A Dash of Words with Loleta Abi Romance Author

The Writer’s Wheel 3/29/2020: Testing Realities

Loleta Abi

The Way Things Were.

Just two weeks ago, you could take a normal trip to the grocery store and find items on your shelf you needed. You could see people talking excitedly to one another. Children playing on playgrounds. In short, everything you were used to in your day-to-day life. You went to work, came home, took care of things there, your spouse and children greeted you in their usual manners. Life seemed—ordinary.

Now.

You walk into a store, hoping against hope, that you’ll find what you need. Minimum buying is in place thanks to the hoarders of yesterdays. Toilet paper is back on the shelf. Kleenex. Paper towels. Cleaners. But in truth, fewer than normally and some people have to travel to several stores if not more to get stuff. This store has eggs. This one bacon. Another one chicken. Still another, cheese. What used to be common fare for families has become a maybe we can get this, maybe we can’t. We can’t always be choosy with brands like in the past either.

The pet aisle is still depleted. They have wet food but the dry is scattered and few. I was able to nab a bag of Fancy Feast which is the same size as the small Friskies cat food I normally buy but twice the price. I get the small bag, even though I have four cats, because they’re picky at what they eat and the small bags allow me to buy two and switch the flavors sooner. They don’t like the new farm flavors of Friskies. I have to mix it with canned food to get them to eat it.

The Fancy Feast, two of the cats ate at first then the other two joined in later to get their fill. I don’t like to feed them wet food all the time because then they become even finickier. I already spoil them with cat treats as their fourth meal. Yeah, four times at about 1/3 a cup each feeding. Only one has weight to her and if you shaved off all that fur (although why would you want to?), it’s said that they’d weigh less than the other short-haired cats. The fur just gives them the appearance of being enormous.

Chicken is another thing that has become scarce for us. I managed to snack a 5 lb. bag the other day, but it won’t last long. Potatoes are another must, and I just found a 10 lb. bag that’s down to half with my family. Hamburger was gone by the time I got there. Ham only has the half-sized ones for Easter and I want the smaller slices for breakfast or casseroles or ham sliders. Bacon, we’ve been lucky to nab a couple times.

Cleaners are hard to come by. From hand soap to dish soap to laundry detergent to Lysol toilet bowl cleaner. Even vinegar is harder to come by. Baking soda is also a dim second. I had to buy powdered detergent for use this past week as all the liquid I usually get was gone. The powdered always leaves residue in your clothes and I don’t like that. I also have to get all free and clear because I have allergic reactions to detergent. Some soaps. Cleaners. Etc. Yeah, and with this going on, it’s harder to find what I need. Most times, I settle for baking soda and vinegar but even that is in short supplies.

Milk has been good. Eggs have been few and far between. Butter is almost non-existent. Creamer has been pulverized. The Keurig coffee is still available, but I see the instant is having trouble. I haven’t needed my tea yet but not looking forward to seeing if I have to go without. Vegetables come and go as does fruit. I wanted a pie SO badly the other day, but THAT’S another story, lol.

The Best Way to Go On.

I guess we’ll all have to forage for a while. With the majority of people being confined indoors, maybe shelves will come back to being semi-full. I’m hoping anyways. Meanwhile, dr. apts. (some now, by phone) and taking my daughter to work keep me busy as does sanitizing the house and car and now my grocery carts, cans, packages, etc. I know, I know. Maybe overkill but then again, I’m hearing more people I KNOW have the virus.  Take care and be safe. God bless.