I won real life supermarket sweep by realizing that buying generic frozen pizza from the nearby walmart is two whole dollars cheaper than buying generic frozen pizza from the nearer publix.
I watched some Supermarket Sweep streaming in the first month of the pandemic. I thought it would be a nice fun nostalgia romp, but yes all the terrifying things about the capitalism lessons inside the logic of the game show. But also the bad vibes of insane sweater game combined with openly hitting on female contestants from the host. Super yuck.
My favorite grocery store experience in Southern California is Grocery Outlet. It’s like Big Lots for your grocery experience. I will literally talk to anyone about Grocery Outlet (G.O. for short). When my parents visit from across the country I have to take my dad because he is also sick in the head in the same way as me, loving to shop for the fun deals, or should we say that I got the sickness from him.
Sometimes I like to go to Costco on a Saturday morning, not because I need to (certainly we could wait to buy our giant bags of dog food and frozen mini pizzas until a saner weekday), but because I just like to marvel at the mass of people pushing around their massive carts in search of the grocery and warehouse deals.
Apr 10, 2023·edited Apr 10, 2023Liked by Alex Dobrenko`
Another great post - thanks, Alex!
4. One which delivers - I'm deeply allergic to in-person grocery shopping: it's a hideous experience, and it's way too easy to overspend. Online, with the running total always visible, is MY kind of shopping!
Growing up we had a lot of game shows on screen, mostly syndicated from the States but nothing could beat the magnificent mess that was Takeshis Castle. We even based real life kids games in the neighborhood based on it.
Alex -- your posts are amazing and seem to come from the deep recesses of your mind. It must be a funny place. I have been wandering the rock for more than 22700 days (yep a stupid math problem) and somehow missed Supermarket Dash or whatever it was called. You painted a funny picture and engaged us with an even funnier conclusion!!!
I CANNOT WAIT for the Costco story. Here’s my REAL SHORT version. As newlyweds, we lived in a little beach town in Central California. It was adjacent to a college town. There was very little retail unless you wanted a peach-colored shirt that said PISMO BEACH, CA. The locals, who knew what they were doing, advised we should check out CostCo just down the 101. We joined, of course, and enjoyed evaluating what was on the adjacent sled. I still remember one of the first trips a person had an ungodly sized box of toilet paper. I said (thinking I whispered) to my wife, if you need that much toilet paper you should see a doctor. We got a glare and checked out with our monster-sized muffins the size of a medium dog head. Fast-forward to today and we belong again despite being empty nesters. I still enjoy the impulsive mixture of random nonsense in people’s carts or sleds. The people-watching all by itself makes the membership cost worthwhile. The last time I was there a person had the “family size” Neosporin – enough to start an urgent care clinic. Silly but ALWAYS fun.
My favorite game show is the actual supermarket. Especially in NYC before a snow storm. People freak out so hard and put the wildest shit in their cart!
1) Did you watch supermarket sweep? what would your strategy be if you played today?
i did not.
2) What other game shows did / do you love?
my grandmother always watched jeopardy, wheel of fortune, and the price is right. so i watched those a lot with her. i also enjoy press your luck and pyramid.
3) Have the rules of any games or game shows infiltrated your life?
i think about plinko a lot with respect to how fate works. before the plinko chip is released, there are infinite possibilities of where it could go. once the plinko chip has landed, you can see exactly what path it took.
4) What’s your fav supermarket and why?
the park slope food coop because it's near my home and a non-profit.
5) If you had to create a game that taught people about how to actually be decent human beings, what sort of game would it be ?
i have an idea for a game that might fit this description and either way i'll share it: it's called "no point(s)." and maybe it can be played in lots of ways, but i'll share it through a softball filter. sometimes when playing softball at summer camp, kids would ask "what's the score?" a lot. so in "no point(s)," if you ask what the score is, you lose a point. the team that asks what the score is the least wins! if they're tied, they both win. i haven't worked out all the details yet but that's it so far!
"I was even awarded most improved cashier in 2004." Ha ha ha!!! Awesome.
Q3: Jeopardy in some ways; I thought it was funny to say "What is Nothing" when asked 'what's for breakfast?' Or "what is You tell me," or "what is Whatever you get yourself." That kind of thing, which has since been pointed out is passive aggressive, though I don't actually think there's anything passive about it.
I used to watch Supermarket Sweep when I was home from school sick, along with Price is Right and Shop Til You Drop. I think I enjoy watching game shows more as an adult, because I think more about the strategy element and can relate more to the adult contestants.
Game shows I currently watch: the new Supermarket Sweep with Lesley Jones, Holey Moley, Wipeout, The Floor is Lava, and my absolute favorite, the new Press Your Luck.
damn it I was trying to think of cool music but realized i am now an Elder at the tender age of thirty-fun aka 31
WORD BARF WARF
STILL TRUSTS PEOPLE
I won real life supermarket sweep by realizing that buying generic frozen pizza from the nearby walmart is two whole dollars cheaper than buying generic frozen pizza from the nearer publix.
