[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Things I noticed while at Costco (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 10/22/2008 10:01:54 PM EDT
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Went in to town to do our monthly family shopping for bulk items tonight, and I noticed a few things. First off, I seem to remember seeing more items in peoples carts at check out. It looked like a lot of people where cutting back. While going through check out there were a lot of people with only 3-7 items in there carts. 2nd thing I noticed, there were a lot of people looking really funny at us. I guess I did not receive that memo, cause we had two carts, and were doing our best to load them up as usual. I was laughing at first, but when standing in the check out line, I started to get very uncomfortable, and was glad that I was carrying concealed. People were standing there watching in disbelief, some were even pointing. By this point we had three carts, in hind sight we should of grabbed one of those flatbed carts. One cart did have my two boys in it, the youngest drooling in the child seat, and my 4 year old snacking on free samples up front amongst some boxes. People would stop to talk to the kids as usual, but when the figured out our little food train they had shocked reactions. It was kind of unnerving. I wonder if next time we should split it up in a couple of trips, but I don't want to have to go to town any more then I have to. We did pick up a few extra things we normally don't get ( wife got 4 large boxes of popcorn instead of her normal 2, and I got two large TP and paper towel packs instead of one each ). It has me re-thinking the whole keeping a low profile idea! Guess I blew that one big time.  Making big purchases now does bring unwanted attention. Watch yourselves.I remember when I used to call Costco the 200 dollar store, I miss those days. Dam that coupon book. $573.51 later. ( buying diapers in bulk sucks at $42.79 a box for 224 ) But we did save $57.50 using coupons. My wife says next month we go to Costco I get to stay home and watch the boys. Cheers BT |
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Yep, so much for Grey man! We go to Sam'a club once a month, that way we keep the piles fairly small. ( 1 cartfull only) We see a lot of restaurant owners when we are there, so we really don't worry about it too much. Are you in a bad part of town at that Cosco? Splitting up a little bit in the store would help also, stay in the same general area, and just go to different checkout lines when your done, that would break it up a little. |
You could also go in two trips, fill up a cart of non perishables, checkout, and put in the car and then go back for the perishables and balance of your list. Around here I'm seeing a lot of unessential shit on the lawns for sale, boats, ATVs, snow machines. People are paring down to prepare for an economic turn down. If you are wanting these man's bed toys it's a good time to buy. Also a time to pick up guns for sale, guys are selling extras and closet queens. I figure before and after christmas you might see some more stuff coming out for cash. Good to be debt free. 
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i hate to say this but seriously things get worse and worse everyday... crime in my area is going up big time.. violent crime .. anyway just one suggestion. i would rather you carry and go w/ your wife then stay home and watch the kids... make 2 trips if you can but if not i would think it would be better that you are with her at a place like costco. |
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I've noticed this too at our local Wally World. Carts are not near as full as they used to be. And more and more people are putting their groceries on the credit card -- "will that be debit or credit ?" "Credit" is the response most of the time -- and believe me, they are not using their credit card to get their "points" either ! ! People are strapped for cash -- cthe redit card is their saviour -- at least for a while. Wifey and I go to Wally World about every three of four weeks. We've been filling up a cart about half, check it out and then get another cart. Draws less attention . . . . |
Agreed |
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I cannot imagine a grocery/supplies run being the cause for alarm where I live. I could have a freaking train of carts and as long as I didn't crash it into others nobody's gonna point at me or make an issue. I go with some others from work occasionally to buy for the group picnics and such, and it literally is a multi-cart event. And nobody bats an eye at what other people are doing. Making several trips to the car so folks don't notice? My time is too valuable for wasted concern like that. Being glad I was carrying because someone eyeballed my cart? 
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they still had door to door diaper service back then. now you have to look hard to find cotton diapers. i see people like you are sam's every time I am there. nothing unusual, certainly not worth pointing at. |
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Getting a bit paranoid are we? Hell my costco is jammed every weekend with many FULL carts. My guess is that if someone is looking at somebody eles's cart, they are doing the same thing we do. Geee I bet thats a $100, $200, $300 etc, etc load. But I am in Morman land out here. Odd how its way slower at Costco on sunday? 
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My thoughts exactly when I read the post.... ...My guess is the attention had more to do with having a bunch of noisy, drooling kids eating free samples in a cart then it did with fellow shoppers planning a hit on some stockpiling survivalists out in the parking lot. Surprised we didn't hear about armored shopping carts and shopping only in convoys....I do admit to wearing my custom can good camo when I go to the supermarket food shopping, ..you know just in case!  ....Todd
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This thread is pretty much full of . Are you sure you didn't have toilet paper hanging out of your pants or something, people staring at you and you are considering changing your shopping habits? You implied you felt threatened by their staring because your mentioned your carry. I think you have paranoia issues to cover. Costco is a wholesale food store, people buy bulk items, and lots of stuff, thats sort of why it exists. |
Personally, I would take more notice of someone making multiple trips than I would of a full cart. "Wait... didn't that person just leave with a cart of groceries a minute ago?  This is weird. Keep an eye on them."
