Toilet Paper - Again? Stocking Up?

[Deleted]

If you meant liquid hand washing soap, I found a giant "refill" bottle on Amazon pantry for $5.97 the other day. We've also had some luck at the local Dollar Store.

I haven't been able to find Dawn dish soap for eons. I bought 2 giant bottles of that for $6 on Amazon the other day.

I've seen a lot of people talking online about avoiding stores around the election. This weekend may see a lot of shoppers, especially in highly populated areas. No matter who wins, there could be protests to avoid.

There are many countries no longer exporting their foods or products. Anything you use that comes from elsewhere might be a good thing to stock up on.

Over the last few months I have been collecting enough household goods and food to last until spring if necessary. 

I like good-quality bagged coffee and that's one of the things I really stocked up on. It's not getting any cheaper.

If you plan to cook for the holidays, I'd buy whatever you need now. I can see how flour, sugar, canned pumpkin, etc... may disappear early from the shelves.


 

[Tiny]

I'm just about done with my "winter stockup". I usually start the process right after Halloween - I opted to start earlier. It's mostly just non-perishables/baking stuff. I also stocked up on Cat Food (about 90 days worth) (I caught a couple of fantastic sales) and kitty litter (opted to try a store brand that was on an amazing sale (maybe they are discontinuing?) and that's OK for my cats - so bought 6 buckets.) I need 2 more buckets of name brand litter.

I was at a big box grocery and while the paper products were fully stocked - I swooned at the prices (nothing on sale and double digit prices on anything more than 4 items in a package). I needed a jug of liquid hand soap (refill) - it's been missing from it's traditional spot at the store - so this time I went looking for it in the "health and beauty" section and found it there. Only 2 choices - neither name brand and both just basic - either clear or "orange" priced at the Name Brand price. Still a good deal.

I didn't see much "empty" shelves - but I did see lots of "filler" - as in products only at the front of the shelf (none behind) and more non-brand name products that aren't the store label either.

On the plus side - it's not like I've had to do "without" something. I use to meal plan around the local sales... so this is kind of the same (but with out the sales) in that I start with a list - but then see what's available and work around what's there.

[tractor]

Reading these posts make me glad I live in a rural area. Meat supplies were getting low so I shot an elk in September, now I have room for only two more deer during hunting season which starts in two weeks. We have a stream on the property for water if supplies get low (Nestle bottles their water 1 mile away) so people seem to like it.

If things ever got real bad, I would have no problem harvesting a deer out of season to feed my family. Run out of TP? Never run out of leaves....About the only thing I try to keep on hand is ammo. Not 10’s of thousands of rounds, but enough to help me get by.

[Deleted]

I have two does and their three yearlings that practically live in my yard.

The quail here walk around in packs of 50+ birds.

We joke no one will go hungry for quite a while.  lol

[Deleted]

The church was having a garage sale, and books were one of the things I donated a lot of.  So I turned the short 3-shelf bookcase in the office into an overflow pantry.  I have a basement with shelves that still has a lot of couponing stuff down there like ziplock bags, etc.  But I am trying to phase it out.  I definitely don't want toilet paper or canned goods down there.  There is nothing wrong with the basement, but I just don't like going down there.  I actually go down there almost every day to empty the dehumidifiers, but still . . . 

Anyway, this is perfect.  Everything is labeled with its expiration date, too.  This is all 2022 food.  I want more canned chicken.  Walmart was out today of my brand, Valley Fresh chicken breast meat, preservative-free.  But maybe it was just a quirk.  Winn Dixie and Publix still have it but a few bucks more.  I'd rather check around first.

Something I suggest that you may not have thought of is powdered milk.  I am somewhat lactose intolerant so I don't drink milk regularly, but I do need it for cooking stuff like mac and cheese or mashed potatoes.  It is silly to keep a bottle around just to throw away so I buy Carnation's powdered milk.  It skyrocketed in price last spring so if it is available now, you might want to buy a canister.  

I did buy a big thing of toilet paper at Costco last time I went.  And I may buy one more in November.  It won't go to waste, and my kids have large families.  If there is a shortage, I would want to be able to share.

[Wisconsin Beth]

DH has been doing the grocery shopping for a couple of months now.  He's been telling me for a couple of weeks now that he wants to stock up on TP, etc. before the election.  I don't really understand why he's waiting though.  We'll eventually use everything he buys, if he does stock up this weekend.   

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

Oct 30, 2020 19:54:03 GMT -5 Wisconsin Beth said:

DH has been doing the grocery shopping for a couple of months now.  He's been telling me for a couple of weeks now that he wants to stock up on TP, etc. before the election.  I don't really understand why he's waiting though.  We'll eventually use everything he buys, if he does stock up this weekend.   

