At these prices, I should be skinny (Part 1)
I've been in denial about the rising price of food. I flat-out refused to buy a 20 lb. bag of rice for $7, thinking somehow that my one man boycott would bring the industry to its senses. I remained steadfast...for about a month. By that time, I had to shell out $11 for that same stupid bag of rice. Eleven bucks! On sale. That's enough to make people go up in arms. (Oh wait, they did.) And have you seen the price of meat? Ninety-nine cent hamburger used to be my fallback when I couldn't find another meat at a price I wanted to pay. Now hamburger, only 80% lean, mind you, is practically a luxury at $2.99 on sale.
Let me share with you my internal reference prices compared to today's sale prices and you'll see why my poor little pake heart breaks every time I shop:
Let me share with you my internal reference prices compared to today's sale prices and you'll see why my poor little pake heart breaks every time I shop:
| My price | Item | New SALE price | Sticker shock increase | Comments |
| $5.00 | 20 lb. bag rice | $12.00 | 140% | |
| $0.59 | lb of papaya | $1.25 | 112% | |
| $3.25 | gallon of milk | $5.50 | 69% | |
| $0.99 | lb of hamburger | $2.99 | 202% | |
| $5.00 | 20 lb. bag rice | $12.00 | 140% | |
| $299 | R/T airfare HNL/SFO | $490 | 64% | Add two kids and a spouse and the weekend vacay went from $300 to $1960. More if we want to bring clothes. |
| $25 | tank of gas | $75 | 200% | Had two kids and now drive a minivan instead of a sedan, so it's not exactly comparing apples to apples, but you feel my pain, right? |
| $1.59 | can of spam | $1.79 | only 13% | Good ol' SPAM, like potatoes, is an "inferior good," which is less in demand as consumers have more $ to spend. |
Now you know why I'm not skinny... I stay at home (because I can't afford gas), watch TV all day (because the price of cable stayed the same) and eat SPAM (because I can still afford it)!
posted by kawehi at
1:34 AM
2 Comments:
a few weeks ago, i was craving kim chee fried rice so bad. so i got up, drove my okole to the store and ended up paying 8 dollars for a small little jar of kimchee. i almost threw the jar in disgust. and it wasn't even good kimchee.
then i went over to the "asian food" aisle. oyster sauce, which i used to get a big bottle and pay 99 cents for in hawaii...cost me $3 for a bottle that was the size of a shoyu holder. i almost cried right there.
when i went to checkout the lady looked at the kimchee and oyster sauce like i was a crazy oriental lady. by this time, i wanted to punch her.
hard to be an asian on the mainland, huh? three bucks for a tiny oyster sauce? eight bucks for kim chee? at that price, it better have been made by mama-san just for you!
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