And just exactly what would you expect

when you start calling the day after Thanksgiving "Black Friday?"

via Drudge which (who?) I know deals in hyperbole, but still.

By the way, the man who was punched in the face by a rabid line-cutting shopper had a Texas concealed carry permit and will not be charged.

Made in Mississippi

SuperTalk Mississippi is a state-wide network of commercial talk-radio stations. There are very few nationally syndicated shows (Dave Ramsey being the notable exception). Some of the shows, for example SuperSwap, and the Friday evening broadcasts of high school football, have no political agenda. Those that do are right-leaning-- it is Mississippi-- but for the most part are open-minded and try to be fair.

This morning while listening to the Gallo Show, I learned that SuperTalk has a new sponsor, Liberalism101 Shirts located in Brookhaven, Mississippi. 

Support Mississippi. Buy this shirt. Or buy a different one. They are only $20.

Liberalism101 Shirts is just some folks who dreamed up a business while sitting around the kitchen table.

"Strategic Shopping": January is National Oatmeal Month!

Stock up!

February is National Canned Food Month. March Peanut Butter. April... hum... .

From Strategic Shopping: A Month-by-Month Analysis by M.D. Creekmore posting at The Survival Blog Dot Net.

There are not very many good grocery sales in April—think self-denial. No body wants to advertise indulgence during Lent.

There are some good non-grocery items on sale in April. Daylight Savings Time brings sales on batteries, smoke detectors, and carbon monoxide monitors.

You can pick up hams half price, on sale for Easter dinner. Pick up a few because hams tend not to go on sale very often. April and December are the two months when you can find half price ham. So make sure you buy enough to last you through Christmas.

The premise of Creekmore's post is simple, "By knowing what goes on sale when, you can save a lot of money at the grocery store."  

Remember that crappy old Food Shopper's Creed?

The Cook's Creed

I did not want the year to end before I'd shared "The Cook's Creed" from Meta Given's The Modern Family Cookbook published in 1958.

Food Shopper's Creed here.

Meal Planner's creed here.

Fredericksburg, Texas USA

Felix Reinbach

As I begin to compose this post, there are fewer than 14 hours until we will depart The BIG Sovereign State of Texas and make our way back to The Farm in rural Mississippi.

It's been a delightful trip. To channel some old Steve Martin from an old SNL, if I had one wish that I could wish this holiday season, it would be that all people had families and families in-law as engaging, giving, opinionated, and wonderful as mine. Corny but true.

Today Mr. Big Food's Family and we traveled to Fredericksburg, in the Texas Hill Country. We found a place to park-- a non-trival matter-- and had a nice lunch of German fare. We then did some window shopping, and took in a show. 

By the way, I have a new camera! Below the fold (i.e., click on "keep reading) and you will find some photos-- some with commentary-- of Fredericksburg, Texas.

[I'll post the color commentary of last night's dinner at Mr. Big Food's Cousin's Wine|Beer|Cigar Bistro when I'm back on The Farm.]

Stretching the Food Dollar

Meta Givens recommends "memorizing this brief chapter."

From The Modern Family Cookbook (1958).

I think The Shopper's Creed speaks for itself. Give it another read.

The Creed begins a four page chapter devoted to helping "you to become a better manager," because in 1942 (when the book was first published) running a home was a job that a woman was expected to take pride in doing well. There are six tips for stretching the food dollar. 

"Make it yourself!" cautions that 

It is poor economy to buy cooked meats, cakes, cookies, jellies, preserves, pickles and the like.

Not only are you paying for the food, but also for someone else's time and labor.

"Shop around" notes that

By buying each food where it is least expensive and best for the price, you will save pennies every day-- and if you take care of the pennies, the dollars will last much longer.

Thrift.

"Cash-and-carry"-- Well, the days of credit-and delivery grocery stores are long gone. But I'll have you know the fellows at the Piglet still take our groceries to the truck for us! The folks at Supercenter don't do that!

Keep reading for more good advise.

The Food Shopper's Creed

From Meta Given's The Modern Family Cookbook, copyright 1942, 1953, 1958, published by J. G. Ferguson Publishing Company, Chicago

So you don't need to click to enlarge...

The Food Shopper's Creed

The health of my family is in my care, therefore--

I will base my market list on meals planned according to the "DIET PATTERN" p. 4

I will choose foods of quality and in quantities that will provide the nutritive elements planned for.

