I haven’t seen increased prices due to tariffs at all yet, but I haven’t been shopping lately for anything but groceries and other necessities. I actually bought kitty litter (Ökocat brand) last week and it was the same price as the last few times. Like you I buy almost exclusively store brands and I plan to hit up farmers markets this summer too. I’m also growing my own cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers and corn.
Hard water vs soft water.
So many times we’ve been in a hotel room and I’ve taken a shower and commented on what soft water it is because it feels like the soap never rinses off and I feel slippery all over. She always tries to correct me by calling it hard water. She grew up in a desert city that has naturally hard water, so she’ll always say, “I know what hard water is, I grew up with hard water!” when the “hard” water she grew up with was softened by some means. It doesn’t matter how many articles and blog posts and ChatGPT sessions on the topic I show her, she always insists they’re wrong and she’s right. We argued about it a few times in the past, but now it’s a running joke between us.
You add it before cooking! It actually doesn’t get mushy at all, and brings out the banana’s sweetness.
Curry powder! I’ve never tried curry leaves or curry sauce, but those sound delicious too. Whichever way you add the curry, I highly recommend trying it!
I discovered that combo when I was living in Sweden where it’s a fairly common one that most pizza places offer. I believe the pizzas are usually called Bahamas, Afrikana or Tropicana and they always feature pineapple, banana and curry, and usually either ham, shrimp or peanuts.
Pineapple, banana and curry, optionally with peanuts. Now that’s a real pizza!
I’ve been on a similar coffee journey. I used to drink it nonstop throughout the day, like 5-6 cups of black coffee most days. Then one day I was physically assaulted and chased by a drugged out guy at a train station (never take transit in Denver, it’s a total fucking shitshow). I thought I was going to get stabbed or killed that day and I guess that event caused some trauma because I started getting panic attacks shortly after. I realized that my panic attacks were more frequent and lasted longer on the days that I drank more coffee, so I quickly cut all caffeine out of my life. Now I’ve been without caffeinated coffee for over a year and don’t miss it at all, although I still enjoy a decaf espresso most days.
Same thing happened with weed. I used to love weed and smoked/vaped it pretty frequently, but started getting panic attacks from it around the same time so I cut it almost entirely out of my life. Every few months I’ll buy a pack of pre-rolls to enjoy, but it literally takes me like five days to finish a single joint because I smoke one tiny puff at a time to avoid panic attacks.
Honestly though, even if I didn’t deal with panic attacks, I’m probably better off having no caffeine and only a tiny amount of weed.
Central air conditioning all summer long.
But before I had AC, on hot nights I’d put a cold damp rag on my feet to fall asleep easier and that really worked. I’d also put a box fan in one of my windows pointed outside, and I’d also open a window in another room so that outside air would be sucked in through my home.
Use them in salads!
I worked at a food bank a couple years ago and we regularly received pallets of government cheese through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). They were massive blocks of orange cheddar with almost no text on the label. We also received pallets of government pistachios and dried cherries that were as good as any you’d buy in a store.
Privacy while shopping in person is literally impossible these days, so I don’t even try there.
I know I’m recorded dozens if not hundreds of times by cameras and other devices every time I leave home. Apartment building security cams, neighbors’ doorbell cams, public transit cams, police surveillance cams, dashcams, retail cams. There are thousands of automated license plate readers in my state. My car has four cams and sends all sorts of data back to the manufacturer. My apartment front door is electronic and it logs all locks & unlocks. My building’s parking garage logs every time I enter and exit. Virtually every intersection has surveillance cams (not just red light cams). Hell even when hiking you’ll end up on trail cams.
Last month police in my metro used outdoor surveillance cams to falsely accuse a woman of package theft and the cop that visited her home told her, “You know we have cameras in that town. You can’t get a breath of fresh air in or out of that place without us knowing."
Your best bet for privacy while shopping is if you walk everywhere, pay with cash and wear a mask. And even if you do all that, gait-recognition technology will be widespread in the very near future and you’ll be identifiable in public even while wearing a mask.