They used old telephone books for TP.... I can hear young people asking, "What's a telephone book?"

My mom tells a great story of walking home in the blackout on a pea souper night. She felt her foot push against something small. She reached down, found it in the dark and picked it up. When she got home, they discovered it was a pound of real butter. Black market!

Thank goodness it wasn't something else!!!

This is when our emergency supply stock for pets comes in really handy. We had one bag of cat litter in it, thank goodness.

I just remembered 4 rolls of t.p. in the wildfire getaway closet, yay!

Online Shopping Hint: When I went thru Amazon Prime/Whole Foods, and filled my cart with say 25 items, maybe 3 were noted as "unavailable" and when delivery came, was off about another 5. Time Scheduling: When I got to last page to pick order time/day, all three days were noted "unavailable, come back later" ...... I kept going back to that page maybe 3-5 times to no avail, BUT 1-2 hrs later, when I back-arrowed to the first page where I initiated order, then fwd-arrowed to last page, some delivery choices DID come up for that very afternoon and arrived. Not sure how these "window" systems work or what will happen with your stores. We're in Metro NYC area, so lots of people, but not as many as Cali we know.

About Chewy: I think the company is doing a great job, considering how many more people are now using it for home delivery of pet food.

Agree. Our dog food will ship on April 3. I just received my latest order of NexGard.

My only hope with Chewy is that they are doing some level of prioritizing and that, when possible, prescription food and drugs are shipped before less urgent items. My standing order for the Rx food is set so that I have a minimum 3-week supply at all times. I'm now down to a 2-week supply with no word from Chewy on a delivery date. I can feed the diabetic cat an off-the-shelf food for maybe a week before his blood glucose levels will go haywire, but he also has pancreatitis which makes food substitutions troublesome.

If anything, this experience has taught me that I need to have multiple cases of food and boxes of litter on hand at all times. Now, where to put it all...

Sigh.

Jean,
I spent over an hour searching various sourches online yesterday for TP from Amazon down to Vons and Ralph's (better use of my time than watching one of the FOUR C Virus press conferences on all but one channel - LA users, KCOP 13 is not televising these) and found TP at my local target in San Pedro and also two sizes, same brand, at the Target in Carson where my sister works. Pickup only no delivery and only one brand so try Target in Manhattan Beach.

Jean, "where to put it all" indeed! Have you called Chewy?

I have emailed Chewy, not called, and have received email replies. They still don't know "when."

jamie99, I may try Target, but the only time I went there recently it was too dang crowded with a sense of panic in the air. Things have probably settled down, but I think I'd rather try the "golden hour" for seniors at Ralph's. 7:00-8:00 a.m. I've still got about a week before our TP supply will get dangerously low, and I keep hoping the shelves will be restocked.

Three cheers for Petco! The cat litter arrived a few minutes ago.

I've been watching the TV channels that play the old TV shows as it's really a bit much with all the press conferences on the other channels. I'll have to tune into KCOP 13. But, I also watch HTTV and the Food shows, but if I see another episode of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, I think I'm going to scream.

Happy Travels!

I'm going to have a very, very clean house.

My house is going the other way. The clutter is becoming a bit alarming, although the yard is probably the tidiest it's ever been.... I'd much rather work outside than inside.

Guenmai, yes I watch what I call the "Rerun" channel also for some shows, it is called ME TV (short for memorable TV) on channel 54 for DIrectv and I think Dish, channel 74 for Cox, not sure about Spectrum.

I went to Costco this morning. I needed gluten free bread and it's a lot less expensive there. Long line to get in, going all around the parking lot, but it moved fairly quickly.

Then I went across the road to Trader Joe's where I needed to get tea bags. Another line, though not as long. There were two TJ employees outside sanitizing every cart and basket as they were returned. Not just the handles, the whole thing. Naturally, I got more than just tea bags and it didn't take all that long. In CA, we usually have to pay for bags in stores now, but TJ's are bagging in their own paper bags with no charge for the bags. They will not bag into your reusable bags. Also, their store was fully stocked,, even with tp. Every shelf was full, also the freezers. Good job TJ's!

Jean (from another one),

Do call Chewy. It's a great experience, compared with most others.

Made it to Sprouts about 7:30 am for a produce run. Three registers open, easy to social distance. Didn't look for TP. There was a greeter cleaning cart handles. I put my stuff in cloth bags, then transferred them to a collapsible insulated bag I keep in the trunk. On the way home I got in a 1 mile walk up the oil field roads on Signal Hill (wider and less crowded than the sidewalks and official trails). Amazing Views! Such a beautiful day during a tragic time. Watching Garcetti presser now.

