Today I faced my fears. Well, one of them anyways. Because if you know me at all, you know I have an excessive amount of fears!
Today I shopped at Aldi.
With Jeremy, of course, because even though I’ve been wanting to try this store out for MONTHS, I didn’t want to go by myself.
Why, you ask. Why would a 37 year old woman in the trenches of motherhood be afraid of a little ole task like grocery shopping???
Well, to put it plainly, Aldi breaks all the rules. And I am, by definition, a rule girl.
Did you know that you have to PAY for a shopping cart at Aldi? And you have to pay with cash? How about the fact that you bag your own groceries? And what is up with the tiny size of their store????
When they built an Aldi just down the road from our house I was intimidated by it…BIG time. A part of me wanted to go in there so badly, but another part, the part that is comfortable with the fact that I know exactly where to find Durkee fried onion rings at the drop of a hat in my favorite Pulbix shopping center, hesitated.
Still, it called to me. “Try me…just once…what do you have to loose???”
After months of hinting and begging, finally Jeremy agreed to go with me to check it out. Turns out you DO have to pay .25 for a buggy, but when you return it, you get your quarter back. And it’s true they do not accept credit cards or checks, but they will take certain debit cards. Bagging my own groceries was not that big of a deal given that I have experience in that area from my days as cashier of the express lane at Bruno’s finer foods.
I just knew one day that would come in handy.
And get this, I ended up loving the small size of their store. I got in and out, fulfilled the needs of my grocery list, in less than 40 minutes. And mostly, that was because I took my time and browsed the aisles comparing their prices to what I normally pay.
I could NEVER get in and out that fast at Publix. Or heaven knows not the super Walmart. It takes almost 40 minutes just to walk from one side to the other. I’d rather go a week without ANY product than go back in there for something I forgot.
And what about the gimmies? I haven’t taken my children there yet but I am thinking it’s pretty hard to pitch a fit over a more expensive item that DOES NOT EXIST. Aldi carries only one product. Can of peas? Here ya go. Gallon of milk? Here ya go. Place and bake cookies? Here ya go. Not 6 or 7 different brands to choose from. And the food we’ve tried so far is REALLY good.
Fewer choices. Fewer employees. Cleaner store. Lower prices. Much lower prices!
If you haven’t given Aldi a try, I challenge you. There’s no time like the present.
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