Wednesday, December 17, 2008

a wasted trip...

The other day I spotted a sign for the grocery chain Aldi's and decided that I would return while the big kids were at piano lessons and check out all the fabulous savings that were much-talked-about on frugal sites and blogs. I get to the front door with tote bags in hand and found something I hadn't seen since our days in Italy: grocery carts that you had to put a coin in to unhook from the rest, a innovation that keeps the carts securely near the door, but is super annoying if you don't have any change in your wallet.

Once inside I perused the aisles, not hearing a single other English-speaking shopper and pallets covering the floor filled with some never-heard-of store brand containers of different foods. I was hesitant to buy generic items since they could be made in countries like China that do not have the best reputation for quality and safety.

Glancing at everyone else's overflowing carts, I looked again at the posted prices and realized that the military Commissary prices on 99% of the items were cheaper and they were brands I recognized and trusted. After much flailing about to get 3 small children and an empty cart out of the store (so I could get my precious quarter back), we headed down the road to the library to kill time before we collected the rest of the brood. Today we will try again to buy our much needed coffee and kitty litter, combining the benefit of Commissary shopping and my small stack of coupons.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Don't think of it as a wasted trip, but as a fact finding mission!