List? I'm supposed to go shopping with a list?

LOL - I actually use a list for the important things that I'd hate myself if I forgot, but I always buy other things I think I'd like. I may need meat or veg, for instance, but the specifics don't go on a list - I buy what strikes my fancy at the time, or what looks good on sale, etc. The list is for important things that I use but don't buy all the time, like dishwasher detergent or salt.

My extra, not-on-the-list....3 bell peppers. Then we hit a Dollar Tree looking for cute glass apothecary jars: 7 cans Purina pate cat food I know the kittens like...& vanilla pudding. ♥

We've become accustomed to curbside pickup and deliveries too - which it is varies with the store - and I suspect those have become part of the normal routine.

I don't think either of us thinks of a shopping list as being comprehensive. We'll put things on a list that we keep on hand when the supplies are running low - mostly non-food things. Food items on the list are more like "don't forget......." that we normally like to have in the house - bananas, a variety of things for salads, the like. Otherwise, it's kind of what strikes us or what might we feel like having. Certain items sold only by certain stores are standard and aren't listed. Fish and some meat items from one, one cheese from one and another from a different one, etc. We don't stockpile or store food in any quantity so that purchase sizes are small.

We don't tend to eat desserts, ice cream, junk or prepared food so that impulse choices, if any, tend to be real food. With the sentiment of "hey, we haven't had this for a while".

I used curbside one time, for groceries for my moms Christmas party. I was exhausted and had to work so I thought it would be a great way to save time. For some things, it was. The order was ready early the next morning, and was in my car within 2 minutes of me getting there. On the other hand, I was given 2 onions that were probably the smallest ever grown, and they were also rotten and unusable. The ground turkey for the meatballs I was making was 3 days past the use by date and smelled off, and the milk was leaking everywhere. So I had to go to another store anyway to get new turkey and onions.

I fully understand that these people are not paid well, so I cannot blame them for not giving a hoot about my grocery order. That is why I just go get it myself. But I was really hoping that I would have better results than that. But I learned my lesson and just shop for myself, and if that means a couple impulse buys, so be it..

anylou, I'd say the problem was the store, not the way you made the purchase. Any store that has rotten produce and a 3 day past the use date meat package on display would have given you that problem when at the curb or in the store. And one I'd never go back to.

I've never had an instance when an error or unsatisfactory item wasn't cheerfully and immediately refunded.Something that happened twice from Whole Foods in different geographic areas. One type of California Olive Ranch's olive oil is fruity and flavorful, superb as a topping and for salad, not to cook with. It's a varietal called Arbequina. Once the shopper gave me Arbosana, another time it was COR's generic type. Both were refunded, no questions asked. Both bottles were also unfortunately tossed, I tasted each and didn't want to use either.

You are probably right.

When our daughter got old enough to notice and care about such things, she'd always razz us about never sticking to the grocery list. Fairly recently, DH and I shopped and bought the three or four items on the list and nothing more. Looked at each other and laughed!

To me an impulse buy is something Outbof the ordinary. The other day I bought frozen vegetable hash browns. They looked interesting.

I buy what I use and need.

Today thiughnI bought alarge Corelle serving bowl. Something I happened to need, but certainly didn't go in looking for it.

I usually buy more than what is on my list. My list is the general must haves. Having to keep two places stocked there is always a few things that don't make my list that I grab. Plus items I think my grands would like. I mostly do my big shopping up at camp. The stores never made mask mandatory or those silly one way arrows except for Giant Eagle which I never shopped at anyway and the prices are a little cheaper than at home.

I tried online ordering one time 3 or 4 years ago and didn't like it. My daughter tried it also to save time and didn't like it either.

Seagrass, before I retired my hubby did the grocery shopping . I think they make it a race, to run through the store as fast as possible. My hubby would bring home more unwanted salt free, sugar free or fat free items because he didn't take the time to really look at the labels. Grocery shopping was the first thing I took back after retirement.

When I did the meal-making and shopping, I had a meal plan for the week and a shopping list, I rarely strayed from that list. Unless there wasa good sale of something pantry-destined that we used regularly. Also, I grocery shop at a small local chain, and they don’t have a an aisle of, say, ”seasonal” things, or home hardware beyond light bulbs, so no temptation.

That helped me to be focused and list-oriented when I went to Target, hardware store, and office supplies. Unless, of course, I saw something I couldn’t live without in the $1 bin!

When DH took over dinner, eventually I told him he’d have to shop for it. He shops at a huge store, without a list, and there’s no telling what he’ll come home with. Fortunately, he stays out of the non-food aisles (because he is focused on food).

