Today I did my groceries.
Normally I wouldn’t write about doing my groceries. But it’s the first grocery trip since the lockdown began. We were starting to run low on fruits, veggies and cat food (the cat’s gotta eat too!) and so I, as the dutiful, non-employed (for now), domestic partner in my relationship embarked on my journey for groceries.
On a normal day, groceries would be a right mission! Driving to the supermarket, braving the crowds, making sure not to spend too much. Doing groceries during the lockdown however is a completely different experience. It truly is an Epic Quest in its own right.
So let’s start from the beginning.
I grabbed my reusable shopping bag (say NO to plastic!), hopped in the car and zipped off to my local Pak N Save (think large, super cheap hypermarket-type store). Surprisingly, I found parking (I was expecting the worst, this being the lockdown and all) and grabbed my hand sanitizer and made my way to the nearest cart. But as soon as I stepped out from my car – I saw the line. I saw the longest line leading into the supermarket, with everyone spaced 2 metres away from each other. The line stretched on for a good 50 metres or so, winding into the parking lot.
At that moment I debated whether or not I should continue my quest. I mean, it’s just fruits and veggies – I still have about 15 kg of rice I can live off of (I’m Asian – it’s normal). I decided to try a different option and I went down to my local Asian Supermarket instead. As I made the 3 minute drive it takes from my local Pak N Save to the Asian Supermarket (Called ‘New Save’) I noticed the stark emptiness in the Hamilton City Centre (I mean, even on the best of days Hamilton isn’t very busy – but this was something different). There were free parking spaces EVERYWHERE.
As I pulled the corner to approach New Save I began to wonder if they would still be open during the lockdown – and if they were, would there be an epic line like in Pak N Save?
Praise the Almighty! They were still open and best of all. NO LINES! Which is strange, considering that they carry many of the same things that Pak N Save does – it seems like far fewer people came here. Never mind that though, I hopped out the car and grabbed a cart, all the while reminding myself to NOT TOUCH MY FACE.
The first thing I noticed as I entered New Save was how under-dressed I was. Everyone else had face masks and gloves on. One dude even had goggles on. And there I was in my shorts and jumper, sans gloves, masks or any other form of protective equipment. I had never felt more naked in a grocery store my entire life. I resolved that I would make this trip as quick and efficient as possible.
I didn’t.
You see, the great thing about being an Asian in an Asian supermarket is that you instinctively know where to find the things you need to cook yummy dishes at home. The bad thing about being Asian in an Asian supermarket is that you get distracted by all the yummy Asian food that they have on sale. I found myself buying fruits and veggies….and roti….and you tiao… and salted fish…. and Mi Sedap flavored chips… and century eggs, salted eggs and of course… rice (you can never have enough of that!). I must admit dear reader I may have bought more groceries than I needed (but hey, I told myself: you need to buy enough to last you for the next two weeks!)
Ok, so groceries were done and paid for and I sanitised my hands after. End of story right?
No.
Living in a COVID-19 world, you can never be too sure. Heeding the advice of medical experts, I decided to disinfect my groceries using this cool video I watched here.
So there I was in my living room, putting my groceries on the ‘dirty’ side and clearing out the ‘clean’ side. I put on some epic tunes and set myself to the epic task of disinfecting EVERY SINGLE PIECE of grocery that I bought. Using a trusty disinfectant and dishrag (I tried a paper towel first – it lasted all of 3 wipes before it disintegrated) I began protecting my family. At some point during the 15-minute mark I began regretting my decision to buy so many things, but I pushed on! After 30 minutes of wiping down everything I sat down and rested.
It wasn’t over yet – there were still fruits and veggies to disinfect.
Summoning my last reserves of strength I filled a tub with warm water and soap. Placing the fruits and veggies on the ‘dirty’ side and started washing EVERY SINGLE PIECE of fruit and veggie that I had bought. Ma, if you are reading this, I’m sorry I ever questioned why you washed the potatoes with soap, now I understand. Also, it’s HARD WORK! 30 Minutes later I had thoroughly cleaned all the fruits and veggies AND washed the soap off of them.
Done right?
Of course not! I still have to put the damn things away AND disinfect the surfaces that I used!
20 Minutes later I can finally sit down, put my feet up and eat some of the Mi Sedap Flavored Chips (So sedap! Sedap means tasty ok) that I bought.
Ok, that’s it. End of my epic quest.
I remembered I still have a blog post to write today (30 day blogging challenge!), but honestly, my brain is so fried from my grocery trip that I don’t have it in me to write about anything financial/accounting/business related. I’m sorry if you came here for hard and serious updates on the COVID-19 financial situation – you’re not getting it today!
Try again tomorrow. I’m unlikely to have gone on another grocery trip then.
Oh wait.
Did I remember to buy the cat food?
UPDATE: Dang it, now some scientists are saying I didn’t have to go through all that trouble and that soap is unnecessary for washing fruits and veggies! Oh well, I made sure to wash the soap off. Better to be safe than sorry!