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This is definitely NOT what is happening at the Costco near us. Lots of people and lots of stuff getting purchased. And not just food. Big TV's and stuff as well. I think I read somewhere that last month was a record of some sort in the US as to how many flat screen TVs were purchased. As an aside, I just returned from Las Vegas and didn't notice a considerable change in the gambling in the casinos. I talked to a few cab/bus drivers who told me casino revenues were down 10-15% but you would never know it by the crowds of people at the tables. |
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Whenever I tag along with someone to go to sam's club I always eyeball any big carts and guess what that person is doing. The boring ones are running a business but I love the ones with packs of spam and bags of rice and beans and I smile as I figure someone is trying to quick start thier food storage preps. When I worked at walmart I noticed if people were in the store a long time. And getting a couple carts of groceries at once draws less attention than buying one cart and coming back in and getting another cart of stuff. I personally don't care what other shoppers think, then again my sister gets mad if I ask about buying beer by the pallet so maybe I am a bad example. But I do make sure I don't make the store workers and owners worried by making multiple trips if there is no need to do so. I hate the fuss that occurs when I get tossed out of a store and banned from shopping there again. Maybe that is why I don't have a sam's card and just tag along these days? Go shopping with the wife if you can get your paranoia level off 11. Something to keep in mind is that if you are that wound up then she is getting wound up. So letting her go shopping by herself with a good list will work fine as long as she does not skip the stuff you put on the list. |
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Jeez, this is thread is heading into tinfoil hat territory. Are you saying everyone's looking at you because you have the money to spend and everyone else has used up all their foodstamps, so they're waiting to jump you when you get outside? You have two small kids, not a lot of time to shop, so you buy a lot when you do shop. Big deal. Look in the parking lot - all SUV's and minivans. Everybody stocks up at Costco and Sam's. Hell, I feel self-conscious if I DON'T have my cart loaded up. Now if you were buying 3 42-inch flat-screen tv's, yeah, I might make more than one trip out to the car.... |
My wife and I take it one step further... we shop at Wally World for staples like canned goods, paper products and the odds and ends that other stores do not carry. limit ourselves to one basket per trip and then goto the smaller local grocery store for the meat and veggies. Better quality and better selection IMHO but still keeps the sheeples from wondering "How do you pay for all of that?" |
I am using mine for the points. My wife wants to go to Florida in March. |
This month we made the effort to cook everything we eat. Using preps we bought 6 months ago and 1 trip a week to the store for fresh items, this month in food we have purchased about 100.00. We went out 3 times and saw one movie, and that cost us about 110.00 for the month. Normally we eat out 5 times or more a week (fast food) and 1 time at a sit-down. I've saved a ton this month, and barely touched the depths of the preps. "how can you pay for all of that?" The answer is, "I cook." |
I guess I should have been taking a closer look at that lady in front of me at the grocery store the other day. She was buying SIX gallons of milk. That's damn near $25-$30, just in dairy! If she's got the cash to be buying that much milk, I bet she has furs, gems, precious metals, AND barrels of drinking water. I bet she never even made it home before the marauders got her. |
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Ironically there was just a story on the one of the local news stations about buying in bulk, specifically talking about pros and cons of shopping at Sams, Costco, etc... The funny thing is, they say more people are shopping there because of the economy. www.nbcactionnews.com If they only knew they were in danger from these wholesale food stare pirates that attack people with their vicious eyes. |
Typical arfcom paranoia. Really? "shocked reactions"????? |
Yeah, well I live in the suburbs of Detroit. Try to find a place supposedly "harder hit" than here. Nobody eyes my groceries. It's business as usual around here.... |
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To the OP: What are you worried about? To hell with the people if they are looking at you. You say you live out of town. So.. Nobody in the store knows you, right. Are they going to take the license number of your truck and run it? All of my income comes from out of state and we keep to ourselves. This is the best freedom there is. When we go to Costco, we don't know anybody and do as we please because we don't care what the next guy thinks. Buy what you want in the most efficient manner possible. IE: use multiply carts and get out of the store. |
Wow, tough crowd. Ok so I guess my post was not very clear, and it would seem that some here have their tinfoil a little tighter then mine. I really need to stop writing posts so late at night when I'm tired. I'll try to answer and explain a little bit.
No Guilt here what so ever. Paranoia? maybe, but no more then the next guy ( checks tightness of tinfoil ) Just observant of my surroundings.
Dang, didn't think of checking for TP. Did not mean to imply I felt threatened by there staring, I mentioned my CHL because I can carry, and do. Yes it is a wonderful comforting feeling. One never knows when he will run into zombies and have to start blading. Yes Costco is a wholesale food store, and people do buy in bulk. Or should I say they used to. I was commenting on how people have been cutting back on the amount of food they have been buying. Thus the disbelief at two and a half carts loaded of food and household supplies. Your area may be different. Most friends and family have noticed the same thing, although people seem to be buying big screen plasma TV's like there is no tomorrow.
