Posted on 07/24/2011 1:08:37 PM PDT by Mamzelle
All of my usual stores are rearranging and changing what they put on their shelves. I'm sensing that the big uptick in prices will start to arrive shortly, maybe before Christmas. I'm interested to hear what the impressions of FRugal Freepers. What are you seeing? What will you be buying in quanity before TSHTF?
I saw an AP item linked on Drudge, McDonald's sales keep rising, even with price hike. This got me to wondering if McD's food might be a Giffen Good. The whole idea is kind of iffy, if you think about it, but it does seem like McDonald's satisfies the main criteria to at least be a candidate.
I think to really qualify, the increase in demand has to be because of, and not just in spite of, the price rise. This means that the price rise itself has to cause a reduction in disposable income, which causes more upscale consumption to be eliminated in favor of the downscale last resort item.
At any rate, people are being herded into McDonald's by the current conditions.
What will you be buying in quantity before TSHTF?
Hollowpoints and FMJs.
What to buy in quantity before TSHTF??
Well, it’s obvious: plastic sheeting for all the walls.
Good point... in a time of social breakdown, disposable diapers would be hard to come by ... four dozen cloth diapers can get a baby from infancy to two... ( the long ones that have to be folded work best...) and extra diaper pins... and lots of detergent...
The freezers are full of meat, and some veggies from last years garden. Lots of canned beans, and dehydrated stuff or canned stuff I make when the freezer is too full for more.
I started tracking back in 2008. We have seen extreme inflation of food prices and the incredible shrinking package. Meats at grocery stores are now select instead of choice to compete with Walmart, which has plenty of the cheaper “select” cuts.
I leave the ammo and stuff to Hubby.
Corn cobs...just rinse and repeat, as necessary. Since I grow corn in my garden; I save a bundle.
I noticed the plastic cans of coffee are now 10 oz sizes.
Last time we had a hurricane, 2 things were really valuable. A cell phone charger to plug in to the car, and cases of diet cokes for the kids.
It was wonderfully quiet at night.
Same here! My husband has one pretty big jar of protein powder, but I think we need to buy one of those big bags at Costco. It’s not the purest stuff around, but it’s still a pretty good whey powder....
I’ll look at vitacost.com, thanks! We just hit a Vitamin World at the mall, tried GNC but they didn’t have the ingredients we wanted. We have a few semi-local places that we like too.
Stocked up on B-12s and Astaxanthin (natural sunscreen and anti-toxin, among other things). Bought yet another herb book at the going-out-of-business Borders too.
And just read this morning about how garlic is a super-food and in the top seven for keeping us young :0)
Beef— buy a whole cow while you can. Due to draught out west, cattlemen have been taking their herds in early because of no grass, water. I read the other day that the price beef is going to go up within 6 months because a cow can only have one calf a year. So- the thinning of the herds now will take two years to replenish.
Coffee, flour, sugar, bottles of propane for camping stove, batteries, paper products.
For me, it’s the impending dollar crash that has me in full-prepper mode. Once it became obvious that $1.5T deficits were just fine by Obama and the Dems, we were set on an Argentina or Russia type of crash. It is simply NOT POSSIBLE to avoid it (unless these deficits stop). Whether our masters actually want that for us is for another thread.
So the next question is what does that mean? Essentially, it means a ‘re-adjustment’ in our standard of living. I figure by two notches. The middle class becomes the lower class, living in crappy apartments (or falling-apart converted multi-family houses...same thing), having to buy bottom-priced food, and not being able to afford a car. The upper middle class becomes the lower middle class and does somewhat better, but the life that they had (vacations, a nice house that they could afford, a decent car) is history. The lower classes simply become beggars and some starve (the honest ones). That is what happens to a country when its currency becomes devalued.
With this drop to Third World levels (which, again, must happen), we can expect much more crime, so get armed. Expect HUGE price increases...between 2 and 4 times, depending on import content. Expect shortages of EVERYTHING, as people DEMAND that our government ‘control’ these high prices. You will feel like an IDIOT for not having stocked up before the crash, when ding-bats around the world still treated the US Dollar like it meant something.
...and expect to eventually get out of this mess and regain a decent standard of living (you have to, to have any hope).
The people that will get through this ‘phase’ with their sanity will be the ones that don’t have to run out to the store every time they need a bottle of shampoo, because, if they are lucky enough to even find it, they will have to take the super-high cost right out of their food budget. So get the stuff NOW. Look at it as being ON SALE big-time, even it costs a bit more than a few years ago, as it will cost a LOT MORE soon (can’t say when, but soon).
I am stocking up items on sale
Tea bags, condensed milk, evaporated milk, canned beans, Ketchup, Sugar, flour, honey, oats, butter etc
2 months back All-purpose flour was $1.34 5lbs, now in target sold at $3.05 5lbs
Food prices are just going up.
Every week I look for sale and stock up.
This week, paper towel is $0.50cents one roll. I will buy for year.
Grandmotherly advice... if it is summer time, stick with disposabales. I tried cloth on my daughter in the summer and she ended up with a horrible rash. Disposables really do keep the skin dryer.
For some reason, Walgreen’s has been running deep specials on 2 or 3 mainline cereal selections each week...I have been able to save several $ by watching their shelves and stocking up, but only for the short run...limited storage space...:(
Around 30 years ago, I ran into a real bargain on .22LR ammo at a store which was going out of business. I bought several hundred dollars worth at 40 cents a box.
I always liked .22s and have a bunch of rifles and pistols. I also would buy bricks of it when I saw a bargain.
Now that I am approaching old age, I realize I bought more than I will ever use and by a large margin. I guess it would be good trading material.
I also try to stock up on soap when I see good deals on it.
Also pellets for my pellet guns and lube for all my guns.
Lots of people bitching about food prices at the store today...I lost count of the times I said “hope and change” in a voice just loud enough to be heard by those complaining...
Good for you!!
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