Saturday, May 7, 2011

"The 100 Dollar Store"

Costco always makes me laugh -- perhaps because of a clip from the movie Idiocracy [that my nephew Chapman wanted me to watch] of the Costco of the future. The movie is funny but crude... how can it not be -- it has one of those Wilson guys in it.

*thinks about whether there is more than one Wilson brother who is an actor, well, sort of an actor*

Idiocracy

David and I went to Costco last night [big Friday night out for this married couple], and when we exited the building, we had paper products piled high in our super-sized buggy. I couldn't even push the darn thing it was so heavy...

Geez. Really?

Really.

As we made our way to the car, I said to David: “Costco makes me so happy and then makes me so sad.”

David looked at me.

David: Where else can you get a 64 ounce package of Mesquite Kettle cooked potato chips for 7.99? Costco is awesome -- plus, I see that they have a 100 inch big screen tv for under a 1000 dollars.

*rubs his hands together gleefully*

David: It’s as close as we get to heaven on this planet.

David hates when I get philosophical, so he likes to hand me reality checks.

*channels the left*

Me: I’m not talking about the deals; I’m talking about our consumerism. All of those people in there buying these huge quantities of stuff. It seems so --- over the top. We seem so greedy -- those giant bags of bagels, those packages of underwear, those cases of water.....

*drifts off*

*sigh*

This is what we bought:

10 rolls of paper towels.
16 rolls of toilet paper
12 boxes of Kleenex
4 packages of Band-aids
5100 tablets of multi-vitamins
42 lbs of cat litter
4 (96 oz) bottles of Listerine
1 (170 loads) container of Gain
500 Ziplock sandwich bags

And 9 lbs of ground beef

Hello?

Only in America can you do this -- it’s sad in a hilarious way.

As I put the packages of products we bought away in the basement cabinets {cause who has room for 10 rolls of paper towels inside their house? That's supposed to be rhetorical, btw.], I thought, well, if David and I die anytime soon, the family will inherit some household goods.

Geez.

Nieces and nephews: Score! Look at the size of this bag of potato chips.

ETA: Our friend Joe calls Cotsco -- "the 100 dollar store."

6 comments:

  1. Not so much "Only in America," but only in suburban/rural areas where property is large enough to accommodate this type of storage. haha. People in SF and NYC most definitely don't have room to store these kinds of masses. And how do you even get through 9 lbs of beef before it goes bad??? Have a giant bbq, I guess. ;)

    (Oddly enough, there is one Costco in SF. I've never been, but I'm surprised that folks in this "only buy local and organic!" city patronize it! However, I find myself wishing I had a membership occasionally for things like mineral water & Amy's organic frozen veggie lasagnas). :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yeah, but....he calls it the $160 store :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Coincidence: As I read this, I'm studying for my Anthropology: Globalization & **Consumerism** final. Yeah, it's as fun as it sounds.
    :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh Harriet...yes it is sad and funny. I think that everytime I go in there, but go in there I DO. I finally got a membership card. Hey times are tough, and you can get a polish dog for 1.50 plus a drink! Cheapest lunch in town I say....I go in there for bulk coffee, paper products, and frozen fish. I am constantly amazed at what people have in their carts! Thank you for stopping by to comment on my blog. It means so much!

    Lori

    ReplyDelete
  5. I liked seeing the 5100 Multivitamins you bought! Now that's telling :) Costco is definitely an adventure and an outing for the family. My Dad use to say he could get lunch for free there just going around and eating all the food samples :P.
    Jules

    ReplyDelete
  6. It does seem more prevalent in the last twenty years I suppose with stores like Costco and Sam's Club. But I do recall my mother always taking us for long shopping trips to Wal-Mart out in Hiram (this was when Mars Hill still had cattle, 41 was just a flea market, and Barrett Parkway was just Carl Black's dealership) to "stock up." She says she got it from her father who always taught her to be ready. In the 60's and 70's they would purchase tons of shampoo, toothpaste, paper towels so "we don't have to go back." To this day my mother has a shelf in the towel closet with about 30 toothpaste tubes, toothbrushes, soap bars, shampoo bottles, deodorant sticks, etc.

    ReplyDelete