This Week's Minnesota COVID-19 Supermarket Report

[MineralMan]

We had a blizzard here just before Christmas. By the end of the day on Christmas Eve, St. Paul's snow emergency plan had cleared all the streets, more or less. However, it had rained a bunch before the 6" of snow fell and drifted in the high winds. So, after scraping off the snow, what was left was a bunch of ice. Not good.

However, today, I absolutely had to make it to the supermarket and the bank. I had a check from my primary client that needed to find its way into my checking account, and our grocery list was long. So, I set out at 9AM to run both errands. The bank came first, and the chirpy, smiling young woman at the drive-through window was glad to deposit my check for me. Then it was off on the icy roads to my regular supermarket, which is about four miles from my bank.

Oh, my! Slick streets and a traction control light that kept coming on, along with the thumping of the mechanism. The streets didn't look too bad, but they were as slick as, well, you fill in the rest of that simile. Fortunately, everyone else seemed just as concerned as I was, and maintained good separation and drove very slowly indeed. As is my habit, I begin stopping before I begin going in those conditions.

At the supermarket, the parking lot was almost empty, and so were the shelves inside. Nobody worked yesterday, so the store was full of people frantically trying to restock the shelves. Not too many customers, but everyone was masked up and avoiding close contact almost religiously. I found everything I needed, with a few strategic substitutions and checked out at an empty lane. Very good.

The ride home was as treacherous as the drive to the store, though. The main road I take has a 45 mph speed limit. I lowered that to about 15 MPH, and proceeded cautiously and avoided braking whenever possible. No fun at all, but no close calls, either.

Anyhow, I made it home OK, but vowed to stay there until they get some chemicals on the roads, which may not happen soon, given the budgetary and staffing challenges caused by the pandemic.

[SWBTATTReg]

1. Thanks for your regular Supermarket Reports...I get a kick of reading your reports and ...

surprisingly enough, it actually entertains me despite all of the massive amount of things that all of us surround ourselves with, to entertain ourselves in these days and times. It just goes to show all of us the power of the written word, and that writing today, creatively and with grace and prose, is still a fine art that must be practiced and honed. Best wishes to you and yours for the holidays and 2021.

[MineralMan]

2. Thanks for your kind words.

And for noticing...

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Thanks for the warning.

Not that I can drive my car anyhow; I haven't gone anywhere by car in weeks and now the battery is dead (I should have gone out to start it now and then, but I forgot). I'll have to call AAA to get it going again but I'm in no hurry, obviously. I was going to go out and walk a couple of miles, which I usually do every day, weather permitting - but the sidewalks look bad, too. I saw a couple of people trying to scrape a thick lawyer of ice off the windshield of a car that had been parked on the street for a couple of days. I don't mind snow so much but ice makes winter life so much more challenging, and I'm just glad we don't live in an area where for-real ice storms are common.

[MineralMan]

4. Yes, the sidewalks are a bit slippery, too.

When I blew off the city sidewalks in front of my house and two other adjacent ones, I set the snowblower to leave half an inch of snow on the walks. That way, they're safe to walk on. We're taking our dogs for very short walks right now.

[Greybnk48]

5. We've been spared so far in most of Wisconsin, both cold and snow-wise,

but living where I live, I feel your pain and know how scary and treacherous ice under snow is.

I'm glad you're home safely and restocked! We've been ordering online, and picking up at the store with almost no problems. A few substitutions, but usually perfect.

[Tarheel_Dem]

6. Glad you made it there & back safely. n/t

[Wellstone ruled]

7. Now I remember why we

retired to the Desert South west. Made the Weekly Trip to the Grocery on Wednesday. No Ice scraper or snow brush needed. Had the Sunroof open and the shades on.

Folks were all masked up and respectful of others when it comes to distances. The little Tikes have a way to go yet but,that's like herding Cats. Shelves were in get shape,plenty of inventory. Usually can leave the house and shop and be home with in less than hour. And that includes a brief chat with the Store manager as to how Business is. Ticket totals are way down,shoppers here seem to be stretched. Hunch says,we are in a major financial off the cliff moment.

Anyway,another weekly trip to our friendly Winco was once again achieved without incident.