I made another grocery and supply run to my local MN Cub supermarket.

[MineralMan]

I got there at 9 AM on this Sunday morning. The parking lot was far from full. Inside, there was no crowd, and there were no lines.

They had plenty of the Purell sanitary wipes in the cart pickup area, which was good to notice. Everyone seemed to be using them, too, which is a good sign.

They're still out of toilet paper and hand sanitizer, of course. Plenty of paper towels, though, and packs of generic, restaurant-style paper napkins, which will do for toilet paper if necessary. I bought a package. If we don't need them, then we'll use them as napkins.

No problems with the foods on my list. I bought four days worth of dinner ingredients, and we already have a couple of weeks of non-perishable food in the pantry closet in our dining room.

I thought I'd see if they had any bleach. Nope. However, in the bleach aisle, there was an ample supply of Clorox Sanitary Wipes - the ones in the pop-up round, tall packaging. I thought that was odd. I guess people went to buy bleach and didn't notice the bleach-based surface wipes. I bought a couple of those.

Over in the Pharmacy area, in the OTC goods aisles, a lot of empty spaces were visible. Cold and flu remedies were pretty much gone, so i guess people think those will be of help if they get the coronavirus. I checked in the baby wipe and diaper aisle, but everything that included any disinfectant ingredients was gone.

The cat litter shelves were also almost empty, which surprised me. Almost, so i bought some, since it was on my list. The cats demand a clean toilet area, for some reason.

Very short lines at the checkout aisles. I heard the checker tell the couple ahead of me that a shipment of paper goods was due this Wednesday. I also noticed that others had bought the generic, restaurant-style napkins. Clever of them. My checker, when I asked how busy the store had been, said, "Yesterday was absolutely crazy, with lines longer than I've ever seen at the checkouts." Since I shop regularly in that store, the checkers all recognize me as the old white-bearded guy who smiles and thanks them every time.

There was no crowding in the store and I didn't hear anyone coughing. I got in, got my stuff, and got out without ever getting closer than about 8 feet from anyone else. I didn't touch my face even once, and carefully sanitized my hands before getting in the car. when I got home, I unloaded everything, wiped down the packaging, and put it all away, and then washed my hands thoroughly with soap and water before coming into my office to post on DU.

Minnesota is up to 21 patients who have been identified as positive for COVID-19. Only 800 people have been tested so far, and all were negative except those 21. No deaths, and most of the cases are recovering at home. So far, all active cases are travel-related or related to someone who had traveled to a hot zone.

And that's the story from St. Paul, MN on this Sunday morning. Since I went early to the supermarket, the liquor stores weren't open, so I'm still out of gin for my gin and tonics. I'll either go out again today, or have a Tito's vodka and tonic this afternoon. We have a full bottle of that.

[Demovictory9]

1. Its almost 9am here

I am heading out to 3 stores.

[beachbumbob]

2. the next run will be more with food and thats coming in 4 weeks when

self-imposed isolation will be the only tact left to stop the spread, and maybe ordered at the state and local level first

[Amishman]

41. That is coming, and sooner than 4 weeks.

My guess is 1-2 weeks before we shut down all non essential services and travel. I just hope we do it soon enough

[beachbumbob]

44. nope be 4 weeks, maybe 6 weeks as we see 2-3,000 americans a DAY dying,

it is coming,

[hlthe2b]

3. I go off hours, but at 6AM in Colorado, KingSoopers (Krogers-owned) was already nearly full.

I decided to wait until the trucks come Monday. I only go now for perishables.

[MineralMan]

5. Interesting. I suppose it's a regional thing at this point.

I often shop at 9 AM on Sundays here, because it's never busy at that time. Minnesotans don't like to shop early, apparently. After Noon, it's always crowded in the supermarkets here.

[Lindsay]

8. In my part of the country

(SW NC) it's church on Sunday morning and Wal-mart after church.

I live in a little town not anywhere near a Wal-mart. There are always a few after-church shoppers at the local grocery store, but I have almost never seen a crowd in that store.

[mercuryblues]

9. Where I live

I don't go anywhere after church gets out. If I want or need anything on a Sunday I go early because once church gets out the stores are a madhouse.

[hlthe2b]

10. That is the typical pattern here too. Thus 6AM crowds on Sundays is highly significant.

[Texin]

55. MM, they're in church until about noon.

[MineralMan]

57. Well, some are, anyhow.

A majority of people, though, do not attend church regularly, here or anywhere else.

[cwydro]

4. Ha, I'll be over for a drink later.

Our liquor stores in NC close completely on Sunday.

I’m more of a wine drinker, but perhaps setting in some booze is a good idea!

