The OTA Thread Episode VII

[I pwnd U]

lol Well said MMO. Food comes from the same place. Doesn't matter where you buy it from (usually).

I'm sleepy...

[cosyfiep]

no it doesnt...there are PLENTY of local grocery stores that stock locally grown produce. That tomato you get from your walmart was picked about a month ago-GREEN eg no where even close to being ripe--it was dumped into a box with tons of other green tomatoes to be transported to dozens of places---and still very unripe when you get it. Locally grown produce usually sits for maybe a week or two--its picked when its ready to be picked and allowed to ripen naturally.
Yes junk like frozen tv dinners are the same where ever you go--as is the toilet paper and breakfast cereals junk food things.
I am talking about food--not over-processed, sugar and god-only-knows-what-else-added crap we are calling 'food', not the stuff where you cant even read half of the label since its all chemicals.

I enjoy cooking, I like to have fresh ingredients--not frozen over processed mush. (if it has more than 4 ingredients and the first one is NOT what the produce is supposed to be--then its junk). Americans eat way too much chemical crud, too much over processed muck, and then we wonder why we have one of the highest rates of obesity, and heart disease in the world.

so yes, that is why I wont buy 'food' from walmart. (not to mention that some of that stuff is already passed the 'date to use by' before it even gets to the shelves).
I wont buy cheese from a shoe store, I wont buy my milk from jcp, so I wont buy food from a 'big box' store---yes REAL food is more expensive, but its also better for you.

[I pwnd U]

Depends on where you live. I live near a County Market whose prices are usually on average $1-2 higher than Wal-Mart. They have locally grown produce ONLY when it is available. Then when it isn't the growing/picking season it is shipped in from elsewhere. Either way you spin it I'm cheap. So ya...

I bought soup from an sports store. It was yummy though a bit chewier than I anticipated...

[MMO Player]

I think the real issue is cosy doesn't like Walmart.

She is not alone in that aspect, many people who shop at Walmart don't care for the store. The chain has the bad rep of closing down all the local mom and pop shops. The Walmart in my town came in about 20 years ago and was as she said, just a department store selling clothes and such. Then about 6 years ago they expanded and made it a "super store". Now they sell everything from food to haircuts.

What really disturbs me more than Walmart is amount of Gold buyers and pawn shops that have opened up. My friend jokingly refers to the used video game shops as the stolen game stores. We never had so many people holding so many cardboard signs before either. I keep seeing tag team pan handlers on the same corner so business must be good for them.

I can't blame everything on the mall or super stores. The local politicians here think the way to make money is more bars.

[cosyfiep]

that could very well be....not a fan of big box stores...jack of all trades master of.....hiring illegals....
stuff may cost more at a specialty store, but the quality is usually better (and I wont go buying my meat from a shoe store or my shoes from the 7-11).

the last 2 walmarts (in different states even ) that I went to were run down---I had thought it was just the ones here, but when I visited my mom and sister in florida it was pretty much the same thing, different state. (I used to go to target ...I worked at one in grad school....and there was one next to the grocery store I used to go to--but since we changed stores, we stopped going, and the kmart by us closed down completely).
big box...not good thing says anti-martha

[I pwnd U]

Surprisingly 3 out of the 4 Wal-Marts I have gone to around here are really nice and not run down. Which is surprising considering locations. But oh well.

Productivity. Yup. I was Mr. Productivity today. And I continue to be. Have to go put the steering column cover back on soon.

[MMO Player]

@I pwnd U: What exactly are you doing to your car?

@cosy: The Walmart has been here less time than the Meijers store yet the difference is highly noticable and not just in upkeep. Walmart has 4 to 6 working electric wheelchairs if you are lucky to find a charged one. Meijers store has 12 to 16. If I go to Walmart late at night 1 or 2 lanes are open and day time lines are very long. Meijers has all the "robot" lanes open late at night and about 30 to 40 lanes open during the day. Carts at Walmart looks pretty shabby and Meijers looks brand new.

I really prefer Meijers but live closer to the Walmart. So I go to Meijers for the big cart load and Walmart for grabbing a few items. Both are large department/grocery stores or what I call a super store. For the best prices I go to Aldis but they are a generic 'no thrills' store.

So I agree with cosy on this, your shopping experience is vastly improved by store quality.

[I pwnd U]

The cover of my steering column was a bit broke. Where it screws into the column, the holder had broke. So I had to put it back together so that when I hit bumps I don't have to listen to it bouncing around.

No Meijers around here. Though they are up by my gf's parents. That is where they go because the closest Wal-Mart has been over run by hispanic's...

[cosyfiep]

its good to know that I am not the only one who needs to know spanish to go to walmart.

our abs light is on in our toyota...guess its time to change cars and spend lots of money on it.

