If you've ever been to a Wegman's, you know that it is normally grocery nirvana. However, there are so few of them in the metro area that the stores drown in a sea of people prior to any national holiday. There were three Fairfax County Police Department patrol cars doing crowd control around the parking lot, and Wegman's seemed to have a lot of security staff on hand as well.I got perhaps the fifth-worst parking space in existence there, and I trotted toward the distant entrance. By trotting I probably got in front of about 20 people who were doing more of a mosey. (Don't these people have jobs?) Inside, it was chaos. I knew it was going to be rough, so I put my New York on.
I grabbed a handbasket instead of a cart, so I could move quickly. Fast and light. I needed eggs and trashbags, both on the far side from the turkey pickup. I dashed around slow-moving carts and moms with kids, swerving through the aisles at a breakneck pace. Got the eggs and the trashbags, and steamed toward the meat section. I needed pancetta for my turkey, so I grabbed some prepackaged stuff at the deli, and went and picked up the big bird. At this point my basket was full, so I heaved the very cold 14-pounder under my left arm and plowed on toward the checkout, tossing two loaves of fresh-baked bread on top of my basket while en route. I got in the express line and checked out without any major incident.
I considered it a victory to have gotten in and out in 35 minutes, and I made it home in time for the roof guy. I vowed I would not return to Wegman's until after New Year's Day, and I certainly would never go to Wegman's on Thanksgiving week ever again.
Unfortunately, when I was putting away the pancetta, I saw that two of the three packages expired 10 days ago. I nearly wept. At $6 for 3 oz. (each), I have to return them. Plus, I need the pancetta for my turkey and Wegman's is the only place I could find it.
Which means that tonight, I have to go back to Wegman's.
8 comments:
im praying for you... in spanish...
xoxo
just to clarify...i think prayers sound better and more sincere in spanish..so.. thats a good thing...
xoxo
Padre nuestro, que estas in el cielo... :)
We just got back from our excursion to exchange the pancetta, and it wasn't nearly as bad, although it was still busy. Lesson learned: Always go to Wegman's after 9pm, just like we used to do in college in Upstate NY.
Yesterday I came to the realization that I need to go for certain groceries. As I grabbed my wallet and keys, I came to the realization that Thanksgiving is just around the corner.
No thanks. I'll wait.
Or Peapod.
I went into Whole Foods in Union Square after work yesterday with Steve. Surprisingly, even though it was a total zoo, and I was hungry and having low-blood-sugar indecision issues, we made it in and out within 30 minutes without major incident.
I hope you got free pancetta out of this. But 10 days is nothing. In snooping around for matzoh meal, I pulled off the shelf of my local grocer a box of "kosher" mac & cheese that had been there for years. Literally, years.
Ah, Wegman's in SYR. That's where I locked my newborn in my car after unloading two carts worth of groceries.
Just had to check out your blog after your very kind comment on mine. Thank you for that!
I admire your courage in facing Wegman's just before a holiday; not many of us would have been able to face that. You go GIRL!!
Loved the pic of you and your honey. SO glad he's home safe and sound!! Keep him there, OK?!
LOL. I'm glad you survived it all! All the grocery stores were crazy right before thanksgiving...I try to avoid them. :P
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