I really miss my shopping and dinner routine.

I just watched a frugal eating/grocery buying video on youtube. The woman lives in California and has access to stores that sell things like single carrots! I wish we had that here. Now that I think about it, I should have bought carrots today. Usually, they go bad on me, and I end up composting them because I'm forced to buy a whole bag and then don't use them all. Same with celery. Usually, the heads of iceberg lettuce look half rotten so I like getting the romaine. The problem is they come in packs of 3, which I can never finish by myself before they go bad.

"The stores never made mask mandatory or those silly one-way arrows"

Where is this area that has such enlightened and clear-thinking people around?

I haven't done the curbside delivery thing yet, but may have to if Omicron doesn't ease off.  I usually go with a list of things I really need, and impulse buying is pretty much limited to good deals on mangoes, avocados (both in season right here now) or on something like lamb cutlets. We have a weekly farmer's market on Main Street, so I generally get eggs, bread fruit and veggies there. All local or regional produce so pretty fresh. (And, for what it's worth, our supermarkets do sell single carrots, bananas and apples They're trying to get away from plastic packaging. They still have a long way to go.)  There have been shortages of some items due to Covid outbreaks in meat packing plants and in the trucking industry, so you just never quite know if the chicken or the dried pasta will be there when you really need them so dinners tend to be a bit improvised these days, but nobody's starving ;).

I tend to go fairly early in the day to the supermarket- fewer crowds- and it's mandatory to wear masks (and people are reasonably good about it around here) plus there's spacing marked out on the floor at the checkouts so I feel moderately safe.  Haven't encountered direction arrows in the supermarkets but the bottle store and news agent both have them.

Seagrass and Function - your husbands shop like my sister. She hates shopping of any kind and is not good at it. She also dislikes it when I go with her because I force her to take the time to make better selections.

I'm like Carol when it comes to buying items not on my list - they are generally things that I forgot to put on the list but realized that I needed. Occasionally I have thought I needed butter, but I also store excess butter in the freezer and on put one stick at a time from the freezer into the refrigerator. I can sometimes end up with two packages of butter in the freezer, but when that happens, I remember that I do not need butter when I'm at the store.

I also have to shop for two different houses and sometimes forget what I need at a particular house. I also buy things to take to the other house because I cannot easily find them at the other location or I get a better deal at one location than at another.

I do not do curbside pickup, partly because I feel comfortable shopping inside the stores, as people at the stores where I shop are very good at wearing masks, and lately they've almost all been wearing N95 masks. If they did not, I would not shop at that store.

I do buy certain grocery items online, such as bulk size herbs and dehydrated vegetables, but I've been having trouble finding those in stores anyway. I also notice that they are cheaper online.

I am more likely to do impulse buying at the farmers' markets and end up with a bit more produce than I planned, but I do try to use it all.

One thing I bought recently on impulse was a package of brownie squares that I found on one of the reduced price shelves. They only cost $1, and so it was hard not to buy them, and they did taste very good. It took us over a week to finish the whole package, as we tend not to eat sweets, other than dried fruit and chocolate covered almonds, and not very much of that.

I've never been to a Walmart (none are close to my anyway), and so I have not had that experience. I don't like huge stores anyway. I find that I can get in and out of small stores more easily.

It's interesting to see so many regional differences......For instance, here I can buy individual carrots (rather than in bags) at the grocery store, but if I go to a farmer's market I have to buy them by the bunch or basket. It's almost impossible to buy individual local potatoes or peaches (for example) -- I can buy US imports individually, but local produce always comes by the basket, bag, or box. That's very frustrating. I've found some of the most tasty produce I get comes from Costco, unbelievably, so I regularly buy my cherry tomatoes, peppers, oranges, potatoes, and onions there.......fortunately, I eat the first three like candy, so I don't mind the larger volumes.

I tend to shop with both a list and a tentative meal plan, often based on weekly sales. But that does not eliminate any impulse buys :-) Depends a lot on what it might be. Last week's impulse was a package of Tate's cookies (exceptionally good for any store bought cookies!!) in a new lemon flavor.....I am a sucker for lemon flavored anything!! They were exceptional also, btw.

