By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
MARCH 27, 2020 | Needing to re-stock our refrigerator and pantry, I left the house at 6:59 a.m. to take advantage of Publix’ “Old Folks” early opening. I arrive at 7:09 to find not many shoppers—perhaps a dozen or so, including several from our neighborhood. It’s not that often when shopping in this vast and diverse metro complex that you find people you know in grocery stores.
Some people had their carts fairly full, including a lady with a big square package of toilet paper. “That problem must have been solved,” I thought to myself.
Most shelves were more than three-quarters full, the work of an overnight crew, we presumed. One fairly long shelf was virtually empty—-one that would have normally been full of rice products. There were six or eight varied packages of rice products scattered along the many open shelves. Evidently, rice is a true fixture in many a local diet.
Earlier we had been hunting ground turkey, and we came across just one packet. I suspect the better-priced packages had been scooped up. I got an upscale brand, but at least we had what we were looking for.
Meanwhile, the fresh meat section was well-stocked. Earlier we had heard that this case was mostly empty, but at least in the early morning, it had sufficient choices.
Again this morning, as I found earlier in the week, even though the store was limiting customers to one carton of eggs, there were only a few cartons randomly placed along the long shelves. A few were turned sideways, and I suspect that came from a shopper inspecting for broken eggs. On my last trip to this shelf, there was only one carton of eggs left….and one of the eggs was slightly cracked. However, I bought that damaged carton, since at least I was getting 11 uncracked eggs.
Milk of all kinds was limited to one per customer. While whole milk was readily available, any special milk or almond milk was another story, with lots of empty spaces in the cooler.
Going into the fresh produce area, this pipeline must be vigorous, for there were plenty of fruit, berries, greens and root vegetables everywhere. It made you feel good just to see all these lush and ripe foods awaiting some hungry mouths. Not because of the shortage scare, but because it’s not quite time yet, I found no Vidalia onions. OK, one area said “Georgia onions.” I still held off, waiting until better tasting Vidalias arrived.
The frozen food compartments were not as full as the rest of the store…particularly the pizzas, et. al., while the ice cream section had a lot of empty spaces.
At checkout, there were no lines at all, and I zoomed through this quickly. Time I got back to the car and drove home, it was 7:45 a.m. It was an easy outing. It was a rare uncrowded shopping trip, allowing me to replenish our larder. Thanks, Publix, for looking out for the old folks.
From Tim Anderson in the Herald-Leader of Fitzgerald: “Hollywood’s favorite couple, Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson, are in Australia with the coronavirus. Being the practical man he is, Hanks said this week: “It’s simple. Once we were diagnosed, we went into quarantine and will stay here until they say we are okay to leave.” Wilson quipped: “After this, the only Corona I want comes from Mexico, and you drink it.”
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
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