken N Tx (Jan 3, 2018)

Think real hard, Costco and Sam's carts are bigger because they deal with larger bulk items...


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## Gary O' (Jan 3, 2018)

Ken N Tx said:


> Think real hard, Costco and Sam's carts are bigger because they deal with larger bulk items...



By golly, Ken, yer right
Costco/Sam's shoppers need those loading dock drays
But
Yer average grocery?
I’d like to see ‘em all give a not so hard think to those zippy smart carts and spring for a few for us in/outers
The little totes they provide don’t cut it for, say, a 4 lb bag of sugar and a couple half gals of juice or milk
(yes,I’m spoiled rotten, along with most North Americans) 


ps
I love Costco for one thing;
100% Columbian 48oz Kirkland coffee
less than $9/can
(I need two drays for a Costco trip for just their coffee)


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## Gary O' (Jan 3, 2018)

rkunsaw said:


> I do like to go shopping except that walking around a big store like Walmart wears me out.


Yep
I can walk the woods all day
…and into the night in summer
Half hour at a Walmart, I’m done in
Cement and legs aren’t made for each other 

(they need to provide portable wife cams, oh, and put their sporting goods closer to the front door)


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## IKE (Jan 3, 2018)

I'd rather have a tooth pulled without Novocain than go grocery shopping.......to entice me mama and I have reached an agreement.


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## Pappy (Jan 3, 2018)

Shopping cart handles. The biggest disease spreader in the world. Most of our stores now have sanitary hand wipes to clean them off. Dontcha just love it when the cart is all sticky?


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## Gary O' (Jan 3, 2018)

Pappy said:


> Shopping cart handles. The biggest disease spreader in the world. Most of our stores now have sanitary hand wipes to clean them off. Dontcha just love it when the cart is all sticky?


Yeah, my lady uses them, like some sorta religious rite
Taught me about that
I'm a recovering handle licker


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