I’m on vacation here in Duck, North Carolina.
Part of the fun of being here in North Carolina is that I get to visit stores that I don’t regularly visit. The closest large store to our rental house is Walmart.
At home I don’t go to Walmart. California doesn’t have a lot of Walmart and none in my immediate vicinity. Furthermore, Michele has decided that we are Target people, not Walmart people. Not one to argue with my wife, I have not been to a Walmart in recent memory. Recent memory is the last 15 years, or the time since I moved out of the fraternity.
I was first shocked when I entered Walmart and they had boogie boards on sale for less than $10. ‘Wow, that’s a deal.’ I thought.
As I walked through the store my eyes began to glaze over like a zombie as my mouth said the words ‘Wow, that’s a deal.’ over and over. From chicken feed to video games to air conditioners to shotguns, there was nothing that Walmart didn’t have for a good price.
If not for the stern direction of my wife, all the cash in my wallet would have been sucked out into the Walmart registers. I still can’t get the image of the first-aid kit for $9.82 out of my mind.
Photo courtesy of cousin James
Here’s just one side of the sunscreen display. Amazing isn’t it?
How in the hell does someone shop regularly at a Walmart and not end up endlessly wandering the aisles looking for yet another deal?
I wonder how early Walmart opens and if those first aid kits are still on sale?
Dude, Walmart is open 24-7. And only closes like 2 or 3 days a year.
We’re Target people too. I hate Walmart. The deals aren’t worth what it does to your soul.
The local Target is a lot nicer than the local Wal-Mart. Anyway, last time I wen’t to Super Wal-Mart, I ended up finding way too many ‘great deals’ I hadn’t gone in for!
I found myself at a Wal-Mart a coupla weeks ago. It was an act of desperation. Everything else was closed and I needed a 12mm socket like now. Of course, they didn’t have it.
What got me outta there on the quickfast with my wallet intact was the absolute freakshow around me. It’s like that place is a psychic magnet for the dregs of society. And they’re all consuming mass quantities of the most useless crap. The point-of-sale displays lining the check-out pens are like a gauntlet of fear, a living reminder that there are hordes of people that fall well under your worst estimation of the “average” American. It really was disturbing.
There’s a Duck, North Carolina?
Long time lurker, finally leaving a comment. Yours was the first blog I ever read and now I have one of my own-not nearly as entertainging as yours. Anyway, welcome to the east coast. I live in NC, but can’t say I’ve been to Duck. But I have heard of it and know where it is. In case you were wondering, I found your blgo by searching on google for flossing before or after brushing…..have a great trip.
For clothes and housewares we are Target people, but for other stuff (hardware, sporting goods, school supplies, etc.) you just can’t beat their prices.
My biggest complaint with Walmart is now that ours has converted to a “Super” Walmart – selling groceries – the check-out lines are abysmally long.
You should go and watch the PBS video below you give you an idea of what Walmart is doing to get those good prices — you can watch the video from their site.. It’s really depressing what their doing:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/
This is what keeps me out of any Walmarts…
In a nutshell — if you like stuff that comes from cheap chinese factories, then you’ll be happy w/ Walmart crud.. If you want to support US labor, then I’d suggest buying elsewhere.
To give you an idea of what quality of product you get at Walmart, we bought some curtains at Walmart a while back and while they looked nice, they had a major flaw.. If you put them in the wash you will find that 50% of their sewn stiches come out during the laundary cycle.. Pretty pathetic.. I guess that’s what you get for $10
You really should go into a Wal-Mart at 3am and see who is in there. At least in the south, you’ll find women shopping…with their children.
I like my women with a complete set of (original) teeth, please.
I hear they have fabulous kites at Walmart.
Rick F watched the PBS show, bought $10 curtains at Walmart, put them in a washing machine and is dissatisfed. OK!
It should be called “China-Mart”
Rick F says, “If you want to support US labor, then I’d suggest buying elsewhere.”
Dude, next time you go to the bathroom, check out the tags on all of your clothes. It’s like a multicultural nightmare. Nobody makes anything in the US anymore.
HURRAY FOR WALMART , I Love Walmart , I have been working for walmart for about 2 years and I am the Food Department Manager . I have nothing bad to say about them , wages , benifits and Furtherment in the company are all ++++’s to me .