Buying Stuff

Need a few things, could use a few others.  With that in mind, I drove to Walmart which seems to have the best price on methylcellulose pills which one of my doctors recommended I ingest two each morning.  I saved a bit over Walgreens, though would have gotten a better price purchasing in bulk online.  Still, with 200 tablets, I should be good through the end of the calendar year.  My supply of fleishig utensils has dwindled.  Walmart seemed a good place to boost the supply.  Their offerings came in two genres, a house brand for minimal cost and Oneida at more significant cost.   The packaging allowed me to touch the metal which was better with the established brand but not three times better.  Yet it lasts forever.  Deferred the purchase.  Later in the day I looked at what Boscov's offered.  Only name brands, three of them.  Oneida too expensive.  Pfaltzgraff an excellent price and reasonably sturdy.  Farberware, my go to for cookware, seemed a little flimsy.  Deferred purchase.  Look online for better price on Oneida.  I have a special guest coming and really need to upgrade the fleishig flatware.  

Some air travel on the horizon.  With the cost of checked baggage approaching excessive, and the TV travel swamis all advising packing light, it seems time to replace my deteriorating carryon.  I looked at what Marshall's had.  And now Walmart.  They come in hard and soft.  If I carry them, they should avoid harsh baggage handlers tossing them to each other while Sweet Georgia Brown plays in their background.  Soft sided allows better cramming.  However, the selection of hard plastic cases exceeds those of soft options, so there must be a reason for this imbalance.  I looked at each.  Some had very low prices, probably for a reason.  Swiss Gear and American Tourister had higher prices.  It's a one-time purchase, with three airplane trips anticipated within the coming twelve months, so getting a known brand may be wise.  I opened a few.  Soft ones suit my packing style better, but maybe my packing style is really as dysfunctional as the experts on TV imply.  Looked at Boscov's later.  Again, divide by costly and cheap.  Once I know what they look like, I could go back online and pick one.

Can't go to Walmart without looking at fishing.  Fall lends itself to some peace and quiet at a pond, even if the fish don't find my lures edible.  Nothing that I wanted to get.  Came home, though, with a poncho to keep in a nook in the car door and with some creme filled chocolate cupcakes with kosher certification that I probably should never eat.

For the most part, if I really need something, it's probably better to get it online as long as the total price exceeds the free shipping minimum.  This may be why there aren't a whole lot of people at Walmart or Boscov's and the amount of merchandise on display seems less than it once was.