I avoid buying produce that comes prepackaged except for salad greens and even those I prefer to hand pick from my local store that offers bulk mixed greens. Prepackaged produce comes in quantities more than I can manage so tends to get wasted. Or inevitably has some piece that rots too fast and then contaminates the rest of the stuff. Fortunately, my local grocery sells all their produce individually by the piece or pound as well. I try to limit the amount of plastic that I bring in as well and have a need to pick out my produce according to MY standards.......the primary reason I do not order groceries online. I have no interest in some stranger picking out my groceries for me!! I'd much rather do it myself.

I tend not to stock up on anything but will buy extras if something I use frequently and on sale. I also hate to run out of stuff before a shopping trip so tend to have a back up for most staples. Fresh stuff is different :-)

I have no concerns about shopping inperson. Masks are omnipresent in my area - retail establishments won't let you in or serve you without one - and I am fully vaxed and boosted.

DH has become a pretty good grocery shopper, sparing me from Covid contact. I do go once in a while. It is extremely rare to see anyone not properly masked in a store in our town. If I never went, we'd eat, but not have much variety. DH is the stereotypical male, focused on THE item, not looking around like a female hunter-gatherer. He never buys anything not on The List. He'll call me if unsure about a product. We're down to just ONE call now, from half a dozen a year ago. He's learned the difference between cucumbers and zucchini squash, cabbage and lettuce, etc. He's learned to check contents of a bag of anything, not just grab 'a bag' where one of the oranges or apples is soft or dented. Cuts of meat are still a challenge. Quantity is another.

I hadn't realized how many tricks a novice the shopper has to learn.

I was pretty good last time I went to the store....the only thing I bought that I didn't need, was a plant.

I live 25 miles from a grocery store, and I always shop for myself. I was watching a store employee the other day, filling an order for someone to pick up. Evidently tomatoes were on the list. She grabbed two tomatoes and put them in the box on her cart. I am much more picky about selecting produce. Avocados for instance. I never squeeze an avocado, and I always search for one that likely hasn't been squeezed...which will be the greenest one in the bin. Every time you squeeze an avocado, it gets a bruise, which gives them a funky taste.

I don't mind grocery shopping, and I try to get everything I need when I have to go to town anyway. Like, I buy horse feed twice a week, because I can easily stack 6 bags in the back of my car, but I feed 12 bags a week, so I go twice a week. I try to get all my running around done on those days, because just taking time to go to town, the day is shot, more or less.

I stay on script on my weekly shopping trip most of the time. I usually have an idea what I plan to cook in the next week or what I want to have on hand for easy meals or snacking. One exception is the Aldi's 'finds' aisle and their freezer case that varies offerings from week to week. I'll occasionally find things there that I didn't even know I 'needed'.

Doing curbside pickup from Aldi has saved me some money - and time - from not perusing those 'finds' aisles! I have gotten some very good things in the past, but even tho I can, and do, shop Aldi finds on Instacart, they don't seem to have anything much that I want or need these days.

Off topic, Hubby doesn’t like the frozen biscuits, which I thought were great! I found I can make mine and cook until done, but not fully brown, then freeze. Put them in a cold oven frozen and bake until brown. This way we can have only just what we need without any waste. It works for rolls also.

I can taste the difference between homemade and commercial, but it doesn’t really bother me. The ”metalic” taste from the chemicals used does bother him. Since they DO taste better to me, I don’t mind. I can have ”homemade” for a week or two with only one time cooking.

Good topic, Kath.

I shop with a list and pretty much stick to it, especially at our regular grocery store. I'm much worse picking up extras at TJ's. It can be especially bad since it's so close to home and I'm there frequently.

<DH is the stereotypical male, focused on THE item, not looking around like a female hunter-gatherer.>

I do not notice those stereotypes here at all and associate them with more backward parts of the country. In some grocery stores here, males outnumber females three to one (or more), but in most stores there is about an equal number of men and women shopping for groceries.

My sister shops like what you would call a male, but I shop like a gatherer. Gender stereotypes are not valid where I live, although I realize that they are in some geographic areas.

Instead of assigning those traits with gender, I would assign them with geography.

I think my view is somewhere in-between what chisue and lars each said.

I don't think there's a gender component involved. I also think increasingly in our culture, busy people of both genders with limited time see shopping of any kind as a chore to accomplish as quickly as possible so as to move on to the next task. Small details or picking up the wrong thing is hardly a catastrophe to obsess over, unless funds are short and the details could matter.

People with time on their hands often see shopping as a pastime and can spend more time doing so than is necessary or productive for what needs to be accomplished.

