I Shop at Whole Foods…

April 18, 2010

Whole Foods Market in Austin, TX So what!? For some reason, I feel like we are judged because we shop at Whole Foods. At least two couples I know of gives a little “heh heh”-type chuckle when the subject comes up. I have to admit, it makes me feel defensive.

I have no idea how much other people spend on their weekly groceries, or what other peoples budget is for food, but our food budget is one of the largest portions of what we spend money on.

Why? Because Kevin and I hardly spend on anything else. We don’t pay for cable. We don’t have Netflix (or any other monthly services except cell phone service). We rarely eat out (and when we do, we more than likely use a coupon). Kevin and I, on average, go out to see a movie every other month (separately still, until we are comfortable leaving Binary Boy with a sitter). We don’t buy fancy clothing or shoes – we both shop at Old Navy and Kohl’s (sales and coupons, of course), and occasionally I’ll find something at Costco. Hell, I’ve been wearing the same pair of Converse for over 4 years now and I still love them.

Sure, we’ve been buying some new furniture to furnish our used-to-be-bare home. Guess what, though? Mostly ALL of it has been on deep discount at World Market and probably bought in conjunction with a coupon! We patiently wait for sales… weeks, months even… and then grab what we want when it’s in our budget. We aren’t people who need to feel that instant gratification, clearly.

So, what do we spend a large chunk of our weekly budget on? Good, wholesome, healthy, safe food. Organic fruits and veggies. Sustainable meat and seafood. I have a wheat sensitivity, so I need to buy some of the gluten free items that can only be found at Whole Foods (and sadly, I think Binary Boy has inherited some of my food sensitivities, so we’ve been shopping for some of the gluten-free kids food, too).

Also, we shop their sales. When something is on sale, we buy it in bulk. We buy certain often-used items with their case discount (12 items = 10% off). We use the coupons they offer in store every month – yup, they put out their own coupon book! We buy their store brand, 365 Everyday Value, A LOT.

We don’t exclusively shop at Whole Foods, either. I know it’s not the be-all, end-all for grocery stores (but, we really, really love it there). We buy certain items at Costco and some things at H.E.B. (a local grocery store).

So, really? What is the deal with people judging us on where we shop? What’s with the judgment in general? What does that help or offer a friendship? I’ll tell you. Absolutely nothing.

Note: Not sure if I need to mention this, but just to cover my ass: Absolutely none of this post was sponsored by anyone and I got absolutely nothing to post any brand names. I added links because I felt like it, and as you can see, some brands I got lazy with and didn’t link.

{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }

Lisa April 19, 2010 at 10:14 am

We don’t have a Whole Foods, but we are getting an Earth Fare next month and I am SO EXCITED. I’m sensitive to high fructose corn syrup, and I’m so looking forward to going to a store where I can just pick something off the shelf because it sounds good, and not have to stand there and read labels for every. single. thing. I know it will end up costing us more, but if you have food sensitivities you don’t really have a choice. Which is something that drives me crazy about the coupon craze. I have friends that constantly brag about how they spend $20 on a week’s worth of food, but some of us just can’t do that. I can’t find coupons for “real” food, and I can’t just run out and buy the latest Kraft dinner because it’s cheap.
.-= Lisa’s last blog ..Guess what Internet? =-.

Reply

Binary Blonde April 23, 2010 at 2:50 am

I feel the same way about the coupons in the local paper. It’s all for packaged, crappy food. Truly, where is the deal? So, you’re paying a little bit less for tasty poison. Okay, a little dramatic, but that’s how I think about it. High fructose corn syrup isn’t a food our body recognizes and utilizes. It’s essentially poison, and people are paying their hard-earned money to big agriculture to eat it. So sad. I have yet to see “Food, Inc.”, but my husband is keeping me from seeing it because he’s afraid I’ll want to grow my own food in the backyard. My question to him was, how is that bad!?

Reply

Lisa April 23, 2010 at 10:35 am

I haven’t seen “Food, Inc.” but my brother watched it and didn’t want to eat at ALL. We went on a little road trip the day after he saw it, stopped at a Chick-fil-A for breakfast, and he seriously ate nothing but a fruit cup and coffee with honey. This is a guy that LOVES meat and fast food.

I want to throw something at the TV every time I see one of those corn industry sponsored ads about how HFCS is “like sugar, fine in moderation.” It’s not like sugar. Sucrose is a molecule with fructose and glucose bound together. HFCS is a concoction mixed together to taste somewhat similar to sugar. I really hate to think how many Americans have been diagnosed with IBS and are taking random drug after random drug in an attempt to help their symptoms, when they really just have a problem with free-floating fructose and it’s in almost everything they eat.
.-= Lisa ‘s last blog ..They aren’t the same. =-.

