Store items we’ll never take for granted again

Where were you at the beginning of the 2020 pandemic? What seemed like a War of the Worlds movie, businesses began to close down one by one in the middle of March. Movie theaters, stores, gyms, and other business places announced their temporary closure – and for some, they would lead to their permanent shutdown. As everyone left work, the grocery and convenience stores began being filled by scared and worried people wanting to gather supplies for the unforeseeable future at home ahead.

Here’s a list of some things that ran out and thankfully, have made their way back to our shelves. One thing is for sure; we’ll never take these store items for granted again.

Food

Beans, veggies, and every other kind of canned food was one day – GONE. Every can of food you may want was gone from the shelves in one apocalyptic-like week. The grocery stores were crowded for a couple of days as people scavenged for food for the next two weeks or more in their houses. People prepared for the worst gathering basic cooking ingredients and resources.  Everything from the essential store shelves disappeared from yeast to every kind of bottled water and rice. Even the pasta and pasta sauces shelves were either empty or only carried the less desirable brands!

Food items were being frozen and stored away for the day the world became like an apocalypse movie. But that day never happened. The markets stayed open, and they eventually refilled everything to meet demand.

Workout Equipment

Once the gyms closed, fitness folks looked for how they would get their fix of a workout. Most of these people haven’t exercised outside of a long time! So they made their way to the stores for medicine balls, weights, and yoga mats. But when they arrived, everything was gone. Meaning the entire fitness shelves were empty. It didn’t matter if you went to Target or Walmart, or even if you tried ordering online – exercise equipment would take months to arrive at your door.

People adapted and began working out at the park and going for more walks around the neighborhood. By now, their workout necessities have arrived, even though the gyms opened up again…for about three weeks. During this second shutdown, everyone is definitely more prepared for their home workouts with whatever fitness equipment they could pull together.

 

Cleaning Products

The best way to keep our hands clean are disinfecting products like hand sanitizer and soap. But as quickly as the pandemic came, so did the craze for hand cleaners. Shelves of detergents and sanitizers emptied with no alternatives or substitutes. The aisles looked as though they would never be restocked again. However, it’s been a few months then, and they have all returned to the stores. Today you can find hand sanitizer in everyone’s bag, car, and every business front entrance.

Along with your hands, it’s essential to keep your home clean. This means everything from doorknobs to flat surfaces need to be routinely wiped down and cleaned well. People and businesses quickly stocked their carts with these sanitizing wipes and sprays –  leaving even less for everyone too late to get their own. One thing’s for sure; everyone most likely had pretty clean homes for a while!

@facemasksmadewithlove

Face Masks

Face masks were instantly in demand once we learned how effective they are to stopping the spread of germs. Every store quickly sold out of medical covers, and then recommended things like handkerchiefs or other homemade masks. The most challenging fact about masks is that they’re needed by medical professionals too. How else are they going to do their job?

Whenever there is a need for something, start-up businesses begin to grow. This is true for the face mask craze too. Companies started making face masks with unique styles, patterns, and characters, which is an unsuspecting way and became a way to add a mask to your style. Now you can hardly go to the store or online without seeing the newest innovations in face covers.

 

And of course – Toilet paper

Where do we even begin with this?

The only thing scarier than a pandemic is how crazy everyone went for toilet paper. We understand toilet paper is necessary, and when everything shuts down, it was a frightening time. When did WHO and the CDC say that we needed so much toilet paper? Yes, we needed to stock up on things just in case. However, there was such an unnecessary shortage of toilet paper that the stores made a new policy that only one package could go to each family!

Some people even ordered packages of TP from other countries to meet their demand. It wasn’t impossible to find toilet paper at local stores – you just had to get lucky. People were finding out the shipping schedule for the delivery trucks to be first in line that day. If you were lucky enough to find a package of some, it might not be your first choice of the brand, either. For example, have you ever used “Hello Kitty Soft” toilet paper?

 

 

Now that everything’s back to being stocked at the store, everyone can be a little more relieved. I’m happy that there’s enough tissue for everyone again, but also that many stores made a no-return policy for those who bought rolls for the next two years. So as we get through the rest of this pandemic, remember to only shop for what you need, and the amount you need it in so we can all get through this together.

from https://ift.tt/3145m2Y Orange County Register https://ift.tt/3fjQQJs