Stretching the food dollar is part of my responsibility, therefore--

I will take advantage of what the seasonal markets offer in variety, quality, and price, to the end that I may exchange my dollar for maximum values.

My family's enjoyment of food is my responsibility, therefore--

I will use the possibilities of the market to provide variety, excellent quality and novelty within the limits of my food budget.

Purchasing food is an important link in the business of feeding my family, therefore--

I will make every effort to weight possibilities offered by various markets, by various foods, and the forms in which they are offered from season to season, to the end that I may take pride in a job well done.

Garden by the numbers

Citation information unavailable

I'm sorry I don't know where I got this chart from because I'd like to go back and read the article it accompanied. 

It is true that you can save a lot of money by growing your own fruits, vegetables, and herbs. But it strikes me that the information here is presented by someone who hasn't a clue. 

Let's look first at the information in the caption. The caveat that "you'll need to buy supplies like gardening tools and mulch" is true enough but certainly an understatement, especially when you factor in the supplies you'll need to "preserve extra produce for the cold season." I've always contended that you don't need nearly as many gardening tools as garden tool producers would have you believe. This doesn't keep me from buying them-- but all you really need is a shovel, a hand trowel, and a water hose. I see, too, that the cost of water hasn't been factored into the equation. Depending on where you live, and what sorts are available, mulch can get rather pricey-- and if you don't have a truck to haul it in... . 

You will not be getting much mulch into a Tata Nano. And no, I will not let you borrow my truck.

Taking Stock

Each year, about this time of year, we take stock of what remains of the harvest and various collections of other edible things. 

We took stock of some frozen peppers.

This is a fine opportunity for me to divert from the main topic to comment on laziness. Mr. Big Food has a day-job. In fact, for the past 1.5 years, Mr. Big Food has had 1.5 day-jobs. And he still manages to manage our dining experiences quite nicely. And keep the paths cut. And keep up with Big Food. And do his own laundry. And stay abreast of SEC and BCSwhatever. And bring in firewood. And Bar-B-Que 260 pieces of chicken. And entertain me. The reason he's able to do all of these things is because he's organized. As any student of biology can tell you, it takes energy to stay organized. 

6CO2 + 6H2O [in the presence of radiant energy, i.e., sunlight] -->

C6H12O6 + 6O2

So when I hear people say they don't have time to cook at home or have a garden or put up pickles, I just point to Mr. Big Food and say, "Get your lazy butt out of your chair, get organized, and get 'er done." (I say this to myself quite frequently.)

The equation above describes photosynthesis, the process by which green plants convert the radiant energy of sunlight into a form of energy that can be used to maintain the organization we call "life."  When we take stock, we quantify how much energy-- and other good stuff like vitamins & minerals-- we have stored to maintain our lives over the winter.

Taking stock is fun, although it does take a while. No matter how well we try to keep track of what we're putting up while we're putting it up, some things inevitably slip through the record-keeping cracks. For example, we discovered that we have enough frozen whole tomatillos stored away to last a lifetime.

From Nutrientfacts.com; Who knew tomatillos were such a good source of vitamin D?

As I mentioned, taking stock does take some time. ...

One potato, two potato... .

One of the BIG irritations in my life is the "less than 10 items."

The following rant is prompted by

I’d much rather use self-checkout than wait in the express line behind people who don’t understand the concept of an item limit.

from Supermarket Self-Checkouts Being Replaced With People at Outside the Beltway as seen on Instapundit.

This is going to be a rant. But it might be fun.

There is no such thing as LESS than 10 items. The number of individual items that are smaller than 10 are counted in whole numbers: 1-2-3... 9. When you count such items-- those that we've already stipulated can only be counted by whole numbers, -- "equal to," "more than," and "fewer than ten," are the only grammatically correct ways to make comparisons.

"Fewer" modifies a noun that can be subdivided into whole number increments, even though those increments could be further divided into smaller whole number increments. I have one cup of sugar. You have two. You have more than I. I have 1 1/2 cups. You have 3/4 C. I have twice as much sugar as you do.

On the other hand... 

"Lesser" modifies things that really are not describable in terms of whole numbers."This glass is less full than that one."

I do not expect this blog to get a whole lot of traffic. But I do hope that some who I cajole into stopping by, will. In this post, I'm talking to you.

I know I've asked a lot of you over the years. Thank you. If you could get the fewer than/lesser than thing and spread it around, I would appreciate it. I'm not asking that be grammar Nazis, just that you help me maintain some standards. :-)

Thanks!