Community Chat

[janeec]

I lived in MN for many years, and learned then to stock up on basics. I got caught once without many things in the house, never again.

I shop for my parents as well, and they are thankful I started bringing some extra things in already in January.  I had a gut feeling something would happen.

As for flour, place it in the freezer for at least 48 hours and it will kill any bug eggs in the flour, and nothing will hatch.  I always keep a bag in the freezer for emergencies.

[denisemb]

Maybe some things.  AS DH & I are both children of "parents who lived through the Depression" when they were young, we learned a few things.  Along with both of us hating to shop and easy to please.

In other words we tend to buy TP, cleaning supplies, etc. in bulk.  And if dinner is cereal, that's OK, too! 

The bread thing got to me, though.  Have a breadmaker, no yeast or flour to be found, so finally broke down and ordered bread mixes from Perfect Pantry. 

As long as the local liquor store stays open, I'll be OK.

[on the bay]

I don't know how I'll feel, because I still worry about my family getting it or me getting it and giving it to them

and then when I wake up in the morning remember it is not a nightmare but our new reality.

I do know first chance I get, I'll get on a plane and go see the rest of my family but probably still worry I'll give them something! 

[homedecor1]

@on the bay 

I was going to say the same but I thought I'd stay on track with post.

I will be the first one on that plane - (if all my family wasn't on "lockdown" I would have booked my flight.

It's a new reality of "life" as we know it.  I'm usually flying home at least every 5-6 weeks for something special now I just want to be there to give my GD a big hug, my DIL whose mother passed suddenly on Friday (and couldn't have funeral service except 10 people☹️) and take & help my older lady friend who lives alone.

[pitdakota]

Probably not.  I have quite a bit of storage space, so I have long adopted the practice of usually keeping products I use on hand.  I have long had the practice that when I open a bag of flour and put it in the canister that I purchase another to put in the pantry.  Same with sugar, tea bags, etc.

Being a nurse I always have a supply of hand sanitizer and soap here in the house.  Even before the coronavirus, I always insist that everyone wash their hands frequently.  

I buy toilet paper, paper towels, and napkins at Sams so I usually have a good supply of those on hand.  And that turned out to be a very good thing during these times!  

But the one thing I was running low on as this all started was toothpaste!  So I did have to make a quick run out to just get toothpaste.  So I might start keeping a better eye on the supply of toothpaste around here! lol

[on the bay]

@homedecor1 -

Oh I only read the first half of the post lol!

I tend to get impatient and not read all the instructions!

But yes, I so get that wanting to be there with them. A wonderful family member died too on Sunday and yes only 10 for the funeral including the pastor and any staff.

We will just have to be there in spirit and in our hearts.

[kitcat51]

No, I'm always stocked & prepared...learned my lesson a long time ago.

[beach-mom]

IDK. This certainly has caused me to think about things more and not take them for granted. When I was young and taught in Japan I learned to get more than one item when they were in stock. They were out of lasagna noodles for 6 months. Not a big seller there of course, but it was one of my signature dishes to make for company! Certain types of soda were sparse too sometimes. Now I tend to buy more than one toothpaste at a time, etc. What saved me this time is I had just been "major" shopping right before this all hit.

Even though I have plenty of toothpaste, canned soup, and such, what I'm really missing is fresh produce, etc. We are just about out, and I usually don't buy that ahead of time - I go the same day mostly. We've been relying on things in the freezer and take out once a few times a week and weekends. But we are low on orange juice, milk, fresh fruit, etc. The one store in our area that will do delivery is backed up until the end of April. 

I'm going to have to bite the bullet and venture out, but the cases in our area are increasing every day, including a few younger people who are hospitalized. 

A friend said NYC is empty. She knows someone who lives downtown in an apartment building and there are only two or three tenants in the whole building. Where did all of the others go? 

[LuvmyLab]

Definitely.  When this is over I told my husband that when we go shopping we are going to start buying extra TP, paper towels, napkins, paper things like that to have on hand. Luckily we had just gone to Costco before this hit so we have enough TP to last for quite a while. But I don't want to have to worry about not having enough on hand should something like this happen again, which it very well could.  I think lots of people are probably going to do the same thing so supplies may be short still even after this is all said and done.