[MineralMan]

7. They changed the law here last year, so liquor stores can open

on Sundays. Now, they're working on sales in Supermarkets. A lot of our supermarkets have an attached liquor store, with a separate entrance, already. once the law is changed, people won't have to go out and in again. Just like California, which has had alcohol sales in supermarkets and even chain drugstores for years and years.

[mr_lebowski]

20. Same in AZ ... both CVS & Walgreens w/full liquor like 60 secs from my house ...

It was ... bad for me.

Well, for a while there anyways

[DENVERPOPS]

56. I thought

NC was a dry state???????? Wonder where I got that???????

[Siwsan]

6. It will be interesting to see how supplies are, in a week or so

If this hoarding is going to continue, or peak because people run out of room.

Michigan has 33 identified cases but I don't know if it is for Covid-19 or the coronavirus, or even if there is a test that carves one out from the other. Genesee County, where I live, has no identified cases. I'm still not making many trips outside of my yard. I'll drop off my taxes, tomorrow, and maybe stop at my favorite shop to buy more THC gummies. Then I'm home, for as long as supplies hold out.

Fortunately, I have a big bottle of tonic water, a bag of limes and TWO bottles of gin - one 'Navy Strength' Gin and one Lemon with Basil, which makes a great Martini.

[MineralMan]

11. I expect the hoarding and panic-buying will settle down next week.

However, the supermarket chains' warehouses are probably not fully stocked after the rush. The trucks will roll in, though, I imagine, with fresh stock to distribute.

As far as the coronavirus goes, my wife and I both had chest colds with dry coughs and low-grade febers, but no nasal congestion, back in December. Odds are that was a coronavirus cold, given the symptoms. About half of all colds are caused by some strain of coronavirus, with most of the rest caused by a rhinovirus strain.

I don't have any idea whether any immunity ensues from a recent coronavirus infection. Perhaps some, I would guess, but I don't know.

[hedda_foil]

48. The terms Covid-19 and Coronavirus mean exactly the same thing in today's usage.

Scientifically, there are multiple types of coronaviruses but when you hear or see the term used on air or in print (unless it's a scientific paper) they're talking about the same thing.

[Siwsan]

50. Thanks!

I thought maybe things like the fever and severe breathing issues were a threshold of transition to a more specific diagnosis.

[Chellee]

60. Coronaviris is the virus (specifically SARS-Cov-2), and covid-19 is the disease it causes. nt

[Siwsan]

63. Thank you!

The more we know....Right??

[Chellee]

65. 🙂

[Generic Brad]

12. You can buy hard liquor on Sunday there now?

I moved away from St Paul in 2015. All we could buy on Sunday's then was 3.2 beer in grocery stores. Nice to know they got rid of their blue law.

[MineralMan]

15. Yes. Liquor stores are now open on Sundays.

Still no sales in supermarkets, though.

[sl8]

13. Are you sure that those Clorox wipes are bleach based?

The ones I've seen are not.

[MineralMan]

17. Looking at the label, you're right

The active ingredient is: isopropyl alcohol, and alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride.

The label also says:

• Kills 99.9% of germs that can live on surfaces for up to 48 hours
• Kills 99.9% of Viruses** and Bacteria
• Kills Staph, E. coli, Salmonella, Strep

**Human Coronavirus, Influenza A2 Virus

That'll do, I suppose.

[PatSeg]

24. Yes, that should work just fine

The alcohol should work as well as bleach and without the noxious fumes.

[sl8]

28. Not if it's less than 2%, it won't.

I don't know which particular ones MM bought, but the MSDS for "CLOROX® DISINFECTING WIPES1 – FRESH SCENT" says it contains 0.5% to 2% isopropyl alcohol. CDC recommends a minimum of 60% alcohol, for alcohol based sanitizers.

I know there are other ingredients in the wipes, I'm only speaking to the level of alcohol in them.

[PatSeg]

39. I would hope that when they claim

it kills over 99% of bacteria and viruses, that they have tested it.

[highplainsdem]

14. Napkins and paper towels can clog plumbing and should not be flushed, just as you shouldn't

flush wipes.

[MineralMan]

19. There are other ways to dispose of them, though.

We have a small step-to-open trash can in the bathroom that seals well. However, we also have plenty of TP on hand. Enough to last about a month.

[bronxiteforever]

16. In Pennsylvania here. Made a run at 730 this morning.

Large chain supermarket that closed to stock up over night.
Total of 5 jars of spaghetti sauce in the store. No diced tomatoes.
No toilet paper ( I have a good amount per normal so I was just looking). No paper towels.
Very little cat litter.
Sold out of Cheerios.
Red Meats were picked over but I got fresh fish (yay).

