Trip Report: Day #26 of quarantine and grocery shopping

By Elizabeth Prata
*See note at bottom

We are in the middle of a Governor-mandated quarantine where we are supposed to isolate ourselves from others, stay at home as much as possible, and only make essential trips "out". This is due to the Chinese Virus named by World Health Organization (WHO) experts COVID-19, known also as coronavirus. It spread rapidly within the Hubei province of China, especially the city of Wuhan. Many deaths occurred. Hospitals were overrun, even a rapidly built new hospital. Lockdowns happened. Yet, the virus quickly spread to many other nations, including the US.

On March 13, the President called a National Emergency and restrictions were placed on Americans' comings and goings. As the virus spread from hotspots like Washington and New York, tighter and tighter restrictions were placed, and here we sit, 26 days since the declaration of the emergency, isolated, in-home, and locked down.

I had not gone grocery shopping for two weeks, so it was time. Essential. I have to eat.

I spent a good deal of time the night before looking at recipes with longer-lasting proteins. Silken tofu, firm tofu, peanut butter, eggs... I am a vegetarian (no red meat and very little white meat) so seafood doesn't last more than 3 days uncooked or 2 additional days after cooking. I arranged the list in order of the aisles so I could go up and down in a critical path and not spend time backtracking, or touching a lot of stuff. I added a couple of new items to my list like a mini-muffin tin, mini-muffin papers, silken tofu, almond flour, and cornmeal.

Kroger is my grocery store of choice. It's always clean, the clerks are always helpful and pleasant, the produce and seafood spaces offer a good variety, and it's not as expensive as other stores I'd frequented. Kroger sends customers coupons in the mail, tracking frequent purchases and aligning coupons with what works for the customer.

They also have great mark down areas where they place nearly expired bread half price, or produce about to go over in a red net bag for 99 cents.

During this pandemic they are also treating their employees right, giving a $2 hour raise to those who work during this period, hiring more staff to keep up with demand, and giving sick time off.  Kroger is good to their employees and helpful to its customers so I repay by driving the 15 miles (20 minutes) to the nearest store.

Kroger also was one of the first to institute "senior shopping hour". People who are older than 60, expectant mothers, or people with compromised immune systems can shop exclusively from 7-8 am. Kroger also instituted, just today, a limit of how many patrons can enter. They reduced the square footage capacity by half, allowing only 1 customer per 120 sf into the store at a time. They have a system that automatically tallies it, so... If the store was at capacity, next customers will have to wait outside, where clerks were stationed.

I had several concerns. My car is not that reliable and I've been by the side of the road more often than I'd like. Would my car make it there and back? Normally I call AAA or a friend and have the car towed to my regular mechanic. My mechanic is closed, I didn't want to expose a friend, and I didn't want to be exposed by a tow guy who'd been all over the place. Would I get there and back without incident?

Once I arrived, would there be a line and I have to wait outside for a while? That would be fine, it's still a blessing from God to have access to fresh food, but it would be uncomfortable. My knee has a good bit of arthritis and standing on one spot for lengthy time really kills it. Would I start the day with increasing pain?

I have a myriad of food allergies. If something is out of stock, I can't substitute. No lactose free milk? Then I can't have milk. No gluten free bread? Then I can't have bread. No oranges, grapes, pineapples, or strawberries? Then I can't have fruit. And so on. The last two times I'd been there certain items were out of stock in the panic buying. The seafood deli was closed completely. I was going to run out of toilet paper before my next trip, yet the shelves had been consistently empty of that particular item. Would there be food I need to eat, or enough variety, to have a reasonable diet for the next two weeks?

The situation seemed concerning before but when Kroger decided to limit the number of customers entering, things got anxious for me. Aside from work and church, Kroger is the only other place I go. School is closed and church is shuttered, so now the only other place I feel comfortable was also closing, partially. Things just got real, as they say.

I prayed the night before and I asked God these questions. Then I laid my concerns at His feet. He said to cast all your cares upon Him, (1 Peter 5:7; Psalm 55:22), so I did. I trust the Lord, but I asked Him to forgive my untrust. When I woke up this morning I did the same thing- prayed and laid my worries down. His will be done. It's all good, literally. (Romans 8:28). I need to display calm and peace, because His peace passes all understanding. Once prayed up, I left.