No, you just said that. Every one knows Costco does not take food stamps, right? Hell if I know. My tin foil is just fine, where the hell do you get all this 'jump you when you get outside' stuff? I guess I suck at articulating a story about spending big in a time when most people can not afford to do the same. Your last two sentences sums it up pretty much. Although to some there it was a very big deal, hence my post.
Ok, now we all know that is not possible! Great book.
Not a bad area at all, at least so far. Crime is on the rise, as it is everywhere I would think. Like I said I carry all the time, what I did not do was explain myself very well in my original post. Normally when we go to Costco everything is fine. Lot's of people and long lines of loaded down carts. This time this was not the case. In general the wife and I have noticed that people do not seem to be buying as much as they used to. And yes the reaction we were receiving from having our little more then normal two and a half carts loaded up was extremely noticeable and a little uncomfortable. I normally try to blend into the crowd and not be noticed, so I did not feel comfortable ( yes I'm paranoid ) with all the attention. At no time did I feel threatened from attack, and even though I was pushing one cart and pulling another out to the truck in the parking lot. at no time did I feel or see a threat of any kind. I did make sure to swing wide then blade two suspect suv's parked under a dark tree to no avail. Turns out they were just parked there. An after thought to this trip was that if things continue to get worse, then making large trips or purchases like this could cause future problems or advertise when one normally tries to keep a low profile. Take it for what it is worth. YMMV Cheers BT |
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I was just at COSTCO today and it was business as usual a 10-15m wait and carts stuffed to the max. If you were there and ONLY had a few items you would surely be the oddball. I seldom see somebody with only a few things at there,its the kind of store you load up in bulk. Big screen tv's,computers & ipods were spotted through out the crowds. If the economy is in the tank and people are broke it sure isn't around here in N. CA That coupon book they have that expires the 26th got me there and I loaded up on the long lasting stuff a lot more than usual. The gas price was down 50 cents from the last time I was there! Are you sure your gun wasn't sticking out? Red |
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Quoted: Of course they weren't staring at you. You were wearing a fake beard and glasses. Always shop in disguise.I was just at COSTCO today and it was business as usual a 10-15m wait and carts stuffed to the max. If you were there and ONLY had a few items you would surely be the oddball. I seldom see somebody with only a few things at there,its the kind of store you load up in bulk. Big screen tv's,computers & ipods were spotted through out the crowds. If the economy is in the tank and people are broke it sure isn't around here in N. CA That coupon book they have that expires the 26th got me there and I loaded up on the long lasting stuff a lot more than usual. The gas price was down 50 cents from the last time I was there! Are you sure your gun wasn't sticking out? Red |
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I think the 1000's of round of ammo you have sent to your home would bring unwanted attention then anything. I know only your UPS or USPS knows about it but think about it you don't think they can not tell a friend because they do trust me my UPS guy has a big mouth and likes to talk he has told me about some really interesting thing about what people have around me. I've been to my local Sams and did not see anything different there where about 25 people in line and only two cashiers. I live in a small town so many it different near the cities. |
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Quoted: THis is why i have everything sent to my work I think the 1000's of round of ammo you have sent to your home would bring unwanted attention then anything. I know only your UPS or USPS knows about it but think about it you don't think they can not tell a friend because they do trust me my UPS guy has a big mouth and likes to talk he has told me about some really interesting thing about what people have around me. I've been to my local Sams and did not see anything different there where about 25 people in line and only two cashiers. I live in a small town so many it different near the cities. |
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Quoted: Thats good! But I bet you piss the boss off with the ammo orders!!Quoted: THis is why i have everything sent to my work I think the 1000's of round of ammo you have sent to your home would bring unwanted attention then anything. I know only your UPS or USPS knows about it but think about it you don't think they can not tell a friend because they do trust me my UPS guy has a big mouth and likes to talk he has told me about some really interesting thing about what people have around me. I've been to my local Sams and did not see anything different there where about 25 people in line and only two cashiers. I live in a small town so many it different near the cities.  Unless you are the boss!!! |
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Quoted: Yes that dang coupon book does it to me as well. No chance my gun was sticking out/printing or visable, them hippies would just freak out if they saw that. I was just at COSTCO today and it was business as usual a 10-15m wait and carts stuffed to the max. If you were there and ONLY had a few items you would surely be the oddball. I seldom see somebody with only a few things at there,its the kind of store you load up in bulk. Big screen tv's,computers & ipods were spotted through out the crowds. If the economy is in the tank and people are broke it sure isn't around here in N. CA That coupon book they have that expires the 26th got me there and I loaded up on the long lasting stuff a lot more than usual. The gas price was down 50 cents from the last time I was there! Are you sure your gun wasn't sticking out? Red |