I clearly picked the wrong week to make lasagna!
Also meat guy told me the store was empty at 6am. At 730 it was moderately crowded.

[ProfessorGAC]

18. Similar Trip, But...

Went for pet stuff & juice.
Moderate number of shoppers. TP and PT shelves were BARE! I've never seen a juice aisle like that in any store, ever. The only juices in any quantity was Clamato, which fortunately, is what I went there for. Bought 4 bottles, but I always buy 3 or 4.
The little sanitizer dispenser was full, but I saw limited number of people using it. I used it on way in & out.
No IPA, no sanitizer, no wipes.
But, pet supplies were fully stocked as were canned goods.

[MineralMan]

22. I was surprised to see a pretty good stock of paper towels in

my store. They must have stocked overnight. Most of the shopping carts I looked at, though, had paper towels in them, so it probably won't last.

[ProfessorGAC]

23. I Kind Of Figured That Would Have Happened

They even have a sign at entries saying for now, store is open 8am to 11pm, instead of 24 hours, starting today.
So, they didn't have all night last night and folks might have been grabbing stuff all night, I don't know.
The juice aisle is what really stunned me!

[MineralMan]

30. Well, kids may be staying home and moms like to give them juice.

I don't know. We drink 100% Juice Cranberry (mostly apple juice) in the mornings, but my wife buys giant bottles of it at Costco. I think we still have one bottle left.

I didn't look at the juice aisle, since I never go into that aisle.

[SWBTATTReg]

21. Thanks for the story MM. In MO, things were pretty the same, at the Home Depot you could...

not find sanitizer products or TP of any sort (already stocked so no worries), at the grocery store (Schucks), no problems on getting anything, but I wasn't looking for bleach, toilet paper or anything like that, just food for the 3 dogs. By the way, what is the fascination w/ toilet paper? My other half asked me that. I didn't know the answer. And before you ask, we already had plenty of tp on hand.

All of the checkouts were open (and short lines at each) but it was on a Sat. too, so I can't judge crowds on that (I usually avoid shopping on weekends).

The Gin and Tonic does sound pretty good, I don't blame you. Enjoy.

To all in DU land, be safe and careful, and as I recently seen in a recent DU posting this piece of good advice, act like you have the virus already, this will help frame your mind around this crazy thing going on in our lives, thus when you clean up around yourself, you'll maybe save someone else's life w/o ever knowing it.

[MineralMan]

26. The panic about toilet paper I don't understand.

Bottled water, either. But, those two things always get panic-buying during emergencies for some reason. I don't drink bottled water. Our tap water in St. Paul is just fine. Normally, I buy a 12-pack of Scott 1000-sheet rolls when I'm close to being out. I bought one shortly before this panic-buying, so we're well stocked at my house.

It's the Bandwagon cognitive bias, I think. People see others hoarding toilet paper and bottled water, so they automatically buy some, too. Herd instinct, I suppose. Makes no sense, though.

I just wrote a page for the marketing website of my business partner on panic-buying. It fits right into the topics of that marketing website, which has to do with the neuroscience and psychology of consumer decision-making.

I posted part of that page yesterday on DU:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213095492

[LiberalArkie]

29. From lists of stuff to get before a hurricane. Hence all the bottled water also.

[MineralMan]

31. Exactly. That's what they see people buying after natural disasters,

so they just sort of automatically buy it, whatever the emergency. I wouldn't be surprised if the big box home supply stores didn't sell out of generators, too.

[LiberalArkie]

33. Here in Arkansas we call it "Some one saw a snow flake" as the reason for the full parking lots

and a full store and no buggies. It happens even in the rural mountain areas where people are used to driving through anything.

[MineralMan]

35. Exactly. Even here in Minnesota, where even heavy blizzards are common,

Last edited Sun Mar 15, 2020, 12:50 PM - Edit history (1)

A weather report that includes substantial snow sends people to the stores to stock up for a week or more. Then, even after 16" fell last April, two days later all the streets were plowed and everyone was out doing their normal activities.

We're funny critters. Much of what we do doesn't make much sense.

I bought a 3600 Watt generator about three years ago, when they were on sale at a local farm supply store. After I got it, I put half a gallon of gas in it and fired it up. Then, I let it run all the gas out. I've never started it again, though, so that was a big waste of $250. I'll probably sell it at my next garage sale.

[PatSeg]

40. I lived for awhile in Sacramento, CA

and being from Chicago, we cracked up whenever it rained. Everyone made a mad dash to the grocery store to stock up. We're not talking about severe storms, just plain old rain!

