I have never been a big fan of grocery shopping. In particular I don't like it when you cannot figure out what something costs while it is still on the shelf.

As for the grocery club cards, that is there way of tracking exactly what you buy. Into the computer goes your card number and name. They could tell you at the end of the year exactly how much beer you buy, for example. In my case, it would be cat food.

Since they encourage EVERYONE to have one of these cards, why don't they just give you the discount upfront. But that way they couldn't track what you are purchasing. Your receipt tells you how much you have saved. That's pretty funny when something is way overpriced and then I get a "discount" which brings the price down to what it should be anyway.

It is a pain, but I make visits to Costco every couple of months and purchase in bulk more staple items.

I also buy from Trader Joe's as often as I can. I find their produce to be far more fresh and appealing. Also the milk is much more fresh.

Have you noticed how little respect people have for food? If they decide they don't want a frozen item - they will just chuck it in the bread section. I found two cartons of Ben and Jerry's ice cream in the canned food section. They will put it back into the freezer, but the poor person who buys it will be disappointed when they get it home.