Everyone likes Thanksgiving leftovers, right? At least, that's the theory behind our doing this repost of our "Black Friday" blog from a couple of years ago, so we can continue to enjoy our tryptophan coma rather than working, thinking, or moving today. We'll probably still fart from time to time but, truthfully, that's not really limited to the day after Thanksgiving...
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| Robinson Crusoe goes shopping |
No politics or editorializing today - just continuing good wishes for all who are enjoying leftovers and a salute to those of you who are hitting the stores today in search of crazy deals.
Mind you, we think fighting the crowds is
borderline insane - but it's good for the economy, so more power to you! And now that we reflect on it, a $300 big screen TV
would look good here in the office and it would be a business deduction. Hmm...
Men in skirts anxious to use the women's bathroom?
ReplyDeleteFor my part, I go nowhere near any retail establishment before noon on Black Friday. I don't worry about losing out on cheap TVs because a) I can't afford 'em and b) I rarely watch the one I have, so why bother? :D
ReplyDeleteDo building materials count? I've never seen a anyone fight over sub-flooring and ring-nails!
ReplyDeleteNo sale on a good pair of work boots, either.
DeleteHere in N AZ we are having a White Friday. After raining much of the night, it turned to snow this morning and they predict up to 2 feet of it before it's over.
ReplyDeleteRadiology Dept at my hospital was very empty. Not many people clamoring for a head CTA at 7am.
ReplyDeleteMrs Rem has dragged me to the computer on the dinner table to go shopping ..........I hate shopping .....all the traffic and stress .....it would be a hell of a lot more stressful if we left the house ....
ReplyDeleteHow I know I'm rich in America: I have absolutely no need or desire to go shopping today.
ReplyDeleteBut it does make me think about the kids who think that "socialism" is a great idea. In America, people stand in lines for $300 giant-screen TVs. In socialist countries, they stand in line for rotted food, if that.
So I'm not going to complain.
Happy post Thanksgiving to you all!
ReplyDeleteStilton: for some reason your posts haven't been showing up in my mail this week, not even filtered as spam or promotions.
Do I need to re-subscribe?
Thanks,
Ben Rumson
@Ben Rumson: I had the same thing happen a few months ago, but it cleared up all by itself. Since I have the Place bookmarked (in my Art folder, FWIW) I only minded because the notification emails are also witty!
ReplyDeleteHere at the Cummings house, we stocked our pantry last September while the local stores were full of case lot sales. This is the first year we had a full, traditional Thanksgiving dinner from food already in the house! We are thankful we now live in Utah where pantries and the stocking thereof are cultural norms!
To be totally truthful, we did buy the bird—fully cooked—on Tuesday. So technically, some of our Thanksgiving Day dinner was actually already leftovers...
@Ben Rumson, I regularly get them except I did notice that I did not get one this morning. (They usually show up at about 11pm my time)
ReplyDeletePantry: I was a Boy Scout and Mrs. Econ works in the "disaster recovery" industry. So we keep a well stocked storeroom of supplies in case there should be some sort of disaster that would interrupt the normal distribution of things required for a comfortable first-world existence. In early November, we go through our storage room looking for foodstuffs that are close to aging out and deliver them to our local food pantry and then go shopping to replenish our supplies. It's a win for everyone.
Regarding e-mail announcements.
ReplyDeleteMine came in Fri 11/29/2019 8:47 AM Eastern.
I, however, didn't see it until some time later.
Happy day-after-Thanksgiving, everyone. Now the Christmas Season officially begins and I have even fewer reasons to leave the house. I like my house. It's my home. My wife is here.
Jim Irre's comment rings true. For us, the cost of a couple of pairs of durable work gloves is worth purchasing if on sale. Outside work will always continue and a pair in the trunk of each vehicle and a spare around the house is money well spent. Especially if you work around livestock - fences and hay bale twine is rough on the hands. Man is a tool user, but only if he can continue t hold them.
ReplyDelete@John the Econ: Our second place now (but it was first #1) is a rural cabin; and it has a large pantry. We try to keep stock within date but when some back-in-the-back, corner shelf, or less popular items go out of date & if it seems low-risk, we may have an "Adventures in Dining" night to clean them out. I think the most successful record with our out-of-date stock was some Brownie mix that only seemed a little flat & chewy after being out-of-date by almost three years. But it sure hit the spot that cold night.
ReplyDeleteHappy (but late)Thanksgiving everyone.
ReplyDelete@Stilt,
Isn't that a goat Mr. Crusoe is carrying and not a sheep?
@Rod,
I've used some food items that were 4 years beyond their "Best By" date and they were still good enough for me. However, I found out that Ramen noodles that are 8 years past their "Best By" date are NOT good. The noodles were bad but the flavor packet was still good.
Re: Cleaning out the pantry: two items to NOT keep for long past their "Best By" date: canned pineapple and cranberry jelly. Canned pineapple is the only item I've ever seen eat through its can's seals and explode. Cranberry seems not acid enough to eat through the metal, but it does develop a metallic taste over time as it exchanges ions with the can lining.
ReplyDeleteBoxed pasta is another item that degrades inside its packaging (hence your trouble with the ramen noodles, @JustaJeepGuy).
What lasts a LOOONG time? Instant potatoes in foil packets or in plastic packets in boxes, boxed au gratin dried potatoes packaged ditto, jars of peanut butter that are unopened, unopened jars of spaghetti sauce (cans of it last well past the "Best By" date, but its acidity means it will taste of the can if left too long), and unopened jars of pickles, olives, capers, and other brined vegetables.
Nothing I can think of, beyond a Bhopal-type event, could induce me to sally forth into the madness. BTW, we did buy a TV with timing determined by the failure of the old one. We got a screamin' deal on a TV as big as drive-in movies when I was a kid. The difference between what we paid last week and possible prices yesterday isn't worth the trouble.
ReplyDelete_revjen45
@Brie Camembert- Did you just assume their gender?!
ReplyDelete@M. Mitchell Marmel- I love a good bargain, but not as much as I hate crowds. Besides, I pretty much already own everything I could want or need (and backups of too many items).
@Jim Irre- Now that you mention it, I've seen very few news stories in which people are ripping each other's hair out at hardware stores.
@Geoff King- Wow! Hope the snow is "packy" so you can make a snowman!
@AmyH- Yikes! What's up with that?! Or do you mean that you work there?
@REM1875- Since I became an Amazon customer, I haven't seen the inside of an actual mall. Seriously, it's been years and years. Granted, Amazon is kind of creepy - but it sure is handy.
@John the Econ- Interesting to think of what a socialist "Black Friday" would look like. "Bleak" wouldn't begin to describe it.
@Ben Remson- See Pat Cummings' response just below your comment.
@Pat Cummings- I'm glad you enjoy the emails. Really all they do is remind you to visit the website on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, but I do like to have a little fun with them. Regarding well-stocked pantries, I think it's a great idea - and you're right that the practice would be common in Utah!
@John the Econ- NOBODY got an email reminder on time for Friday, because I forgot to post one! I eventually followed up on Friday morning. And I like your win-win pantry situation. More folks (including myself) should do that!
@Dan- I'm already dreading the work it takes to get up all the Christmas decorations, but once they're up they mean a lot to me.
@Anonymous- I don't work around livestock, but I still appreciate a good pair of work gloves - especially when Mrs J comes up with chores for me like "move those thorn bushes."
@Rod- I don't think brownie mix can go bad, although it can get inhabited by weevils. Delicious, protein-packed weevils!
@JustaJeepGuy- I thought we were past the time when people would just assume whether it's a goat or sheep based solely on appearance. In this case, I'm pretty sure that the critter identifies as a sheep. And wow - you rolled the dice on 8 year expired ramen? Doesn't it cost like 15¢ or something? I'll bet that tiny little Lincoln screams when you pinch pennies.
@Pat Cummings- Handy storage/stockpiling advice. I'm not surprised that acidic foods in metal containers don't really pass muster for long term storage. I find that Clan MacGregor scotch can also be stockpiled for a long time without going bad. Or, more accurately, without getting worse.
@revjen45- That was my same logic when I finally bought a current model TV. I could find a good deal on it (and did), or wait in line for a couple of hours and get into fights to maybe save an extra $50. Amortize that over the life of the television, and you'd have to be a damn fool not to do it the easy way.
ReplyDelete@Stilt,
The Ramen was even a better deal than that. I paid $1.99 for a case of 24. It was a flavor I don't find much. I used half the case and put the rest up in the cabinet and forgot about it. When I remembered it, 8 years had passed...since the last 15 years have gone by in just a few months, it isn't surprising.
@JustaJeepGuy- Hey, that WAS a good deal! And here's a handy tip: you can take those leftover flavor packets and add them to melted butter to pour over popcorn. Yum!
ReplyDeleteYou can also crumble the ramen up, add a cup of rice, saute, add two cups of water, a seasoning packet and a bouillon cube, simmer until tender and voila! Rice-a-Roll your own for a quarter or so! :D
ReplyDelete@Mad celt: We got an excellent deal on a pair of work boots a couple of years ago. They were FREE at the Santa Rosa, CA, Vet Connect clothing aisle, and seemed to be totally unused. Work great for shovelling snow or compost or sod in Utah, now that we're here...
ReplyDeleteGot this link in an e-mail:
ReplyDeleteMan Eats Expired Food for 365 Days. This Is What Happened:
https://www.askaprepper.com/man-eats-expired-food-for-365-days-this-is-what-happened/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=AAP
I sent it to my kids, who think they have to throw out anything more than a day older than the "Best by: date."