[hunter]

49. Sacramento has a long history of flooding, going back to its founding.

Road closures can cut off entire neighborhoods.

Failures of the intricate levee system protecting the city tended to be quite capricious.

It may be a light rain in the city but if a small amount of warm rain melts huge amounts of snow in the mountains anything can happen.

[PatSeg]

51. That is true

but people in areas that never flooded would still act like there was a blizzard coming. I lived in a suburb of Chicago that flooded frequently, often cutting off access to stores, but we didn't freak out every time it rained. Of course, compared to some of our blizzards, flooding was pretty mild, so I guess all things are relative.

What I do remember about Sacramento was that the weather was usually so mild, that people spent a lot of time outdoors, When the weather didn't allow that, they went into an emergency mindset - go to the grocery store and rent some videos.

[stopwastingmymoney]

25. I went yesterday

Our Trader Joe’s opens at 8 and I got over there by about 9:15

No paper products but everything else was available if a little light.

I’m not usually there in the morning but the crowd was less than I thought it might be.

I chatted with the clerk and he said the shelves were empty the night before.

I also commented when my total came up, I bought some extras (soups, beans, Spaghetti-os) that it was about 50 more than my usual. He said the average ticket has been 150 dollars, much more than normal.

I thanked him for being there and doing such a good job.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

27. I'm awaiting a grocery delivery scheduled for 12:00-2:00 today.

I just don't want to go out to the stores. Maybe I'm overreacting but I'd rather pay a delivery fee than shop right now. I already have plenty of TP (got it at Costco during my normal shopping run a few weeks ago before everyone went nuts) and cat litter. Now I can go into full hermit mode for awhile and finally get some household projects done.

[MineralMan]

32. I think the risk of shopping is still quite low in Minnesota.

I'm taking more precautions than usual, but I'm not all that concerned, really, yet.

We stocked up on non-perishable food before there were any cases in Minnesota, though. We have about a month's worth in the pantry, now. If things go as they usually do, we'll end up donating it all to a food bank drive later in the year. I generally keep that amount on hand, regardless of the situation, just on general principles.

We don't let it expire, though. Off it goes to the food bank well before the expiration dates.

[Totally Tunsie]

68. Another grateful and deserving food drive is the USPS Annual Food Drive.

It's held the second Saturday of May, this year being May 9. Couldn't be easier - just leave your bagged donation at the place you receive your mail, and your Carrier will pick it up.

https://www.nalc.org/community-service/food-drive

[bullwinkle428]

34. Good thing Minnesota eliminated those "blue laws" for Sunday alcohol sales recently...LOL!

[MineralMan]

37. Yeah, but when they hork up a hairball, they just walk away from it,

nonchalantly. Gross. I'm in charge of hairball disposal at our house.

[LiberalArkie]

42. I bought what I thought were alcohol based wipes as they were GermX brand, but

no alcohol it has Benzalkonium chloride.

[MineralMan]

46. That works, too. It's a good disinfectant.

[Freddie]

43. Pennsylvania state liquor stores are closing

Has many in a dither, that’s the last thing I’m thinking about right now. Have about 2 weeks of food here, more if we start dipping into the canned soups and baked beans. About 3 weeks worth cat food and litter, TP, laundry detergent etc.
Are there shortages of diapers? Daughter has 1 big box left for 16 mo granddaughter.

[MineralMan]

45. I didn't mention it, but I did notice that the diaper aisle was looking pretty sparse.

That could be a problem, for sure. for parents.

[Windy City Charlie]

47. Wasn't bad here

I went for groceries this morning about 8:30, as I normally do on Sundays. Parking lot wasn't as full as it usually is. Was able to get some milk, orange juice and whatever else I needed was available. I live by myself so I don't go through supplies like a normal family does, so I've had most of the stuff people are hoarding well before COVID-19 came to be, and I'll be alright on those items for quite some time. I have to say of the people that were in the store, everyone was calm. Based on what I'd be reading and seeing, I was almost afraid to go out this morning, but it was actually a pleasant shopping experience for me.

