Several days of media coverage of the snow storm expected to arrive Saturday night in the Washington, D.C. area has inspired a run on essential items at local grocery stores. Empty shelves were visible in some aisles at Harris Teeter in downtown Bethesda last night. Products being snapped up include the old stalwarts of milk, toilet paper, and paper towels.
Shoppers are dutifully following new health advice from Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and are buying whole milk over the low-fat options. Of course, if power goes out due to ice or falling trees, massive supplies of milk will be of little value. Also going fast under RFK, Jr.'s guidelines: red meat.
Snow totals were expected to top 13" in initial guesses, but the National Weather Service Winter Storm Watch is now talking about 5-10" of snow accumulation. Given the decline of area government resilience in the face of even a few inches of snow this century, 5-10" could paralyze the region for days. Back in the 90s, Metrobus and Ride On kept going on major routes under reduced frequency, and Metro certainly ran on underground segments if not aboveground with more intense snow plowing operations. In recent years, the entire transit system shuts down during moderate to heavy snowstorms, and governments urge residents to "shelter in place." Heckuva job, Brownie!
Incompetence of government means you're on your own until plows and utility crews belatedly reach your neighborhood. Make sure you have plenty of batteries for flashlights and a transistor radio to receive news and weather updates in the event of a power outage. Warm clothes and blankets are essential, as well. Shelf-stable milk will be a lot more useful than those perishable plastic jugs people are hoarding. And fill your gas tank at least halfway.
The 'Brownie' is getting stale dude, drop it.
ReplyDeleteAs long as we have inept elected officials, the phrase will never go out of style.
Delete"inept elected officials" Why, that is called the 'Peter Principle.'
DeleteSo, you predict that Bethesda will be not only moribund but snowbound, above- and below-ground?
ReplyDeleteBelow freezing temperatures next week will complicate clean-up.
ReplyDelete"¡Viva la revolución!"
DeleteIt's gets worse and worse with these people every storm forecast. Call ICE on the sanctuary snow county!!!!
ReplyDeletePanic At The Sanctuary County is my new band name.
ReplyDeleteIf the power goes out in freezing winter weather, in DC we just put the milk outside on north facing ledge.
ReplyDeleteIn other panic buying elsewhere Donut King in Kensington was sold out of donuts by 2pm.
I was going to suggest that too. Best to put food in a cooler or something similar, if available. Amazing that more folks don’t figure out something so simple.
DeleteThe Giant on Arlington has been out of 2% shelf stable milk (1/2 gallon size) for a couple of weeks. (Safeway and HT usually have the 1% and higher fat mini-milk multi-packs in stock.)
ReplyDeleteOoohh ... donuts :-)
We like to keep a variety of shelf-stable items on hand b/c of Pepco's horrible service in our neighborhood. We never know when or for how long the power will be out. (Back-up generators are not allowed for our bldg.) We've also been experiencing an uptick in water outages lately. Oh boy!
Speaking of PEPCO, they can afford to have eleven Vice Presidents!
DeleteHowever, if you ask them to do preventive tree maintenance they balk at it. Then, when the power goes out. they sent a parade of county fire engines and ambulances, followed by a lame contractor crew.
Water outages and sewer overflows. . .
DeleteHere find your way through the maze:
Deletehttps://www.pepco.com/about-us/leadership-values
Yeah and with the bag Nazis, it's awfully tough to carry all those snow provisions. Giant has no bags in sight at self-check. Why? They had plenty of bags accessible when the bag tax was 5 cents per bag. What gives?
ReplyDelete“ Shoppers are dutifully following new health advice from Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and are buying whole milk over the low-fat options.”
ReplyDeleteI see one half-gallon of whole milk and one half-gallon of buttermilk left behind, but no 2%, 1% or skim milk left behind. But lots of cream left behind. That goes against your claim.
Also, Harris-Teeter typically restocks their shelves on Thursday evenings.
5:03: My "claim" is very solid. Whole milk is cleared out in the above photo, and 24 hours later I verified there was no whole milk available at the Westbard Giant store, but plenty of 2%. RFK Jr. rules are prevailing in a town where he is not very popular.
DeleteRobert, You're probably right about the disdain for the HHS Sec. But Bobby Kennedy has done more with his MAHA movement than anyone before him. Even his own family are less than thrilled. Balducci has plenty of everything. No one thinks to clean that place out. Whole organic milk today wasn't actually that expensive.
ReplyDeleteIf Michelle Obama did it, people would be freaking out lol
DeleteIf Michelle Obama did it, she would be destroyed by leftist trolls for not being politically pure as anyone who walks off the progressive plantation doesn't get invited to any DC cocktail parties or to speak on MSDNC.
DeleteIt's so nice to see a triggered rightie at the mention of how Mrs. Obama is copied on every postive contribution she made during her tenure as First Lady. Your award is a pair of free tickets to a gawd awful movie premier Jan 31., about some Transylvanian, wannabe model.
Delete"positive contribution" Now that's living in an alternate universe!
Delete@10:24 AM Obviously, geography is not your strongest subject.
Delete@10:24 Nice try comparing Melania to Big Mike who stated she was never proudof this country until she was handed duplicate keys to the WH. Melania speaks 7 languages while TDS liberals use words with no idea what they mean. Better to sit this comparison out as it's no contest.
Delete@ 5:36 - oh, look… the “plantation” talking point. Yawn…
Delete@7:55 - oh, look... someone who is triggered by words when they don't understand context and view everything through a progressive racist filter.
DeleteHave they declared a 'state of emergency' yet due to lack of toilet tissues?
ReplyDeleteI actually think snow removal has improved in recent times frik what I remember say 15 years ago.
ReplyDeleteThe front page of Saturday's Wall Street Journal features a large photo of a worker arranging bags of snow-melt for sale outside Strosniders.
ReplyDeleteIf you cannot become famous you have to settle for infamous.
DeleteSo glad you were able to shoehorn your "heckuva job" catchphrase into this news. You truly are a renaissance man Robert <3
ReplyDelete