I used to have all kinds of plastic storage containers...from Tupperware to Rubbermaid to Glad/Ziploc to plastic ice cream containers w/lids I saved. When I packed up the kitchen, I get rid of all the containers with missing lids and lids with missing containers as well as the "ice cream container" types. That left me with mostly Tupperware & Rubbermaid. I still had two 33" deep drawers worth when I put our kitchen back together. It was OK then when I had an "extra" drawer, but now that I need that drawer for my Gluten-free-foods-only toaster, waffle iron, and a few other tools, I again went through what I had and got rid of just about everything except the Tupperware. I did save the big Rubbermaid containers for Christmas cookies once a year, but they're packed away the rest of the year. So now I'm down to older Tupperware plus the newer ones that have expanding tops (I really like those!) I have also replaced some of the old plastics with glass Pyrex dishes b/c I can use them in my MW, Trivection, and regular ovens. I've become wary of using plastic in the MW lately...regardless of BPA content. I just ordered Tupperware for my pantry (Modular Mates that are on sale through this week). I agree with Guppy_2009 and will leave those containers in the pantry even when they're empty.

I don't recieve food stamps and never have. I wouldn't know if someone in the store was using them or their own cash. That being said I agree the system is not run correctly. My husband is almost 68 and has always been a hard worker but weeks ago he became very ill and had to stop working. We are raising our grandsons ages 7&8 . For the first time in our lives we ask the state for help for groceries. We went into the assistance office and filled out papers and submitted doctors letters..we were denied any help..they said my husband will return to work eventually in the next month and we will have an income again. I could not believe this, my husband has always been a hard worker supporting his family and yet we could get no help to feed these children..I am so sick of the struggle this month and to ask for help after a life of never doing so to be turned down...words can't even describe the feeling of ...no where to turn....so who does get help? Old people can't get it after a life of hard dedicated work to feed children. ..who does get the help? Drug addicts? Young able bodied? Who?

Pro of big box stores: price. Cons: everything else. You are purchasing a finish that SHOULD give you 80 years of service life. How would you feel about purchasing a term life insurance policy from your 7/11? Probably isn't worth the paper it's written on. We can move in that direction with Big Box hardwood flooring. When you purchase from a store that also sells toilette paper or (my favourite...ahem Costco) tampons, you are purchasing mass produced product with nothing to back it up with. Every INCH of the flooring warranty HANGS on the installation. It HANGS on the subfloor preparation. It dangles by a thread...of knowledge...and acclimation. How much hardwood flooring knowledge does 'Timmy' in the paint department have? None. But you ask him anyway. Why is that? Now...let's compare that to what Ma-and-Pa Expert Flooring store owners know. They've been in business for 25 years. Which means Ma has been selling flooring for 25 years. Pa has been ordering and organizing his warehouse and his installers for 25 years (or other way around...I'm not sexist). Together it gives them 50 years in business. What is that worth? Everything. Your local hardwood flooring store will NOT carry junk. It loses them too much money. They are responsible for the wood, the storage, the choosing of mills, the lines to carry and the installers who walk into your home. For every mistake their team makes Ma and Pa lose THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. They can't afford that so they make sure mistakes do not happen. They choose the RIGHT wood species, cut and width for your environment. They choose mills that properly dry their wood. They choose widths for the local 'housing' market (low, medium or high-end HVAC systems). They have seen crap bring down their competitors. It's why they are still standing but the crap dealers aren't. They have seen business walk across the street to purchase from HD. They worry they can't keep losing to the big box stores. But then something 'horribly wonderful' happened. They keep getting calls to fix the problems that the big box boys keep creating. Sure it hurts to lose the $3K jobs. But the same job just came back for $8K...because now they have to rip out of everything the other guys did and fix the subfloor mess they left behind. So the $6K job they quoted just became $8K. What is that worth....to you? My question to you: Why do you need to replace your hardwood floors? Can't they be refinished?

For me, the grocery budget is one area where it is possible to economize when necessary. Most other budget categories for me are pretty fixed (utilities, mortgage, etc). So, we do use mainly store brands and I shop at a variety of stores. It's interesting that while I often find Kroger owned stores more expensive, they sometimes beat Wal-Mart by a significant margin on non sale items. The most recent example was the Simple Truth brand of tart cherry juice was one dollar cheaper for a bottle than the equivalent great value one at Wal-Mart. The one place I am probably pickiest on brand is Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage. The seasoning is absolute perfection to me and I have not found a comparable lower priced brand. Now I stock up and freeze that one when on sale.