Hunters and gatherers did not have to deal with corporate shelving resets

Finding food that my son will eat is always a challenge. So when we find something he does eat, and prefers to other foods it's a good thing and we try to use the foods he prefers to get him to try something new.

It can get frustrating to shop in one place when one grocery store stops carrying the food that he does eat over other products in the line. Even worse is when the manufacturer stops making that product.

This is what I fear has happened to Yoplait's Thick and Creamy line. He will always choose the vanilla over any other brand so we always try to keep that in the house. It's not at Kroger any more and when we went to Giant Eagle today, the whole line was gone. He will eat the regular vanilla, thank God, so that is something.

Giant Eagle has also stopped carrying the Hormel Compleates Macaroni and Cheese dinner, which he eats with gusto. They've also stopped carrying turkey, another one in the line he eats rather heartily. Those items are readily available at Kroger.

I did speak with the grocery manager about this. I understand he can't control what the makers of the products do, but the products that are made should be carried if they sell. He took my number and we'll see what he has to say. I'd rather get our groceries in one place, and if I have to give up fuel perks so I can get all the food my son eats in one place so be it.

No room for cream, but thanks

I'm not on the I Hate Corporate Coffee bandwagon. Do I try to support my local coffee shops? Absolutely. I get my beans from Stauf's and think One Line has the finest cup in the city. Did I like Starbucks' business practices when they were opening shops across from many independent coffee shops in town back in the nineties? Not really, no. But I did not go to them.

That said the Starbucks I go to has very friendly and dedicated staff. When I work early weekend mornings, I frequent one close to my workplace for coffee and a bagel. The people who work there are amazingly cheerful and efficient for being at work at 6:30 on a Sunday. Certainly more perky than I can ever aspire to be, even at mid-day. So I salute the people at the Starbucks on Olentangy River Road.

This morning the store's music was playing this song. Grim subject matter, but energy providing.

Going Once, Going Twice...

Another night at WB

We don't do deep shit here
Vernell's cookies
Amir's shadow
Prompts for Marshall
Virgin One: Son of Joe;
Enthusiastic Paula bidding
Eggplant scrotum
Ethan's violin
It's delicious as fuck
Virgin Two wrote her poem two days ago
Hypothetical black man
Jump up to get it poetry

And this:



If you did not bid on any items at last night's auction, Dave would put you in his sights.

We raised over $1,200 for the Writers' Block team to go to the National Poetry Slam in St. Paul. Quite incredible! Props to Joanna who worked the crowd as auctioneer.

The fall out from the management situation at Claddagh is chronicled here. There's a boycott Claddagh movement on Facebook. I, and others who supported the departed management have been dropped from their Facebook page. Oh, the drama!

On Sunday night at Jimmy V's on South High there's a party to celebrate Craig and all he did for the local soccer pub community.

Hey Flint, hope you had a fun day reading my pages.

Robert Green: American Hero

It was a festive atmosphere at the place where I watched half of the USA/England soccer match. About five minutes into my visit, I was accosted by a Liverpool fan/idiot for wearing my Everton jersey. He calmed down after I mentioned that Tim Howard plays for Everton.



Not sure what a group of local bagpipers have to do with a soccer match, but it was a lot of fun just the same.

Know what I like about watching soccer on television? The lack of commercials every three minutes. Networks that do not force promoting of their crappy programming down your throat at every break in the action. Those are some of the things I love about viewing the game. It is constantly in motion. The clock is always counting down. If you turn around, you may miss a great pass, a fine tackle.

I'm slowly giving up my involvement in NFL Football. It's a dying sport that does not give me as much pleasure as it once did. I will not disagree that the fortunes of the Buffalo Bills have something to do with this. I've been saying for years that when their owner, Ralph Wilson, dies, the history of the team in Buffalo will end soon after his funeral, or after the team is sold.

Here's what happened shortly after Dempsey's shot on net yesterday...



It was quite the wild scene at Claddagh yesterday afternoon. Over 2,500 came out to watch the match. I'm still a bit reeling about what happened after ward. It seems the manager of the bar was let go by corporate for reasons that are still unclear to me. I'm not sure why someone would be sacked after the biggest day in that bar's history but a good part of the staff immediately quit in protest.

Just when you find a place to head for a drink once or twice a week, a local with staff that remember your name, weenies have to ruin in, and for what?

I never went to Claddagh for the food, and certainly not the low prices (there were not any), but it was the staff and friendly, welcoming atmosphere that brought me back, something that will probably never happen again.

Not Fitting in the Strategic and Tactical Plans

I was out shopping at the corporate bookstore I used to work at last night. The first thing I noticed when I walked in was that the octagon was gone.

The octagon was the large, eight sided display unit that held all of the new releases. The first impression the customer received of the store was that it sold books, and boom, here are the current ones.

It has been replaced by a kiosk that is promoting the store's electronic book reader.

I have nothing against the electronic reader. It is not something I am interested in using. Give me an iPod Touch and I'd be happy, I'm not that much of a technology hater, but the kindle/nook/reader has little appeal for me. Call me old and in need of paper, still.

I did have an item in mind to purchase when I went in there. Went into the music department and continue to notice that most of the music is being replaced with blu-ray DVDs. Looked around for the cd I wanted by Janelle Monae, looked at the endcaps, in the pop rock and soul sections - did not find it. Finally asked the clerk, who asked my how to spell her name (never a good sign) then told me the store did not have the item. It had one copy, but sold it and they were waiting for another copy to arrive.

This is why people have migrated to shopping online. When you go to a store, have to root around the displays climbing over the new Renee Fleming crossover record or special Celtic music displays and still do not find what you are looking for, why waste your time?

Age has caught up to me, time has passed me by. I have to lower my expectations of going to a store and actually finding what I'm looking to purchase to, well, not getting what I want and taking my money elsewhere.

Remember the days of shopping when you actually found what you were looking for, the first time? Man, those were good times, how long ago were they?

My Scottish Wife insisted on seeing the A-Team movie. I guess the original series was big in Scotland the way Anne of Green Gables is popular in Japan. So she was stoked to see it on opening night.

Seeing Liam Neeson kick ass on screen is worth the price of admission, and in that case, the A-Team delivers. If you like explosions over plot, this is the movie for you. It's a cartoon on film. There are no expectations of thespians showing up on screen. I never watched the A-Team series, but lowered my bar of film snobbery and had a good time, which made my wife happy - and isn't that what it's all about sometimes?