I can't imagine someone being shy or perplexed about a task as trivial as grocery shopping, unless he's subjected to a pass/fail white glove inspection when he gets home

I don't see much difference in the sex when I go shopping at home or camp. I do notice the difference in age. During the weekday it is more retired people. After the typical working hours during weekday it is the younger people. On weekends you see more parents with their kids shopping. At Aldi's I only see the Amish women, but at Walmart you see the whole family. The men watch the kids while the women grocery shop.

I do not believe in gender stereotypes in general but I laughed at the premise when it was mentioned above. I do all of our grocery shopping. My SO HATES it and I enjoy it or at least do not mind doing it. Well, a few months ago he was in a grumpy mood for some reason and decided to ask how much all the groceries I bought cost. Something that has never been an issue before. When I told him the total he was absolutely appalled and said that there is no WAY that the stuff I presented cost that much money. I asked him when the last time he went grocery shopping was and he admitted it was at least 20 years ago but that HE could get a lot of food for 50 bucks. I just wasn't doing it right......um...okay. I just kind of let it go because he was in a rare mood and I figured it would pass. Well, the next week while I was at work he took it upon himself to go to the store to "prove" his point to me. Poor thing had no clue what to buy. And he was also shocked when he went to check out. He was sure he was under 50 bucks but of course it was more than twice that amount. He apologized and told me he just didn't want me wasting money i could be saving for my Christmas foolishness. (nice attempt at saving face, i must say)

Anyway, as I said he was totally lost. And he told me that he decided to just shop for me, since I shop for both of us. He bought a bunch of stuff I would never have considered. What is "chili mac?" ( it was gross btw) He was so proud of himself he lined up all the food he had bought and took a picture to send to me at work. Note all the chocolate goodies....

He put the food on the floor lol.

My floors are SPOTLESS i swear!

I don't think this hunter vs gatherer thing is a gender issue either.  To some extent it's an age issue, but mainly it's a priorities issue.  I place a high value on the quality, provenance and freshness of the food I put on the table, and always have.  I try to buy seasonal produce, the more local the better.  That means buying my free range eggs from a market vendor with a farm about 30 km away instead of from some mega supplier to the supermarkets. It means buying apples and cherries grown in Australia, not shipped in from the US.  It means scouring signs and labels on fresh or frozen seafood to be sure it was caught in Australian or New Zealand waters, and is not a product of China, Taiwan, or Vietnam.   And so on.  So yes, I take my time shopping, going to specialist bakeries, butchers and fishmongers as well as to supermarkets, because there are few things more valuable to me than healthy, tasty, fresh food.  Saving time by doing a quick dash, or by relying on the supermarket to do the selection for me, would not be a productive use of time if the outcome were unsatisfactory. That said, not everyone is as picky as I am about food. Chacun à son goût.

I loved going grocery shopping with my mother throughout my life, from my childhood until she was no longer able to shop herself. My sister would never go with us. I always wanted to go so that I could make sure that we had enough fresh vegetables that I liked.

I hated going anywhere with my father, and my sister always wanted to go with him, but he refused to take her. I was just glad that my mother would take me shopping with her. As a child, I used to pick out my sisters clothes, since she would not even go to the clothing boutiques with our mother. I also critiqued the outfits that my mother considered buying.

Once when I was between residences for a month or two, I stayed with my sister and BIL and did all the grocery shopping for them and made dinner for every evening. I also made clothes for my sister while I was staying with her. The only problem was that my BIL would ask my sister why she didn't cook the way I did, but I explained to him the amount of time it took and that she did not have that kind of time. I think he missed me after I left.

@functionthenlook This made me laugh! I hate grocery shopping but normally did it since it was on my way home. DH retired and I was still doing the shopping. One day I had the bright idea that he could do the shopping with a list. We had fat free this, gluten free that, etc. One day frozen puff pastry was on the list and I even added a note that it would be by the frozen pie crusts. He called me at work and said he couldn't find it anywhere and he asked someone, and they couldn't find it either. I can see the store from my office, so I told him not to move. Walked into the store, opened the case he was standing in front of, took out the puff pastry, put it in the cart and left. Made me crazy!

Then my store started doing curbside pickup and sent me all kinds of $20 off coupons to give it a try. I took them up on it and just never stopped. They have great shoppers and their error rate is pretty much zero.

"To some extent it's an age issue, but mainly it's a priorities issue. I place a high value on the quality, provenance and freshness of the food I put on the table, and always have. I try to buy seasonal produce, the more local the better."

There's a bit of priggish attitude with these comments, as if habits other than this contributor's practices are flippant and sub-optimal.