Cyndi April 22, 2010 at 7:43 pm

You are way ahead of most people your age … you spend your money wisely!

Good, nourishing food is key to a strong foundation – it opens so many other doors. You are doing it right, no question.

Reply

Binary Blonde April 23, 2010 at 2:53 am

Cyndi, no matter how long in-between posts, you always leave comments that are thoughtful and leave me feeling happy. Thank you!

Reply

MrsPop April 23, 2010 at 10:15 am

It is nobody’s business where you spend your money or how. The only reason I don’t shop there or Central Market is because getting there is a pain in the ass and I don’t have the time.

You don’t have to justify your actions to anyone. 🙂
.-= MrsPop’s last blog ..Thought For Friday =-.

Reply

Binary Blonde May 7, 2010 at 2:31 am

We make it a family outing, otherwise I think I would not like going there alone with Binary Boy. He gets waaay overstimulated there and can be hard to handle by the end of the trip. Good to have both of us to keep him occupied. Haha! Thankfully, as he gets older, he’s getting slightly calmer and easier to reason with.. though, not enough to go it alone just yet.

Reply

Dan Boyle April 29, 2010 at 11:42 am

Pat and I sometimes have a discussion about people at work she feels are judging her. My comment is always the same: “someone elses opinion of me is none of my business”. And then I say else relating to “where the sun DON’T shine”. Cheers my dear daughter.

Reply

Binary Blonde May 7, 2010 at 2:28 am

Haha! As always, you provide great advice with your usual funny sarcasm. I loved that when I was younger and still do! I would never expect anything less from you, Dad. Love you! Thanks for commenting!

Reply

Cyndi May 2, 2010 at 9:36 pm

Awh .. so sweet .. thanks but I’m just being honest. You are a great mother. Don’t forget that.

Reply

Mark May 7, 2010 at 10:30 am

I happen to like Whole Foods for the most part. I wasn’t very happy with them gobbling up most of their competitors in the Northwest, but that’s business. Anyway, on gluten free products, Trader Joe’s has some very good pastas and they’re cheaper than Whole Foods. When I go to Vegas, it’s with a list. Get everything I can at Trader Joe’s and the rest at Whole Foods. (And in comparison, Whole Foods is cheaper than the local market here.)

Reply

David May 27, 2010 at 6:39 am

I totally agree with Cyndi: It is my opinion that your economic philosophy and economic priorities are right on target. Those in the flock don’t appreciate self thinkers as they are unable to think for themselves. The flockers often seem to find consolation in discounting independent thinking and behaviour. Continue in your ways. Bless you.

Reply

Martha June 24, 2010 at 11:55 pm

Good, wholesome, healthy, safe food items including organic fruits and veggies at a low price tag … yes, Whole Foods is definitely the place for that. But, I’d not recommend that place for lunch with their ready-to-eat menu including pizza, a salad bar and sandwiches … why? because the food there is too bland and too expensive for what you get. For example – their signature sandwiches start at around $6.00 but are no different from what we get at 7-11 at a much cheaper price.
.-= Martha’s last blog ..Applebee’s Menu =-.

Reply

Wild Child August 26, 2010 at 1:18 pm

If it’s any consolation, I am broke and I shop at Whole Foods like it’s nobody’s business.

Reply

Bug August 27, 2010 at 8:08 am

I love Whole Foods, that’s where we get all our beans and fresh granola (‘effin yummy!) To heck with the haters – they are missing out *chuckle*

Reply

Sire August 28, 2010 at 7:51 pm

Hey, times are tough and you do what you have to do. I don’t worry about what others say, if I can save a buck I will, and if that means shopping specials then so be it.

Reply

Alex. January 12, 2011 at 6:34 am

I think you’ve got your priorities right. Eating good quality food is more expensive on the surface – but compared to the cost of ill health?
It’s also an investment in the organic growers, who we should all be supporting.

Reply

Marisel March 16, 2011 at 11:08 pm

It’s sad, but people in general give high importance to items/services like premium cable, their latest ipod, fast food, or whatever, instead of using their money on where it will count the most, on their body and overall health.

Reply

Steve July 25, 2011 at 4:24 am

I think people should invest money in healthy food. I have a dog and had a talk about dog-food with other dog owners lately. They only buy the best food for their dog and would never give him industrially processed food. But the food they have on their own table is mostly fast-food microwave stuff. I don´t understand that. People, start living more healthy, really!

Reply

You can use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>

Previous post:

Next post: