My disdain of grocery stores is well documented here at AB.com, but I still sometimes have to handle the weekly shopping as part of my Honey Do List.[1] So, yesterday, I find myself and AverageToddler at our local discount supermarket (keyword: discount) picking up a few (keyword: few) items. As I'm going down the list, I find myself on the cereal aisle where my favorite Saturday morning healthy junk food (Kashi Heart To Heart Wild Blueberry) is usually found. For some reason the box isn't in it's usual middle shelf, it's high up above. And as I reach for it, I note something alarming on the price tag.
$5.19!!!!!
$6!!!! For friggin' cereal!?!?!?!!?[2]
The rest of the trip wasn't much better. Everything on the list, from milk ($4/gallon) to eggs ($2 dozen) spaghetti-o's ($1.39, used to be $.89) to oatmeal ($3 used to be $2.50) and even bread ($3.29 used to be $2.89) is far more expensive than I'd last noted.
Even rice ($2 for a box that used to be 10 for $10) is inflated.
Rice, ni@@a! Rice!!!! WTF!?!?
Seriously, with all the jibberjabbering about the economy this election season, I've yet to hear many concrete solutions from any candidate on how to fix the basic everyday inflation that's killing my wallet everytime I venture out of the house.
My old (keyword: old) barber started charging $20 (up from $15) for a cut last month. His explanation: inflation. Never mind the fact that he isn't even at the shop 90% of the time I drive all the way over to College Park, and often cuts my hair the way he wants, not the way I tell him. $20 is just friggin' insane. So, I started going to these Koreans down the block. As long as you don't ask for anything more difficult than a basic Ceaser, they're actually ok. The shape up's not extra tight, but the neck taper is good. It's a serviceable cut. But last week, even they recently flipped their price from $10 to $13. Needless to say, I'm about to invest in a new pair of Wahls.
Jamba Juice kicked their prices up as well, which means I've got to find a new vice, especially since ya'll aren't helping me with buying those damn AB.com t-shirts.
The Wizards didn't even offer any el-cheapo playoff tickets this season. They didn't seem to miss my presence last night though, throttling King James and the Cleveland Travelliers (1-3 step) by an astounding 36 points.
Movie tickets are now universally $10 and up. Thank God for Netflix.
Yeah, some of this stuff is trivial, but still. It seems like everything just costs more nowadays, and sometimes for no really good reason.
Sure, gas prices are a hot button issue, and in some parts of DC, a regular gallon is already over $4. And we all know home foreclosures are exploding and dropping home values across the board. But what about the other, day-to-day stuff that's quietly been inflated too? Huh? What about THAT economy?
John McCain doesn't give a sh*t about the economy because he left his old broke first wife (who'd stuck by him through 5 1/2 years of captivity) and hooked up with a beer magnate (while still married). Dude doesn't even have a remote understanding or concern about the economic struggles of regular folks, despite this populist Rust Best Tour 08' he's been on lately. McCain's idea of economic stimulus is marrying a rich white woman. If only there were more of those to go around.
The Dems are no better. Hillary Clinton gets caked up by writing books about her philandering husband. Her philandering husband gets caked up writing books about being a philandering husband. And if I hear Barack Obama say the phrase "lessen our dependence on foreign sources of oil" one more time, I might seriously consider voting for Alan Keyes.
Note to all candidates: Get a clue. It's the economy, stupid!
Do something about it before I o.d. on these generic "Corn Puffs", already.
Question: What's the most ludicrous example of "everyday inflation" you've personally observed?
[1] Oh, I guess I'm the only guy with one, huh?
[2] Yeah, I rounded up for dramatic effect. But that Kashi is some good stuff.