Australia's north to south length is considerably longer than most other developed countries and offers a greater diversity of growing conditions that most other countries have. From temperate to sub-tropical or even tropical, I'm not sure. Few other countries are like that. The US relies on the relatively close proximity of Mexico and Central America for a much of its produce outside of the growing seasons farther north and requiring hotter conditions. There's no better example than bananas. It's an especially odd comment from a Canadian, whose countrymen and women would have little produce to eat for 6+ months of the year if relying only on local production.

For a significant number of produce products, especially greens, northward of 80% is produced in California. People wanting to eat "local" in the Midwest and East would do without many of these. And, an advantage of modern transportation allows taking advantage of opposite seasonality in the opposite hemisphere. Citrus and apples in the spring and summer, summer produce in the fall and winter from Latin America and South America. If you're avoiding apples from the US, that's fine, then you've chosen to not eat apples for the 6 months of the year local product would be unavailable.

Using shopping time wisely and limiting time spent doesn't imply hasty choices. Whether local and organic produce and other products are desired, it's a matter of what choices are made and what retailers are patronized. In my area, I could drive 45 minutes to get to an egg ranch. Or, I can buy those same eggs in a store 10 minutes away for only about 10 percent more. I have better ways to spend my time than to drive needlessly. Maybe this person's shopping choices are limited.

I follow Dr. Bob Wachter's Twitter for local and general Covid news. He posted the illustrated shopping list his wife sent him to the Farmers' Market with. Seems fitting for this thread ;-)

Amylou, I'm sure it is, just thought it was funny he put them on the floor and not on your table or counter. At least he put the bags under them lol.

Kathsgrdn, I can't imagine not being able to buy single carrots. I cannot abide carrots in those plastic bags.

"There's a bit of priggish attitude with these comments, as if habits other than this contributor's practices are flippant and sub-optimal."

Nothing priggish about it. I merely explained my personal priorities. My comment wasn't nearly as dismissive as yours was about people who "spend more time [shopping] than is necessary or productive for what needs to be accomplished." Who are you to decide for me or anyone else "what needs to be accomplished?"

And as it happens, I developed my focus on fresh and seasonal while living in Europe. The emphasis there was very much on local produce, and hitting the local markets there was a daily habit in most countries. Of course not everything could be fresh or local there and it isn't here: we don't grow mangoes in Victoria. We do get them from Queensland and the NT though. That's not the point. Getting fresh and seasonal when it's available is important to me and if that means a little more time spent on reconnaissance, so be it. You spend your time your way, I'll spend mine my way.

And when I can't get seasonal, well, we do have cold storage systems you know. The local apple harvesting period may only be a few months (and we do grow apples in my neck of the woods), but local apples are available year round in Australia because of sophisticated refrigeration systems. The US uses the same systems, of course: from what I've read, the harvesting period in the main apple-producing states is shorter there than here but you get apples year-round too. I don't know why you would assume we wouldn't.

We also have green houses (as, indeed, does Canada). Oh, and I don't need to drive to the egg farm. I walk to their market stall. Just like I walk to the bakery, the various butcher shops and a rather excellent patisserie. So you don't need to worry about my presumed lack of choices.

I wish my home-grown carrots were sweet as the ones in the stores, usually they aren't. I do like being able to just open my back door, walk a few feet and pull up a carrot or two. I need to perfect my carrot growing, though.

"Nothing priggish about it"

Of course that's your view.

"And as it happens, I developed my focus on fresh and seasonal while living in Europe. The emphasis there was very much on local produce,"

How long did you live in Europe and where?

My experience over a number of years was different. People who live in urban settings (as so many in Europe do) and have the time shop more frequently. Foods contain fewer preservatives and fridges are smaller than in North America. However, supermarkets and megacenters are everywhere, sometimes a bit outside of central city districts, and are very popular compared to the high street- type shops for large shopping trips involving more than a little of this and a little of that. Just as in North America and in Australia.

Beyond a few local seasonal items (strawberries and asparagus come to mind in much of Western Europe) - bananas are from the Caribbean and Latin and South America, many fruits, nuts and vegetables come from fair weather places like around the Mediterranean and much of Africa, the Med part and south to the hotter areas. South Africa is an example for reverse season things. Same supply patterns as North America. Eating "seasonally and always locally" involves sacrifices few find it necessary or desirable to follow, also there as here.

"I don't need to drive to the egg farm."

You're the one that mentioned making a 30 km drive. Was that untrue?

"but local apples are available year round in Australia because of sophisticated refrigeration systems."