Tell him to buy some with a long expiration date. 😉😂

[stillmovingforward]

TP, powdered milk, powdered eggs (good for baking), dried corn and 3 kinds of dried bean and two kinds of flour. We're set. 

[Deleted]

How do the dried eggs work?

I was watching Alaska Granny Prepper on YouTube the other day and she suggested the Nido powdered milk found in the Hispanic aisle. She said it has a couple other ingredients but a much better flavor than the Carnation.

I bought a bag of powdered milk a year or so ago and it was nearly $10. One of the few things I moved from my old house. 

[justme]

We have a lot of em here, but friends told me the Spanish supermarkets never had a huge run on stuff.

I never ventured there because I was warned most of the workers are Spanish speaking and between Costco and a local store that sources locally I found everything I needed mostly.

[stillmovingforward]

They work great. I can't tell the difference in baking and I'm pretty picky. I tried them scrambled once, just to see how they were. I treated them like powdered milk, mixed per the directions and then let them set for 10 minutes and  they were fine. I keep a container on hand all the time now. Much easier, esp when I'm camping.

[debthaven]

We're back in lockdown for 5 weeks ... I did one more supermarket run for printer paper and bunny food, and got more paper towels and toilet paper. 

TheOtherMe  we order XL printer cartridges from Amazon. Prices are up but they're still in stock here. I reorder when I start a new one.

Unlike last lockdown, the farmers' markets will be open. Our local one comes twice a week and is a good (and legal) excuse to go for a walk.  

[Deleted]

I just can't bring myself to stock up. I'm a household of one, which makes a difference, of course. I MIGHT have run out of TP if I hadn't picked up the one 30-roll pack I bought at Costco in early March, but right now I have a dozen rolls left. I still have 2 partial 5-lb. bags of flour in the fridge- no coffee hour at church so no baking. The dried beans everyone was hoarding- I had them at the start, haven't used many.

There were some things I couldn't find in the grocery aisle at various times but there were always acceptable substitutes.

All the behavior I read about on discussion boards- this and others- people driving from store to store (increasing COVID exposure, of course) looking to add to supplies that would already last them for a month or two, buying 25-lb. bags of flour if that was all that was available- didn't make sense to me.

So- I may buy another 30-pack of TP in the next month or so and call it good.

[TheOtherMe]

Oct 31, 2020 4:12:50 GMT -5 debthaven said:

TheOtherMe  we order XL printer cartridges from Amazon. Prices are up but they're still in stock here. I reorder when I start a new one.

 

That's what I used to do with the ink and don't know why I didn't with this one.  I got two cartridges from HP (actually cheaper than Amazon for once) and have to watch the site for the other two colors.  At least the laser printer will print for 5000 sheets.  

For that one I will wait a bit to order toner.

I didn't think I had printed enough pages to be out of ink.  The customer service agent asked me if I was turning the printer on and off between printing.  He told me that is causing me to use a lot of ink every time it turns on because it recycles through it's entire process like it's a new cartridge.  Yes, it does do that so I also learned something.  

I stock up on paper goods and foods with long expiration dates.  I do this partly because I have not been going inside stores and have no plans to go inside one for some time.

[buystoys]

We are stocked up, but that's my normal pattern.  If I use something from the pantry, I replace it.  If something I use is on sale, I buy extras of it.  I have a huge pantry now and it looks 1/2 empty.  (Well, it is 1/2 empty!)  I always considered my pantry part of my EF and I just can't let things run down now.  It's a habit that I'm not worried about breaking.

I did pick up extra baking goods yesterday.  I'm feeling pretty good right now so may do the holiday baking I've skipped the last couple of years.

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

I keep a well-stocked pantry as a rule both for budgetary reasons and because New England is prone to both blizzards and hurricanes. I am a fan of Amy Dazcyzn of Tightwad Gazette fame who advocates following price cycles and then stocking up when an item hits its low point in the cycle. The pandemic, however, has pretty much put an end to that kind of shopping both because sales are now so infrequent and because of the shortages. I’ve been stocking up steadily this Fall, and aside from things like fresh milk and bananas, could eat reasonably healthy for quite a while at this point.

[Deleted]

Oct 31, 2020 7:34:32 GMT -5 TheOtherMe said:

I stock up on paper goods and foods with long expiration dates.  I do this partly because I have not been going inside stores and have no plans to go inside one for some time.

Oh, yeah, that would be another reason. I've been shopping in stores - masked, and not as often as pre-COVID. I'm pretty good about getting in, grabbing what's on my list and getting out. I'm more carful now about keeping a list so I don't have to make "fill-in" runs.