We'll make it through this, as long as everyone remembers we're all in this together and it's going to take a lot of cooperation from all of us. B

[mitch96]

52. Not too bad in So Fla

I first went to my local chicken/fish monger. They open at 9:30 on sunday. I got there at 9:30 and I was #20 on line!!
There was a palpable anxiety in the store. Eyeballs darting right and left, nervous rocking back and forth. People stocking up on meats and the others wondering if there was gonna be anything left.. They had plenty..
I got chix bones, chix feet and a turkey neck for soup...
Went next door to the veg market and got carrots, celery oatmeal and local fresh flour tortillas..
Publix (our local supermkt) was busy but not nuts. Got onions, some apples and beer. There was PLENTY of beer on hand. No shortage there...
The guy stocking the produce isles said they get shipments every day. No problems...
And so it goes.....
m

[progree]

53. Flush nothing down the toilet other than toilet paper and your own excreta

That's what they keep yammering at us in our townhouse complex, after several very expensive sewer clogs. Also, the Golden Valley City News (MN). Paper towels and napkins and even "flushable" wipes take too long to dissolve.

I'm dreading the inevitable sewer clogs we're going to get where they implore us not to run water or flush the whole damn day until they get it fixed. I suspect it's going to soon get to be as hard to get a plumber / whatever to clear clogs as it is to get a Covid-19 test.

As we learned in the Iraq War -- most Iraqis don't use toilet paper....

[misanthrope]

54. So "Minnesota nice" is more than a marketing phrase

Good to hear civilization still exists in some hearts.

[MineralMan]

58. There are two kinds of "Minnesota Nice."

One is genuinely nice people being nice to other people. That one exists in Minnesota, for sure.

The other one is the passive aggressive Minnesota Nice. That can seem more common than the first one.

The trick is recognizing the difference, since both are much alike on the surface.

[misanthrope]

59. So you're saying it's the Thousand Lakes version of

"Bless your heart"? Plenty of passive-aggressive politeness in the Deep South as well.

[MineralMan]

61. Kinda sorta.

Yes. However, there are many genuinely nice people around, as well. I try not to be cynical about things, so I tend to meet plenty of those here. You can't tell just by looking at folks, though. You have to actually interact with them a bit to find out what they're really like.

For example, we have lots and lots of four-way stop signs at intersections here. There are rules about who goes first if more than one car arrives at the stop sign at the same time. The general rule is that the car to your right goes first. However, due to "Minnesota Nice," it's more likely that there will be four cars at the intersection, with all four drivers signalling, "No, you go first." It can be a problem at times. The other problem with that is that you can't ignore the fact that one of the drivers might not bother to stop at all at the intersection. So, caution is needed.

But, hey, who's in a hurry, anyhow. No, you go ahead...

[MineralMan]

62. Well, I'm sure those people mean well...

[Hekate]

64. Thanks to you, I just rediscovered my stash of Clorox wipes in the pop-up container. My husband...

...instantly recognized what it was, said he had one in "his" bathroom, and brought it out to show me. There it was, labeled (as I usually do with packs from Costco) 1/5, which means 1 of 5. So, I now have 2/5 on my sinkshelf in the kitchen, ready for deployment.

Thanks to both of you gentlemen.

[gldstwmn]

66. If everyone begins using napkins and

paper towels in lieu of toilet paper our pumping stations will clog.

[progree]

67. Golden Valley, MN, Lunds & Byerlys -- pretty good, but some things out

Last time I was at a grocery store before today was March 10 530p at HyVee's, New Hope. Everything was normal -- I didn't notice anything being out, number of shoppers was average.

Then today (3/15) at Lunds & Byerlys in Golden Valley around 600p -- I was shocked at all the produce available, it looked like EVERYTHING was in abundance. But as I shopped, I noticed:

# No carrots at all except for a few bags of those peeled 1" long things.
# No potatoes except maybe 5 bags of mini-potatoes (about the size of cherry tomatoes). Do people really peel those things -- it would take about half an hour to peel a pound of those. I always buy the biggest potatoes there are to reduce the time spent peeling them
# No bananas. Zero
# No rice except some of that stuff in boxes
# Frozen vegetables -- almost none left
# Canned tuna - to get it in water (rather than oil), I had to settle for the 6 oz size (I prefer the 11 oz size)

Mercifully there were some raw dry beans, not a lot, maybe 15 one pound packages. I took 3.

Bread was a little low, but I got my usual brand.

Milk, buttermilk at normal levels. Ditto breakfast cereal

I forgot to look for toilet paper.

I was expecting a lot worse on Sunday at 6pm. If I'm really hoping to find some stuff I really want to stock up on, I will visit when it opens at 6 am (It is closed from midnight to 6 am).

Oh, there was no crowd -- I'd say its about as many people in the store as one would normally see Sunday afternoon. Parking lot looked normal too. No screaming matches or hair pulling.

I thought you might be interested in what it's like on the other side of the river. You probably know that Golden Valley is a fairly high median income suburb of Minneapolis, and that Lunds and Byerlys is an upscale grocery chain. Crowd-size and availability might be different at average-cost and low-cost chains.