Likely from the US or Europe, where apple crops and markets are much larger. If you prefer fresh fruit, apples from storage are unlikely to be satisfactory. It keeps them from spoiling but they're a far cry from fresh.

Canada? I'm willing to bet a a lot of its produce, especially this time of year, comes from distant sources in the US and, when and if only available from farther south, from south of the US's southern border too.

Have a nice day.

Zalco, that‘s hilarious! I try to be as specific and descriptive as possible if I have to send dh to the store. But like Chisue’s dh, mine is also eventually learning where things are at the stores we use.

"Nothing priggish about it"

 "Of course that's your view."  Of course it's my view. That's my point.  I am allowed to express my own views.

BTW, your experience of Europe is similar to mine: they shop more often, and are fussy about where and what they buy. And they do place a much bigger emphasis on seasonality than North Americans do.  

Your understanding of apple harvesting and storage  is simply incorrect. If you eat apples year round  you're not eating freshly picked apples for a good part of that time:  you're eating apples that have been kept in Controlled Atmosphere storage. The US has a picking season that only lasts for about 3 months in autumn. After that you are eating apples that have been in sophisticated, species specific, controlled conditions in which they essentially hibernate. Look it up if you don't believe me. 

Start here:

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2018/11/26/668256349/thanks-to-science-you-can-eat-an-apple-every-day

The apples I buy are stored in similar fashion.  They are Australian products and labelled as such.  

As for eggs, I didn't mention a 30 km drive. I mentioned buying the eggs from a vendor at the farmer's market. He brings eggs to the market every Wednesday. My travelling distance is about 500 metres. All on foot.

@jmm1837, a question for you -- do you get fruits and veggies from Peru or Chile? I see a lot of that in my stores and the produce generally looks very good. So I'm curious if they send produce your way as well as to the US.

(I'm skipping the back & forth between you and Elmer, too predictable to read and I already know who I agree with, lol).

More knowledge from internet searches. Thanks for letting me know when fresh apple season is.

Apple storage isn't a mystery. I prefer fresh apples and I stop buying them a few months after harvest time. There seem to be a few varieties that tolerate storage better (Honey Crisp is one) but most others I've found don't. There's an orchard we go to most years to pick them ourselves, that's fun. Even those at that orchard (which continues to sell them from their own storage facility) decline noticeably a few months after harvest.

We can disagree without being self-righteous about personal habits.

I picked up a few things at Aldi's and Shop n Save today. I have freezers full of meat but l looked. Plenty of fresh meat and different pasta/noddles at both places. Aldi's frozen chicken was sparse though. The only thing I did notice was when I went to grab some Napoxin that the liquid cold meds were almost wiped out at SnS. Weird. Except for the paper products and canned vegs in early 2020 our stores have been always decently stocked.

Did I buy extras? Of course.

Zalco that was funny and a great idea! Usually just before a major holiday, if I’m in the store, I’ll see men or teenagers picking up things for the cook at home. And calling home, but our store is a ”dead zone”. So I’ll try to figure out what they need to get, and coach them a little. I have sent DH a picture of a package that I want, too. ”this one, not any other ones. no they are not the same thing.”

For grocery shopping, DH is very much a gatherer.

We have such different ideas on shopping, and we have both changed over the years. But, as long as he continues to make this kind of impulse buy, I’m happy! (now if only he’d impulse buy new windows so I can trash that stupid 3m film.)

"More knowledge from internet searches. Thanks for letting me know when fresh apple season is."

I have no idea why you constantly disparage knowledge, whatever the source it comes from. I wasn't telling you when the apple season is, by the way; I was explaining to you why both America and Australia have apples available out of season.

Your entire line of reasoning - that if we Australians eat apples year round we must be importing them - was based on a faulty premise. Whether you like out of season apples or not, the fact remains, one can buy apples year round in the US without having to import them from anywhere, even though your harvest season is shorter than ours, and that's because of the refrigeration systems. Why would you think Australia would be any different? Where on earth did you come up with the nonsensical idea that if we want to eat apples year round we need to import them from Europe or the US?

As for the self righteous, that's all on you. Don't presume to tell me how I should allocate my time to achieve what needs to be accomplished, when you have no idea what I want to accomplish in the first place. You do what works for you, but stop assuming that what works for you works for everyone, or even anyone, else.

Have a nice day, eat an apple.

Jmm1837, you gonna let him get the last word in?! Just kidding.

Actually, I'm eating local cherries today -picked up at the weekly market.😋