When we're in Cali we frequent the Trader Joes in Encinitas. But we live on the east coast, 30 mi west of Manhattan, and are enjoying a new location 3 mi from our home instead of 8 mi! Last Monday it was a bit snowy/rainy here, and went over there before opening hours at 9 a.m. They stated that day they'd keep an add'l senior line. But none was needed. Only about 20 of us entered and pretty much had an aisle per customer or two. I was then informed that the boxes of towels and TP were kept behind the Service Desk by the usual, cheery employees. Requested a 12-roll please and thank-you, and no one gets an opportunity to hoard. Smart policy. Shopping there is always so pleasant, and with just two of us, the portion sizes are just right.

An Article in today's LA Times. I can read it on a Firefox browser if I clear my cookies first, without subscribing

https://www.latimes.com/california/s...empty-new-york “The positive news is that we seem to be tamping this down and our peak might be a week away,” said Berkeley’s Jewell. “But we’ll still have to wait three or four weeks after the peak to get back to where we were before the shutdown went in place.” That timeline would suggest a potential reopening of some businesses and other facilities roughly a week into May.

“There will be political pressure to release things quickly; but epidemiologically, you need to wait longer, if you want to control the timing of a second wave,” Jewell said.

Los Angeles County health officials on Friday extended the end-date of their stay-at-home restrictions from April 19 to at least May 15 and said residents should do even more to rein in their public activities. They advised, in particular, reducing excessive trips to grocery stores, to curtail the spread of the virus, which first emerged publicly in California in January."

Maybe I'll be able to go in for routine medical and dental exams by the end of May after all! Fingers crossed.

It is hard to stay away from supermarkets when one is used to fresh produce and shopping every other day or so. I'd like to get a roast chicken from Vons today.

Good luck getting anything much from Vons today. I went to my local Vons at about 11:20. No line to get in, long lines at each checkout. They're using every other checkout so that somewhat explains the lines. When I came out at 12, after the long checkout wait, there were about 30 people waiting to get in. The store was fairly well stocked, though and the sushi lady was there. I meant to go back and get some and I forgot. There is now a one-way system for the main aisles which clashes with the lines for the checkouts. They also weren't letting anyone into the store if they didn't have some type of face covering. I haven't seen it that busy since the day the school closures were announced!.

Yeah, I changed my mind and did takeout from my favorite Thai Restaurant instead.

Maybe Monday.

Lead time for grocery delivery is 4-6 days from my local Von's and Ralph's, with Instacart it varies a lot, sometimes it is days, other times they have a free shopper in the area and you can get it the same day.
There are also weird shortages and limited selection that cannot be explained by hoarding or stockpiling, like air freshener or Aspirin. There may be a shortage of truckers if some are staying home for a week or two.

I thought you may be interested in how Australia is handling the shopping problem. We have three major supermarket chains here and a few smaller ones. They have all stopped their on-line shopping service except for disabled people and/or retirees with a government pension card. You have to provide this on-line before placing an order. Hub supermarkets are now closed until 11 am to allow for packing and processing on-line orders for these people. Other supermarkets open between 7 am and 8 am on Monday, Wednesday and Friday exclusively for disabled and/or retirees, or carers. On Tuesday and Thursday, the same thing happens exclusively for health and emergency service employees.

We had an unexpected rush on toilet paper (heavens knows why) early in the piece resulting in very hot tempers in some supermarkets. That has balanced out now, but we still experience very lightly stocked shelves for some items and I guess we all need to work out what we can buy and cook instead.

Most people are handling the lack of freedom with common sense and dignity but there are always the idiots who think the rules don't apply to them.

That sounds awfully sensible, so I can't see it happening here. We do have early hour shopping for high-risk/disabled/seniors at our supermarkets. Here it's Tuesday and Thursday, but it's not the same everywhere or at every market. I think Trader Joe's has it every day from 8-9. I haven't heard about an early time for healthcare workers and first responders, also a very sensible idea. Costco allows any healthcare worker to go to the front of their line if they show their work ID at any time of any day.

As Barbara said, it's hit or miss here.

If we had coherent leadership starting at the federal level, there might be more sensible approaches to a lot of things like grocery shopping. But the U.S. is enormous and extremely diverse, so the needs of urban/suburban/rural/remote areas are best addressed at local levels. Some officials are better/smarter at this than others are. Some citizens exercise science-based common sense and others don't.

No, I'm really not interested in a country with only THREE major supermarket chains. Given that California has more people than Australia, the retail situation is quite different.

I can think of 10 different supermarket/grocery brands within a 10 minute drive, that doesn't count Walmart, Target, Costco, 99 Cent Only, Grocery Outlet, Dollar General, and the mom and pop carnicerias as well as the Asian chains such as Hannam, 99 Ranch, Island Pacific, Mitsuwa, etc. Nor the likes of Walgreen, CVS, RiteAid (drugstores).

Both Ralph's and Vons have an early hour for seniors daily M-F
Watching Governor Newsom press conference, he says tomorrow he will announce some easings of closures for certain groups and is working with governors of Oregon and Washington on the same issues.