I watched some Supermarket Sweep streaming in the first month of the pandemic. I thought it would be a nice fun nostalgia romp, but yes all the terrifying things about the capitalism lessons inside the logic of the game show. But also the bad vibes of insane sweater game combined with openly hitting on female contestants from the host. Super yuck.
My favorite grocery store experience in Southern California is Grocery Outlet. It’s like Big Lots for your grocery experience. I will literally talk to anyone about Grocery Outlet (G.O. for short). When my parents visit from across the country I have to take my dad because he is also sick in the head in the same way as me, loving to shop for the fun deals, or should we say that I got the sickness from him.
Sometimes I like to go to Costco on a Saturday morning, not because I need to (certainly we could wait to buy our giant bags of dog food and frozen mini pizzas until a saner weekday), but because I just like to marvel at the mass of people pushing around their massive carts in search of the grocery and warehouse deals.
Again, sick in the head.
“Winning the game of life means not only beating everyone, but convincing them that you’re not playing at all.”
I’m stealing that.
Another great post - thanks, Alex!
4. One which delivers - I'm deeply allergic to in-person grocery shopping: it's a hideous experience, and it's way too easy to overspend. Online, with the running total always visible, is MY kind of shopping!
I had one of those Goosebumps pens. Have not even thought about it for about a quarter of a century or so...
1. Yes. I'm old enough to have enjoyed it. Expensive stuff. Especially in Canada right now, start with the meat. Yikes these days.
2. One of my favourite shows was Liars Club. A panel of people and you have to guess who isn't lying. Hashtag, life skills.
3. Does deciding to answer people foe the day in the form of questions count? Yes. Jeopardy, both real and SLN versions.
4. Not a fan of supermarkets. For reasons.
5. An interesting question. Have to get back to this one...
Growing up we had a lot of game shows on screen, mostly syndicated from the States but nothing could beat the magnificent mess that was Takeshis Castle. We even based real life kids games in the neighborhood based on it.
i am too young to remember supermarket sweep, so i recommend Mipso's entire discography
Alex -- your posts are amazing and seem to come from the deep recesses of your mind. It must be a funny place. I have been wandering the rock for more than 22700 days (yep a stupid math problem) and somehow missed Supermarket Dash or whatever it was called. You painted a funny picture and engaged us with an even funnier conclusion!!!
I CANNOT WAIT for the Costco story. Here’s my REAL SHORT version. As newlyweds, we lived in a little beach town in Central California. It was adjacent to a college town. There was very little retail unless you wanted a peach-colored shirt that said PISMO BEACH, CA. The locals, who knew what they were doing, advised we should check out CostCo just down the 101. We joined, of course, and enjoyed evaluating what was on the adjacent sled. I still remember one of the first trips a person had an ungodly sized box of toilet paper. I said (thinking I whispered) to my wife, if you need that much toilet paper you should see a doctor. We got a glare and checked out with our monster-sized muffins the size of a medium dog head. Fast-forward to today and we belong again despite being empty nesters. I still enjoy the impulsive mixture of random nonsense in people’s carts or sleds. The people-watching all by itself makes the membership cost worthwhile. The last time I was there a person had the “family size” Neosporin – enough to start an urgent care clinic. Silly but ALWAYS fun.
My favorite game show is the actual supermarket. Especially in NYC before a snow storm. People freak out so hard and put the wildest shit in their cart!
dear alex,
thank you as always for this/that/these/those!
1) Did you watch supermarket sweep? what would your strategy be if you played today?
i did not.
2) What other game shows did / do you love?
my grandmother always watched jeopardy, wheel of fortune, and the price is right. so i watched those a lot with her. i also enjoy press your luck and pyramid.
3) Have the rules of any games or game shows infiltrated your life?
i think about plinko a lot with respect to how fate works. before the plinko chip is released, there are infinite possibilities of where it could go. once the plinko chip has landed, you can see exactly what path it took.
4) What’s your fav supermarket and why?
the park slope food coop because it's near my home and a non-profit.
5) If you had to create a game that taught people about how to actually be decent human beings, what sort of game would it be ?
i have an idea for a game that might fit this description and either way i'll share it: it's called "no point(s)." and maybe it can be played in lots of ways, but i'll share it through a softball filter. sometimes when playing softball at summer camp, kids would ask "what's the score?" a lot. so in "no point(s)," if you ask what the score is, you lose a point. the team that asks what the score is the least wins! if they're tied, they both win. i haven't worked out all the details yet but that's it so far!
thanks for asking!
love,
myq
"I was even awarded most improved cashier in 2004." Ha ha ha!!! Awesome.
Q3: Jeopardy in some ways; I thought it was funny to say "What is Nothing" when asked 'what's for breakfast?' Or "what is You tell me," or "what is Whatever you get yourself." That kind of thing, which has since been pointed out is passive aggressive, though I don't actually think there's anything passive about it.
I used to watch Supermarket Sweep when I was home from school sick, along with Price is Right and Shop Til You Drop. I think I enjoy watching game shows more as an adult, because I think more about the strategy element and can relate more to the adult contestants.
Game shows I currently watch: the new Supermarket Sweep with Lesley Jones, Holey Moley, Wipeout, The Floor is Lava, and my absolute favorite, the new Press Your Luck.