Thursday 4 February 2010

KEEP THE ELEPHANT ON A CHAIN

Do I use the Supermarkets? Yes! I am not going to be a Martyr for my principles. I ‘use’ the Supermarkets in a way that makes me feel like I am in charge.

I use Tesco like a Whore! I don’t submit to Tesco and slavishly buy all of my groceries there. I have become a dab hand at shop hopping over the last twenty years because I have had to be.

 Bringing up children in an area where the economy is stunted & 70% of the town’s population are living in poverty makes you into a bit of a Gleaner.

Tesco get the business of feeding my dogs and wiping the bottoms of all the family.

 They do a Tesco Value 12 pack of loo roll for £1.32p and it doesn’t make your bum sore.

 They do a value complete dog food at £1.12p for 2.5 kilo’s. That feeds a Rottweiler & three Terriers for four days!

 I buy Tesco value cider at £1.29p for 2litres. It’s not drain cleaner either.

Tesco only then get my business for what I cannot get elsewhere at a better price.

It's worth going into Tesco just to see what they have made the poor sods who work there wear today.

Aldi have been doing well out of me recently. I am nowhere near self sufficient in veg yet & Aldi have been using fresh veg as a loss leader.

 The prices have been shockingly low on British grown produce such as spuds, leeks, carrots, cabbage, & swede. I have actually felt guilty skulking out with it because I know that I am contributing to the collapse of British producers in buying it.

I really do intend to stop doing that by practicing what I preach and growing more veg & trading with other growers but for now, it’s simply economics.

I would dearly love to be able to say to you that I go to the local Farmers market to buy my veg but there isn’t one.
 The people in my little town are apathetic and will not support one. It’s been tried but it bombed big time. I have to say that I was shocked because the first attempt was hot on the heels of Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall and a few others who had offered inspiration.

I don't mean to sound unkind about the locals when I say that they are apathetic. Perhaps it was a little unfair. It may have been the case that the produce at the local market was too expensive for the locals and they were forced to carry on using the cheapest option, which at the time was Kwiksave.

The town is all but dead on the High Street apart from Charity shops, another indicator of a sick town. They of course have hardly any overheads. Free staff, free rates etc.

The people of my little town keep them very busy and as the town recently was the recipient of European grant money, a combination of busy charity shops and a lovely bright facelift for the town belies the truth of its beleaguered economy.

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