[I pwnd U]

Ya, my gf's family avoids that place because of that. Just dumb. You are in America, speak English in public and Spanish at home.

My gf has been driving without ABS in her car for a while now. ABS is nice, but not needed.

[cosyfiep]

yeah...but--if anything happens.......better to be safe than taken to court. (and its in need of some other services, so might as well get the lot done at the same time).

you must remember that english is NOT the official language of the usa (not to mention most of them CANT speak english). we have NONE. so if they want to speak giberish they can, and since our political machine barely does anything without having their palms greased-----
so best to learn spanish (or move to canada and learn some french).

[I pwnd U]

Just cause more and more people don't speak English doesn't make it our "official" language. Though it is British English, definitely American-English. We do weird things for sure... (Politics! Tread lightly)

DAMN IT PEOPLE! Put a freaking MUFFLER on your car. Especially if you are leaving BEFORE 7am... Not everyone is awake before then. (I am but others aren't)

[cosyfiep]

hahahahaaaa....my neighbors car is SOOO loud, he leaves at precisely 5:12am...yeah he wakes me up....and yeah he has a muffler--but it does nothing, you have to wonder if there are noise laws. (and in my fair city, since we need to get a permit to get a new water heater, why they dont enforce a noise level law---)...

I can remember when I visited Miami back in the 80's....the city's official language is not english (yes they did pick one)....its SPANISH.....you must be bi-lingual (back then at least) to get a job.....other city's have followed suit. (cant remember them right now). according to the 2000 census more than half of the people speak spanish as their first language!---probably closer to 3/4 now.


but heck, MOST of the signage in the usa is in english, you would think if you wanted to live in a foreign county (legal or illegal--and illegal more so) that you would learn the language of the LEGAL inhabitants....not so in the usa. sigh

[MMO Player]

Now I have issues when it comes to language. No surprise there huh?

I don't believe in making fun of people's language of origin there is just no call for it. We live in (well at least I do) a country that prides itself on free education (which is billed to us yearly)... where was I?

We take pride in education but only teach the one required language. Why is the second language always Spanish when you live closer to Canada, where the primary language is French?!

Regardless of what you may have read in a hoaxed email about voting. A little known fact about the US, English was NOT the "national language" until a vote passed by congress May 18, 2006! That's right we had no national language all those years.

Quite frankly I am impressed by multilingual people like the Chinese who take the time to learn even broken English. I am deeply embarrassed by my fellow countrymen who spout off about people who can't speak English when they say things like, dis and dat, dees and does, and yous guys.


------------------
Insert uberkool signature here
MMO Player

[cosyfiep]

its still not ...they are still voting on this:

On March 17, 2011, Representative Peter T. King (R-NY.) introduced House Bill H.R.1164, a bill to amend title 4, United States Code, to declare English as the official language of the Government of the United States.

so the usa still has no official language, however, we do have a 'national' language...which most government documents et.al. are done in---the constitution never had a part saying english is our language.../facepalm
there are 4 or so other bills stuck somewhere in the congress that also have this official language tucked in--none have passed as of august 2011.

though in good news:

As of April 2011[update], out of 50 states, 27 established English as the official language, including Hawaii where English and Hawaiian are both official.

(all quotes from the wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languag..._United_States)

ugh....
when I lived in japan I expected to have japanese spoken to me, not english--it was nice when I found english speakers.....the only times I pressed for english was in the schools where the 'english' teachers could barely speak the language they were supposedly teaching! ...I spoke ONLY english at those times to help them improve their language skills (and the fact that I was only there for 2 years, they would be teaching for many many more).
when I visit foreign countries I expect to hear the local language--not english (unless its the local)...I dont expect to be spoken to in english for the most part.....why do those who visit here or live here expect their language to be spoken to them????

when my grandparents immigrated here--they learned english, yes they spoke swedish at home, but out in public they spoken english!

[Unlucky Slayer]

Getting Dangerously close to politics.

[cosyfiep]

sorry slayer....but at least we arent talking about the weather for a change!

(though it is getting pretty cool out--only in the 50's and 40's over night....time to turn my bedroom fan off I guess.....)

[Rocky Raccoon]

Well I find talking about weather very interesting (sorry MMO). We have a front moving in from the west which will merge with tropical moisture from Florida to give us 2+ inches of rain tomorrow.

[Unlucky Slayer]

Rather talk the weather than politics. Yay Colder Weather!

[cosyfiep]

lol

I like it a bit cooler, but not cold--so fall is ok...now the wind, you can keep.

onto food: salad planned for dinner--gotta get back to eating good stuff instead of junk (so saith my last blood tests)....