Part of the allure of online shopping is that you don’t have to physically cram the items into a shopping cart or bag, and then get them home. In other words, while the notion of a shopping cart provides a useful metaphor, everyone knows that an online cart can hold a lot more than an […]

No matter how many lists you make, it’s difficult to go on a trip without having to purchase at least one or two things after you get there. In my most recent experience, I needed to buy a particular skin care product that had somehow leaked out and evaporated during the trip. So, I set […]

While seeing some family over the holidays, I found myself in the car heading to a big nature preserve. We knew roughly how to get there, but still had to rely on street signs to figure out where to turn. At one intersection in particular, neither of us in the car could figure out which […]

One of our relatives was in town last weekend, so we decided to meet up with her for coffee. Most of the places that I’d normally grab a coffee close by 3 pm on Saturday and Sunday, so our late-afternoon meeting time meant that I had to pick a different venue than usual. I remembered […]

Each time I pass by the potato chips aisle in my local grocery store, I check to see if they’ve added any smaller bags of a particular product. It’s more of a cracker than a chip, but regardless, the store has only ever carried a rather large size. During my most recent trip, the bag […]

I’ve noticed an odd contradiction in at least one local restaurant. The situation goes like this: the restaurant promotes itself as using organic, locally-grown, all natural, or otherwise healthy ingredients. And for the most part, there’s no reason to believe they aren’t abiding by this guideline when preparing your food. However, the condiments on the […]

During a recent trip to the grocery store, one of the items on my shopping list was frozen broccoli. As I scanned the freezer shelves, I saw a great deal on one brand, which was selling for less than a dollar per pound. However, I was a little bit confused, since the same brand appeared […]

While watching TV the other day, I noticed that the latest episode of a new series was labeled as “Brand New”. Not “New”, not “New Episode”, but “Brand New”. This strikes me as a bit odd, since the notion of new with regards to a TV show is really an all-or-nothing thing. If the episode […]

While sorting through some mail the other day, I noticed what appeared to be a greeting card from a local business. My address on the envelope almost looked hand-written, but closer inspection showed that it was just a computer font designed to mimic handwriting. As I opened the envelope, I found a generic “Happy Thanksgiving” […]

For something as simple as an expiration date, there sure are a lot of varieties. Some products say “Sell by”, others say “Use by” or “Best before”, and still others just revert to “Expiration” or “Expires” or a suitable abbreviation for one of those. As another wrinkle, I’ve seen a few items that provide storage guidelines […]