I fall in the exclusive shopper from 7-8 am category, so I decided to leave at 6:40 am and get there by 7. I launched off into the pre-dawn, north Georgia, pandemic morning, the sun rising pink behind me.

I shop at the Trail Creek Kroger at the border of Athens and Hull.

About 6 of us old duffers were there already and waiting. They all wore masks. They all stood 6 or more feet apart. People around here are very reasonable and have a lot of common sense. At 7 am on the dot, the Kroger clerk opened the doors with a smile, said good morning cheerfully, and welcomed us in.

The store was immaculate. Kudos to those workers who clean and stock! I mean, immaculate. The store is always clean, but I'd never been first in it before. It was sparkling. Clerks were around, stocking and helping. Most clerks wore masks. Some didn't. Almost all customers wore masks. I didn't. I don't have one and I don't know how to make one. I was definitely the odd one out.

I made my way around the produce and arrived at the 99-cent mark down section. It was stocked to overflowing. I picked a few items I knew I'd need and really use. A bag of 2 eggplants, a bag of small grapefruits, a bag of potatoes, and a bag of green peppers.

My final bill was going to be higher, not only because I was doing two weeks' worth at once but I was also buying some items I never buy. I got a mini-muffin pan because I plan to make mini-quiches. Also a broccoli-cheese casserole with silken tofu instead of ricotta or cottage cheese. Canned salmon and corn chowder.

A lady who used to work at my school passed by and said hello, we spoke briefly, from a distance. I spoke to no one else except a clerk to ask for help on an item. The promised plexiglass was up, separating customer from clerk. There was a circular hole you could pass coupons or your loyalty card.

Some items were out of stock. Any store brand deli meat, especially the ones on sale, were out. My preferred brand of gluten free bread was out. Gluten free bread is not very good, you know. If you find one that your taste buds can hack, get it. Mine was out of stock so I got the next best, or less worse.

My checkout clerk was someone who I used to go to church with before. As I unloaded my items onto the conveyor belt, she explained, "I know you!" I looked at her and did not have a clue. She said, "We used to go to church together?" Still no clue. "We had lunch at that lady's house?" Still no clue. But I said, "Oh! Yes, of course!" anyway. People to me (an autistic person) are like trees in a forest. All similar with non-distinguishing features. It takes me a long time to confidently recognize people.

In catching up, she shared that she had a kidney transplant and a triply heart bypass. Wow. Her immune system is compromised, but she wanted to work so she could help. She also said that a lot of people are thinking about death, and/or asking questions and she wanted to share the Gospel if she could.

Wow.

That's amazing.

The clerks at the store were working hard and cheerful. Most customers were wearing masks and were quiet. More people were coming in as I left, as the store opened to the general public at 8:00, but not a huge rush. I usually take 30 minutes to shop but it took longer this time because I could not find the mini-muffin pan or a some items over in the pharmacy (they were out anyway).

A CBS truck was in the parking lot when I loaded my groceries into the car, but I don't know if that was a CBS guy parked to grab a coffee, or if he was there on business doing a story.

All the carts were wiped down as I entered and a clerk took mine off me as I finished unloading. He was cheerful too. The tension on the customers' faces was evident, though, and the place was quiet. I didn't see any families and no kids. Only one couple. People were shopping mainly in singles.

Things are getting real, even as the pandemic is (hopefully) easing. I hope we are at peak. The restrictions are tightening and the length of time this goes on grates on everyone's nerves.

Governor Kemp put the state on lockdown until April 13, but if the pandemic has not eased I suspect he will lengthen it. Other states are lengthening their times of social isolation, some extending even into May. I hope this gets over soon, for everyone's sake. I can't imagine the families worrying about their aging parents or their kids.

So that's it! I'm here in the apartment for two more weeks, unless the Gov lifts the lockdown, then I'll probably still be in the apartment because that is my modus operandi. I will post my adventures in cooking a mini-quiche and broccoli casserole. It is supposed to be very cool in a day or so, like 43 degrees in the morning. I plan to bake a lot that day!

I hope you're well and safe and healthy wherever you are locked down.

**It turned out that Tyler Perry paid for the groceries of seniors and other at-risk shoppers during the senior shopping hour at 44 Atlanta and 29 New Orleans Kroger stores this morning. What a blessing that must have been for those folks! news here