I wanted to blog about our Coronavirus Covid-19 experience. I know in many years I will forget (hopefully) how crazy these times were. Back in February we had been reading about the virus and we had bought some items at Costco “just in case.” We knew we would be leaving Atlanta in April (that isn’t happening now) and if we still had these “just in case” items we could donate them. We bought canned chicken, rice, canned soup, granola bars and a few other snacks that Costco sells in GIANT quantities.
Then on March 12th, I panicked. Why? We decided to run to Trader Joe’s that night for a few snacks for a movie night. Trader Joe’s was a zoo that night. And most of the food was GONE. Fruits and veggies, bread, frozen food, rice, pasta, sauces and more: GONE. I’ve never seen this before. It was like people were in a total freak out and I didn’t get the memo. So of course I started to freak out, too. We grabbed our snacks and got in line. I asked the cashier if Trader Joe’s was going to be closing and she said “I don’t think so.”
Almost all of the frozen food was gone (see photo above).
Even the frozen pizza section was empty:
Luckily, as the weeks have gone by, Trader Joe’s has been restocked. I actually saw toilet paper and paper towels there this morning for the first time.
I usually go in the morning when the lines aren’t too long. It is still weird that we all wait outside until we are called. And once inside they spray your hands with disinfectant. And you have to take a cart (that has just been washed) so you can return it when you leave for washing and they know someone else can come inside. I think the limit is 50 people in the store and they have exactly 50 carts. The extra carts are all locked up out back.
The line out front – everyone is spaced 6 feet apart or more:
And recently most stores in the area have banned reusable shopping bags. We finally got people to use reusable bags and cut down on plastic and paper bag waste and now that is gone. You now have to leave your reusable shopping bags outside of Trader Joes! You can’t even bring them inside the store:
I just can’t believe my fear started at Trader Joe’s one night. I had been reading the news and following along with the Covid info. But seeing an empty grocery store definitely panicked me. And I haven’t quite been settled since. I look forward to the time when this is all behind us.