At my Vons, it's only Tuesday and Thursday.

The Vons I normally went to most often has a much better setup than the neighborhood Ralphs. I won't be going to that Ralphs again for the duration. Clearly that store's management is not taking things seriously.

I forgot to include Trader Joe's in my count of 10 grocery chains. I also didn't count Albertsons (owned by same company as Vons), Foods for Less (Kroger), Sam's Club (Walmart), Winco, or Lazy Acres. There are too many stores brands to count, basically..

Wow! You have a lot of food stores close by. Within a ten minute drive, I have Vons (2), Albertsons, Ralphs(2), Trader Joe's(2), Sprouts(3), Costco, Target(2). I'm not including CVS as a food store, or 7-11. I almost feel deprived! LOL!

Don't forget the mini-marts at some gas stations!

My nearest CVS has grocery staples (nothing fresh) and a dairy case.

And I didn't even count individual stores. Close by are 2 Vons , 2 Ralphs, 2 Smart & Final, Sprouts, Stater Bros, Superior, Northgate-Gonzalez, Gelson's, Aldi, Whole Foods (the first 10 I remembered ), PLUS 14 more.. Foods 4 Less, Albertson's, Trader Joe's, Lazy Acres, 2 Target, 2 Walmart, Costco, Sam's Club, Winco, 2 -99 Cent Only, 2 Grocery Outlet, Dollar General, Island Market, & Mother's (another one I forgot). So there are over 30 physical outlets near me. We have Tesco to thank for many of the small format ones. Their Fresh & Easy stores built from scratch are now ALDI, Grocery Outlet, Island Market and Mother's Market.

The large Asian ones are actually a bit farther in Gardena/Torrance or Artesia/Cerritos. I haven't counted neighborhood and convenience stores, drug stores, bakeries, delis, etc.....

A point lost on one earlier post in the Lounge, is that real estate here in SE LA County is easier for food outlets from a size and cost perspective. Some of the huge stores (eg Costco Signal Hill) were built on abandoned industrial lands and assisted by the former Redevelopment Agencies. There are also a ton of neighborhood and mid-sized shopping centers as a legacy of the post-war through '80s suburban development pattern.

By the way, I noticed Cottonelle TP in either Von's or Ralphs yesterday, but don't need any. Baking supplies seem to be the new toilet paper.

Oh how I love Trader Joes...... was "trained" years ago in CA to always bring my bags always, and now even TJs is using their own, new paper bags, doubled yet! But arriving at 8:30 let the first crowd of us seniors in, so arriving at 8:30, I went right in. Not having a liquor department at this one (east coast in Jersey), cut down our shopping time to in/out under half an hour. They have just about everything we need including an extra dozen rolls of TP. Another farm market is making you download their order form via PDF and email it back to them at 8 a.m., but too complicated.... we only have "read" Acrobat, and now picked up bags of salad at TJs at half the price. And their croissants are almost as good as from the French Pastry Shop on ECR in Encinitas! My son is Carlsbad is doing Costco runs and to Vons or sending his teen & her boyfriend. You Californians should be proud of your low numbers -- late last week was only at 16K statewide, and here in my daughter's Bergen County NJ (HOTSPOT flanking Manhattan), was 9K alone! She is only ordering online, and her twelve-year-old figured out how to change refresh code from 60 sec to 5 sec which got her Whole Foods delivered in a day.

Thanks to NextDoor, I have found a local bread bakery which is also selling containers of yeast and 5 lb bags of flour. And bread. Another hole in my infrequent grocery shopping filled in.

mlgb, baking supplies are indeed scarcer than toilet paper now. I needed sugar the other day and Vons had no ordinary white granulated sugar. I got one of the few remaining packs of brownish pure cane sugar left. I hope it will be ok in tea.

I'm a tea drinker & have always preferred the beige sugar (turbinado, unrefined, called different things by different producers). It sometimes comes in larger granules, Sugar in the Raw is one, which I like less because they take longer to dissolve. But in general it's my favorite in tea. Usually available organic in bulk though I noticed the bulk bins have been covered at my Raley's. Shopping has become an adventure & I'm finding of necessity changing some of my old buying habits, not always a bad thing.

Yes, our bakeries (and breweries) are also sellling some staples, as are some of the restaurants.

I found out the hard way that my baking powder was too old :cry:

don't bake much anymore (have a breadmaker but more often it's for jams or bread sticks than cookies and cakes).

In my pantry/refrigerator clean out I found a nearly-full 2lb bag of active dry yeast that is 10 years old. I think I'll test it with a little warm water to see whether it still is "active".

10 years old! LOL! I once forgot about a big can of pineapple juice at thh back of the bottom shelf of my pantry. One day it exploded. Icky sticky mess everywhere. My son still doubles over laughing even though this happened maybe fourteen years ago.

Do you feel better, mlgb? Guessing you wrote before your morning coffee?