Posted on 11/28/2011 1:37:21 PM PST by Nachum
At the stroke of midnight, a growing number of Americans are lining up at Walmart not to cash in on a holiday sale, but because they’re hungry. The increasing number of Americans relying on food stamps to survive the sluggish economic recovery has changed the way the largest retailer in the United States does business. Carol Johnston, Walmart’s senior vice president of store development, said that store managers have seen an “enormous spike” in the number of consumers shopping at midnight on the first of the month. That’s typically when those receiving federal food assistance have their accounts refilled each
(Excerpt) Read more at rockcenter.msnbc.msn.com ...
To this day I hate powdered milk. Can't even stand the smell of it. I couldn't wait to get to the farm for real cow milk.
This story repeats practically every month. I saw it a few times this past year.
Build all the FEMA camps around all the Chinamarts.
Pisses me off to be standing at the seafood counter to buy whatever is on sale when a pack of EBT card holders come in and get $30 worth of crab legs each. (I see them “pay” at the register).
You are obviously a very strong, independent, and intelligent Mom, Lysie. I can only imagine your now grown son is in awe of what you have accomplished.
These folks could be eating very well ALL month IF they used coupons. My food budget is miniscule because of coupons. Okay, I have a new eating system where I am losing weight by going to the buffets but I also use coupons at the buffets as well. For just a little eight bucks and a coupon, one can fill up at Golden Corral.
They bought a brand name prepackaged string cheese instead of cutting up a cheaper hunk of cheese.
They bought individual containers of yogurt instead of either a large carton or making it at home. It takes all of one brain cell to make and no special ingredients, not even special starter.
That jar of Vlasic pickles is pricey. I haven’t bought Vlasic in years.
Blue Chee$e? Really?
They could have saved more money getting the Great Value noodles in the bag rather than the boxed name brand.
There’s a $touffer’s box of something in their nice looking kitchen. Also in their kitchen are nice salt and pepper shakers, a new something appliance and maybe a microwave. Ok, so they have an old crockpot which is the exact model I’m using tonight for chili so I know it’s from about the 80s. So, maybe those s&p shakers and the white appliance were gifts but they aren’t hurting by a long shot and they’re clueless on budgeting.
When I was a kid we ate wood and rocks for breakfast.
(OK, that was an out-and-out lie. My father was a successful businessman, and I ditched school for lunch so I could have Filet Mignon)
I need to learn to be more coupon conscious myself.
Their house burned 2 years ago. Before her husband went to jail, he worked in a factory making 12 something an hour. Stopped by over the weekend, noticed they have satellite tv, a 47ish" flat screen tv, 2 pc's (one with touchscreen capabilities) and 2 lap tops, plus hs internet.
While hubby's in jail, he needs blood pressure medication. Before he went in, it cost them $30 a month. Now they have to buy it through the jail at $100. She was whinning about the cost and how she couldn't afford it. I was going to help out and buy it, until one of the daughters was on Facebook bragging about the matching tatoos her and her sister got.
Family doesn't have money for dads meds, but there's money for tats.
By the way, I'm the one they call "the rich cousin". I make WELL OVER $12 an hour, and usually work 50-60 hours a week. My cousin is unemployed getting $100 a week from the state and complains about having to go to job training. She has every excuse why she can't make it to work or training, but has no reasons why she has to work.
My cell phone is the most basic phone I can get. I finally got my second computer, after my first one bit the dust after 10 years (and it was a business machine that came off lease). Still haven't bought a flat screen tv, though I've been looking at 32" (it'll fit in the entertainment center).
I call BS. In MIssouri, FS allotments are doled out based on birth date of applicant and alphabetical order of last name. Not on the first of the month.
http://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/ebt/issuance-map.htm
Holiday season = heartstring-tugging season
Sorry, but somehow, that doesn't sound quite right to me. While I could be wrong, I'd expect that medically-required BP meds would be covered by the state for prisoners. (You might want to confirm with the jail that he has to pay for his own meds.)
Typical MSNBC: food stamp recips aren’t government welfare dependents, they’re “hungry.” In the real world, the fat-to-hungry ratio is probably 100 to 1.
$467 for 4 can be done, just maybe less nicely.
Neighborhood churches might have food pantries, and if the kids are in school, they might be able to get free breakfasts or lunches if they qualify.
If they don't already, they can eat rice instead of potatoes. 50# bag costs about $18 at GFS or Sams Club. A 50# bag is about 7 gallons of rice. Thats 112 cups of uncooked rice. 1 cup of uncooked rice equals 3 cups of cooked rice.
Rice makes a great filler for things like soup. Make a pot of chicken noodle or vegetable or bean soup and add rice to stretch it. Left over rice can be made into rice pudding...YUM!!! (plenty of recipes on the internet for it...I know...) Left over rice can also be made into fried rice, for chinese food.
Instead of chips or pretzels, buy pop corn. A Family Size bag of Tostitos might cost $4.99 (not on sale), a 1# bag of popcorn might cost $2 when not on sale. 1/3 cup of popcorn will pop to a very large bowl, larger than the bag of chips. You'll get about 5 large bowls of popcorn from a 1# bag.
Buy chuck roast on sale, then freeze it. About $2.50- $2.75# on sale.
2# for a family of four. Throw it in a crockpot with an onion sliced up, some potatoes and carrots, and for about $7 you'll have a wonderful meal for the entire family.
Homemade soups are inexpensive to make and when served with homemade bread are a feast (at least for non elitists).
Its the holiday time, Cream Of Mushroom soup will be on sale. Campbells will go on sale for about $.50 a can. There are 24 cans in a flat. Cream Of Mushroom is a staple in my house. Something as simple as a fried hamburger with COM on top can become fancy. Lots of skillet dishes with COM. Want to help your friends? Buy them 2 flats of COM when you see it on sale. Cost you about $50. 48 cans at 1 can a week will last almost a year.
Things like sugar, brown sugar and powder sugar have an almost indefinite shelf life. A 5 gallon bucket and lid from Home Depot is about $3.50. Put a plastic garbage bag in it, and fill it with bags of brown sugar and/or white sugar, when its on sale. Homemade chocalate chip cookies are much better than Chips Ahoy, and way cheaper.
Yes.... a carwash.
Mebbe an Urban legend, but I read of a shopper who was behind a EBT person who tried to buy cat food with the card. When refused, she said "Wait a minute." and came back with a packge of shrimp. The customer behind her almost had a cow.
My youngest and his wife were on hard times for a while, eating ramen noodles and hot dogs for days on end. He visited a buddy and his wife, who are sitting down to a dinner of halibut steak - courtesy of the taxpayer. They also were Section 8 and paid 1/4 the rent my boy did. Those people also worked the churches, going around boo-hooing about no money for electricity or phone, getting bailed out, and using the new surplus for cigarettes. They cycled through every church in the book. My youngest ended up being to the right of Genghis Khan after that episode.
Thank you. Perhaps, I am. Although, sometimes I wonder. LOL
I understand what you went through. I was raised the same way. We were not entitled to dislikes.
My son grew out of not liking the crust by the age of 3.
Are we related? I had an aunt who did the same thing. :-)
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