[stillmovingforward]

I don't go out anymore and I sure won't go store to store looking for items. There's only a few items we need now on a biweekly basis. And we treat our food stock like an emergency fund also. As well has having 3 household members who suffer from food deprivation anxiety (happens when kids are starved for long periods). So, they have to see a stockpile even in the best of times. It's ok, i'm used to it 😁

[Wisconsin Beth]

HUgs and love to your poor kiddos, having to have gone thru that.  

[Deleted]

Oct 31, 2020 6:30:50 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

I just can't bring myself to stock up. I'm a household of one, which makes a difference, of course. I MIGHT have run out of TP if I hadn't picked up the one 30-roll pack I bought at Costco in early March, but right now I have a dozen rolls left. I still have 2 partial 5-lb. bags of flour in the fridge- no coffee hour at church so no baking. The dried beans everyone was hoarding- I had them at the start, haven't used many.

There were some things I couldn't find in the grocery aisle at various times but there were always acceptable substitutes.

All the behavior I read about on discussion boards- this and others- people driving from store to store (increasing COVID exposure, of course) looking to add to supplies that would already last them for a month or two, buying 25-lb. bags of flour if that was all that was available- didn't make sense to me.

So- I may buy another 30-pack of TP in the next month or so and call it good.

If it were just me and I still lived alone, the things I would stock up on would be different. DS likes to eat cereal, meat, and a few other things I wouldn't bother with. I also feel a bit responsible for keeping him as safe as possible and both of us fed. And I cook more elaborate meals when I have someone else around to help eat it.

I don't run from store to store at all. I shop one local discount store and use Amazon or Boxed for the other things I need/want.

DS and I have a pact now not to go to the local store unless we absolutely must, and when one of us goes we will buy everything we will need for the next couple of weeks.

Honestly, I think the post office is a whole lot riskier. People still don't wear masks and it's a very, very tiny building with no air circulation. We run in/out of there as quickly and infrequently as possible.

I bought a 25# bag of flour in March because it was the only flour I could find. I bagged it in ziplocks and have been using it to make my pizza crust. I also use it to make bread from time to time. It won't go to waste and I think I paid $13 for it, so not like it was an extravagant purchase.

[TheOtherMe]

Covid is so out of control here that I will not be going in a store until at least January--only if cases slow down after the holidays.

Super spreader happening at local airport tomorrow.  Hope they plan on fumigating all the concrete on the runways and everything anyone touches.

[Deleted]

Rump gets his narcissistic supply from his rally genocide events.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Oct 31, 2020 4:12:50 GMT -5 debthaven said:

We're back in lockdown for 5 weeks ... I did one more supermarket run for printer paper and bunny food, and got more paper towels and toilet paper. 

TheOtherMe  we order XL printer cartridges from Amazon. Prices are up but they're still in stock here. I reorder when I start a new one.

Unlike last lockdown, the farmers' markets will be open. Our local one comes twice a week and is a good (and legal) excuse to go for a walk.  

I saw this last night.  There were pictures online of people trying to get out of Paris before it hit.  

I think you are far enough out that maybe you missed that mess?  That traffic jam would do Seattle proud!

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Oct 31, 2020 12:21:17 GMT -5 TheOtherMe said:

Covid is so out of control here that I will not be going in a store until at least January--only if cases slow down after the holidays.

Super spreader happening at local airport tomorrow.  Hope they plan on fumigating all the concrete on the runways and everything anyone touches.

I just read that they can directly attribute 30,000 Covid cases and 700 deaths to these rallies just in Sept, I think.  He ramped up rallies since he got out.  

[debthaven]

The Walk of the Penguin Mich yes indeed that traffic was due to Parisians heading for family/second homes out of town. You're right, we weren't affected.

The government frowns on people doing that, but who can blame them for not wanting to be stuck in a small apartment 23h a day?! My DS2 and his GF *may* have been in those traffic jams.

DH and I were in Normandy overnight on Thursday. We had no problem getting home yesterday. 

[Lizard Queen]

Oct 31, 2020 14:30:17 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

Oct 31, 2020 12:21:17 GMT -5 TheOtherMe said:

Covid is so out of control here that I will not be going in a store until at least January--only if cases slow down after the holidays.

Super spreader happening at local airport tomorrow.  Hope they plan on fumigating all the concrete on the runways and everything anyone touches.

I just read that they can directly attribute 30,000 Covid cases and 700 deaths to these rallies just in Sept, I think.  He ramped up rallies since he got out.  

I saw that, and I think it was April through September. He's been all over lately, so who knows how much more death can be attributed to that.

