Blessings, Darlings!
Have you noticed what is happening with food costs? They have jumped incredibly over the past year or so for some items. Fruits and veggies have taken the largest jump - according to the government. But let me tell you, meat prices have soared ... but the govt doesn't acknowledge that, their food price formulas assume that you'll switch from filets to burgers so they don't really figure it in.
Last weekend we did a rare trip to a large-ish Oriental food store. The chain has some superstores, but this wasn't one of them (alas, I LOVE their superstores). We needed a few speciality items, and we looked at prices on items that are usually at great prices there.
Oh, the trauma!
The frozen sliced beef, traditionally $2.99/ lb, was $5.99/ lb. The galbi (thin sliced beef flanken short ribs) was also at $5.99/ pound. The whole beef tenderlois, which was $5.99/ pound last year, is $6.99/ lb now.
I was in shock. I left disappointed. And without the soy sauce I was after, for they were out of the brand I like.
Meanwhile, the price of grains has dropped. I've not been to the feed store to get any 50 pound sacks of wheat or corn lately, but two years ago wheat was way up near $20 for that sack. Since then the price of wheat on the Kansas Board of Trade has dropped by more than half.
So it looks like I'll be increasing my stores of grains this summer (I don't know what's up in beans yet), and seeing what happens with all other prices. Possibly meat prices will drop next year, following the drop in grain prices, but since I get most of my beef from private sales that won't affect me much. I AM glad I put in an extra 6 tomato plants, but I'll really have to start more green beans than I had planned.
And the deep snow over the winter seems to have reduced the bunny and chipmunk populations to the point that no one is eating my blueberry bushes, and the birds haven't hit them yet. We might actually get some blueberries this year!
How does your garden grow?
Frondly, Fern
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I got eight pounds of white rice, three loaves of bread, four bananas and a homemade slice of vegan cake for free from a friend this past afternoon. Usually I make do because I can get a pound of barley for 99¢ and two pounds of brown rice easily for $1.49! I can't afford to stock up, right now, sadly. I'm sure I could get a better price. Lentils are a buck a pound as well, not too bad, and I'm finding that veggies actually are affordable if one goes to the Chinese market.
ReplyDeleteBeing dirt poor is teaching me much about shopping frugal! I won't ever forget these lessons. Hopefully I'll have enough money for great feasts in the future, since I've learned to cook on a budget.
It helps that I only eat backyard eggs given to me as a gift; never do I buy eggs at the market! My herbivorous diet saves lots of money considering how ridiculous the price of a piece of salmon is. If I ever eat fish again (five years without it), I'm catching it myself! If I ever eat pork (seven years without that), I'll be hunting wild boar with a spear.
Trying to buy medicinal marijuana on the other hand is difficult considering my lack of money, but getting higher quality herb helps. Swag isn't worth a penny. I cannot eat much solid food without sinsemilla. Oh, and thanks for asking! My garden is well... beet leaves, lemons, orange mint, berggarten sage, apricots later on in the summer, lots of catnip all year... wish I could get cannabis seeds or cuttings though!
Peas, and hail Thor!
The rain has been good to us!
My garden is doing better than I'd expected, despite me planting a few things way too early (especially tomatoes, which are now bouncing back nicely), and some highly unusual heavy rains & hail for this time of year in the metro area (Portland, OR). It looks like -- fingers crossed! -- I'll have a huge crop of peas, potatoes, and several kinds of squash. Already harvested lots of radishes & spinach, with lots more growing. Not sure how well the onions & broccoli are doing, but the herbs are growing nicely. Since this is the first year I've had any success at all with gardening (aside from tomatoes that grew like mad last year, which was a hot summer), I'm pretty happy.
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