Posted on 04/16/2015 7:12:56 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum
It's a good thing Gwyneth Paltrow has buckets of money at her disposal, because her attempt to live like a needy person for a week has ended in complete failure.
Paltrow agreed to take the food stamp challenge, where she was expected to feed her family on just $29 a week - what American low-income families receive on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
It turns out, shopping with that kind of budget was too difficult for Paltrow to pull off.
"As I suspected, we only made it through about four days, when I personally broke and had some chicken and fresh vegetables (and in full transparency, half a bag of black licorice)," she wrote on her lifestyle website Goop.
Earlier in the week, Paltrow posted a photo of the groceries she purchased for $29, including over a half dozen limes, fresh cilantro and avocados - food that would be out of the price range for most families on food stamps.
Critics were quick to make fun of her shopping selection online.
"But how do you live without organic cilantro?" was one response.
Gwyneth Paltrow ✔ @GwynethPaltrow
This is what $29 gets you at the grocery store—what families on SNAP (i.e. food stamps) have to live on for a week.
"I'm a liberal who's totally offended by your silly SNAP challenge," wrote another. It's not a game. It's a reality for many of us."
And a savvier shopper offered the Oscar-winning actress some tips.
"No, Gwyneth. Those with $29 to spend buy a loaf of bread, milk, potatoes, beans, rice, pasta and sauce. On sale."
Although the actress fell three days short of her goal, she says she has learned from her experience and gave herself a C- for her attempt.
"My perspective has been forever altered by how difficult it was to eat wholesome, nutritious food on that budget, even for just a few days—a challenge that 47 million Americans face every day, week, and year."
She also wrote that she donated to the Food Bank.
In the words of Pulp (though the William Shatner cover is a lot better)
You’ll never live like common people
You’ll never do whatever common people do.
You’ll never fail like common people.
You’ll never watch your life slide out of view,
And dance and drink and screw
Because there’s nothing else to do.
Sing along with the common people.
Sing along, and it might just get you thru.’
Laugh along with the common people.
Laugh along, even though they’re laughing at you
And the stupid things that you do
‘Cause you think that poor is *cool*...
After the JAGC, I had things to pay for, so I lived on 15 a week: oatmeal and mild and brown sugar every day for breakfast, took grilled cheese to the office, and pot pie for dinner. Not fun, but it worked.
I did it in college for 4 years...”
When my son was in college, he and his buddy would pool their food allowances and buy a case of tuna, a case of Ramen and 8 loves of bread from the day old bread store at the beginning of the month. They supplemented that with Wheaties, four gallons of milk, processed cheese slices and a case of tomato soup (dented cans from a surplus store for $.10/can). Since he graduated several years ago he has never eaten Ramen, white bread or tuna. Pretty funny.
So Gwynnie took 4 days to blow through 29 dollars?
More like 4 minutes for 1 sip of champagne, if you ask me.
Back around 1981, I was a bum and lived off $15 a week in blood plasma money, which was 2 boxes of mac and cheese and a 2 liter Pepsi a day.
I did this for about 6 months till I got tired of being a bum, got my shit together and got a job.
Does the writer really think families are getting $29 a week in food stamps?
She’s cute!
Dad's number one rule of life was to never take welfare from anyone, under any circumstances whatsoever.
I'm not saying my family was poor because we were not. Yet anyone observing us from the outside may have felt otherwise.
$29 a week per person means a box of Foster Chicken.
6 pieces of flash frozen chicken breasts for $10. For the $19 left I can get vegetables to help make a big pot of chicken soup with 2 chicken breasts that would last 5-7 days along with either 1lbs of hamburger and or fish. Throw in some bread. I would have money left over if not for the big bottle of booze....
Not hard at all unless you want to pay a chef to fly in to cook your meals or roll sushi for you like she has done.
I’ve posted elsewhere about the nutrition plan I’m following. I did the calculations, and if I stuck to it strictly with no cheats, and in keeping with my normal appetite, I’d be spending just over $50 a month on groceries.
That’s not taking my garden into account, which is being expanded this year.
I freely admit that most people wouldn’t want to eat like I do, but I’m learning what’s possible.
#5 Is anyone looking at the object on the left side?.. : )
Mac & Cheese from Save-A-Lot - 3 boxes for $1.00.
Makes 3 servings at 390 calories each.
Mix with 10¢ worth of milk and 10¢ worth of margarine.
Or just plain water and a little vegetable oil if you have it.
Yes, and she wouldn’t touch the Fiji water — only uses it for bathing.
“The Stupid is strong in this one, Lord Vader.”
And did she eat them, or garnish a few top shelf margaritas?
I can only imagine she sent a staffer to the most expensive grocery store in her luxurious neighborhood then, had her personal chef prepare the food for her.
$29 is BS. People who are on stamps and SNAP and every other welfare program get a lot of money FOR FREE. There are also food banks and charities that give away massive amounts of food.
Liberals....Just stupid....
The limes and the cilantro...was she trying to make the point that poor people can afford to make frivolous food choices? It’s no wonder she tee’d a bunch of people off with this. She totally garbled the political message.
You can tell what she had in mind. She was going to do poverty chic and have hipster black bean burritos with avacado and a squeeze of lime. This was probably fun for about a day until she ran out of avacado. Next morning she had beans on a tortilla for breakfast and started to wonder if she had embarked on something bigger than herself. Day three was a total crisis. Day four wasn’t really a full day...she went to the grocery store first thing with a list of real food items put together by her chef.
For an average of $5 a day, it's not that difficult to eat a very healthy and adequate diet. It does involve shopping at a store where those with limited budgets shop. The one I go to does a very good job of stocking high-value good nutrition choices.
The elite don't have a clue.
“”No, Gwyneth. Those with $29 to spend buy a loaf of bread, milk, potatoes, beans, rice, pasta and sauce.”
Wow, look at those carbs.
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