[Blonde Granny]

I'm also a household of 1. However I love to make soup for the winter and other main course or dessert and even side dishes to eat. It's much better than trips to McDonalds or Arbys. As for the pantry items, I could probably do some fill ins on Monday befor the big boom election hits on Tuesday.

[Tiny]

Oct 30, 2020 17:21:32 GMT -5 tractor said:

Reading these posts make me glad I live in a rural area. Meat supplies were getting low so I shot an elk in September, now I have room for only two more deer during hunting season which starts in two weeks. We have a stream on the property for water if supplies get low (Nestle bottles their water 1 mile away) so people seem to like it.

If things ever got real bad, I would have no problem harvesting a deer out of season to feed my family. Run out of TP? Never run out of leaves....About the only thing I try to keep on hand is ammo. Not 10’s of thousands of rounds, but enough to help me get by.

LOL!  I'm using my Y2K plan in case of the Apocalypse-  I've got two cats.  I'll eat them if the world ends.   

I did a routine winter stock up - I didn't really buy anything out of panic or "just in case".   I DID do the stock up earlier than normal - I usually start after Halloween. 

I really don't want to thinking about TP, paper towels, kitty litter, cat food, dish soap, trash bags, etc  from mid November thru the end of January.   The weather can be bad and I usually have a packed calendar - so a 3 or 4 hour shopping run is difficult and stressful to fit in - and even worse if I have to keep doing it every weekend or other weekend.    Yes, I live in densely populated area with tons of close by stores - but when it takes 30 minutes to get to the store and then an hour in the store and then having to go to the store (or errand) and another one - and then another 30 minute drive home.... well, it sucks up alot of time.  Aldi and a Jewel are a 30 to 40 minute door to door thing - I will be shopping there november thru Feb for stuff like Milk and bread and fresh veggies/fruit.  Or when I find I need something I don't have at home.  

I'm not all that worried about there being no food or TP.  I just imagine not being able to find something when I need it to be super annoying especially when I could have easily prepared to avoid the "drama". 

[Lizard Queen]

Oct 31, 2020 15:15:42 GMT -5 Tiny said:

Oct 30, 2020 17:21:32 GMT -5 tractor said:

Reading these posts make me glad I live in a rural area. Meat supplies were getting low so I shot an elk in September, now I have room for only two more deer during hunting season which starts in two weeks. We have a stream on the property for water if supplies get low (Nestle bottles their water 1 mile away) so people seem to like it.

If things ever got real bad, I would have no problem harvesting a deer out of season to feed my family. Run out of TP? Never run out of leaves....About the only thing I try to keep on hand is ammo. Not 10’s of thousands of rounds, but enough to help me get by.

LOL!  I'm using my Y2K plan in case of the Apocalypse-  I've got two cats.  I'll eat them if the world ends.   

I did a routine winter stock up - I didn't really buy anything out of panic or "just in case".   I DID do the stock up earlier than normal - I usually start after Halloween. 

I really don't want to thinking about TP, paper towels, kitty litter, cat food, dish soap, trash bags, etc  from mid November thru the end of January.   The weather can be bad and I usually have a packed calendar - so a 3 or 4 hour shopping run is difficult and stressful to fit in - and even worse if I have to keep doing it every weekend or other weekend.    Yes, I live in densely populated area with tons of close by stores - but when it takes 30 minutes to get to the store and then an hour in the store and then having to go to the store (or errand) and another one - and then another 30 minute drive home.... well, it sucks up alot of time.  Aldi and a Jewel are a 30 to 40 minute door to door thing - I will be shopping there november thru Feb for stuff like Milk and bread and fresh veggies/fruit.  Or when I find I need something I don't have at home.  

I'm not all that worried about there being no food or TP.  I just imagine not being able to find something when I need it to be super annoying especially when I could have easily prepared to avoid the "drama". 

Holy crap. Your post can kind of explain why we go so often. 1 mile away from Aldi, Meijer, or Walmart. About 5 minutes from the house by car. We could walk to any of them in 30 minutes, if we were so inclined. Bigger shopping runs might take up to an hour and a half at Meijer, but usually an hour or under, including the drive. I can totally do a quick run to Aldi in 15. Meijer just takes longer in the store, between the larger footprint, and possibly having to wait to check out. We rarely go to Walmart.
Going twice a week is cutting back a lot. My husband is constantly running out or stopping on the way home for something.

Anyway, we're really not accustomed to stocking up much, though we did in the spring. My husband is slowly building up our tp stash again, because I do tend to go through it.

[Deleted]

I'm not so much worried about shortages at this point. If Orange wins, then all bets are off.

I am concerned about having to shop during outbreaks.

Now, to snap my fingers and have the three Amazon Pantry boxes that arrived together put away. Ug.