On an average day I drink one can of pop. Every now and then two. But caffeine makes me crazy and my stomach doesn’t like most of the white pops and, of course, I’m so used to the taste of diet pop that I don’t want the sugared ones. That cuts down the field of possibilities quite a bit.
Unfortunately a pop that I really like is Cherry Diet Pepsi. A couple of years ago, I tried to wean myself off because of the caffeine and it was really hard. Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi is OK but without that cherry, I just wasn’t won over. Then I realized I could make my own CCFDP with just a little splash of grenadine. Little bottle of grenadine in the cabinet, pop in boxes under the microwave and I’m set.
Then pandemic hit and those dreaded words “supply chain issues”. Within a year, I was having to hunt around for my beloved CFDP. Then I couldn’t find it at all, unless I wanted to pay five times the usual price online. No thanks. I even emailed PepsiCo to get their take and, as I should have expected, they gave me a non-answer and a link that didn’t work. SIGH. I saw stories online about aluminum shortages and figured that CFDP was probably at the bottom of the pop totem pole when it came to handing out the aluminum.
I kept one box of CFDP in the back corner (for emergencies?) and then I resorted to Caffeine Free Diet Coke. It’s OK, but not quite what I like best. For awhile every time I was in a grocery store (not as often as you would think, thanks to drive up delivery), I would wander down the pop aisle… nothing. So imagine my surprise last week when I was actually in the Cub near my house and VOILA…. a little stock of CFDP. I bought 4! I don’t know if this will be the end of my pop woes, but this will keep me going for at least a month!
Tell me about a product that you miss.
Trail Baboon 
We occasionally run into supply issues with the organic cream and half and half w e like. Turkey wings, which I use to make Lynn Rosetto Caspar’s Brodo, are no longer available. We have very little to complain about. I substitute turkey necks and drumsticks. Next week I will be in Minnesota for my friend’s knee surgery, and perhaps I can find wings in the land of the turkey farmers.
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I hear our turkeys are once again threatened by bird flu.
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Uff da
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Rise and Shine Baboons,
The “product” I most miss is our beloved TLGMS. That was The Best way to start my day for years. I am deeply grateful to have lived somewhere that produced such delight and whimsy. It is one of the Twin Cities many gifts to me in life.
VS: hint, Diet Coke is best with a slice of lemon squeezed into it.
OT: I am up early for a few minutes of solitude. Soon we take off for MN, through gorgeous Northern AZ, then New Mexico today.
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Safe travels.
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Ditto
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In Trinidad, Co. To Lincoln, Ne tomorrow.😵💫😴
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Taking the scenic route, huh?
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One of the things I missed the most, vegan Birkenstocks, have come back! They’d had (and still have) Birko-flor uppers with suede footbeds, but for a brief glorious period in the 1990s they had fully vegan sandals and even vegan clogs. Then they disappeared again for a couple of decades, and I had to make do with Chacos, which are good sandals but nowhere near as comfortable as Birkies. Last year I saw that the line had been revived, and I immediately bought two pairs. I want to create a small collection, as funds allow, for when the current vegan trend falls off and I’m bootless–or rather, sandal-less–again.
These days the thing I miss most is Fancy Feast canned cat food, as that’s all that Kameli will eat.–she’d rather starve than eat either dry food or the expensive canned stuff from Chuck and Don’s. Last time I was on Chewy, most of the turkey and all of the tuna was out of stock (she’s allergic to chicken, but fortunately she likes beef and they had plenty of that in stock). It’s a similar issues as with the pop, aluminum is in short supply as well as many of the ingredients, on top of increased demand from people who adopted pets during the shutdowns. With a combination of Chewy and Amazon shopping I was able to stock up with a couple months’ worth, but I hope the shortages don’t go on too long.
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We’re seeing the same issues with Sheba which is the only wet cat food that Nimue really likes. I can still get it from if I order it online from target or Amazon or chewy but I can’t just run into the store and pick it up like I used to.
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i’ll ask debbie where she runs to the store to pick our sheba up target or walmart
my cats get two of those and a can of i think friskies every morning
the dogs get a can of cat food and a big scoop of purina
the fish get some pellets and some flakes and a weekly water change of about 30-40 percent
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I’ve mentioned before the Keebler cookie “Cup Custard”, which I still miss along with nabisco’s Mystic Mint. However, I’ve found that the Girl Scout’s Thin Mints are a good substitute, and I love this:
https://www.customsigns.com/no-soliciting-unless-you-re-selling-thin-mints-sign
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The brand “Food Should Taste Good” had/has a product that is chocolate corn tortilla chips. OMG! So tasty. Just cocoa powder mixed in with the cornflour, I suppose. I got hooked on those really fast. Found them regularly at our local grocery stores for several years. Then suddenly–nothing. Couldn’t find them. They might be at some other grocery stores but I’m not willing to drive to the Cities to find some. Besides, FSTG makes a multigrain tortilla chip that is outstanding in its own right. I can usually get that at Costco.
Chris in Owatonna
P.S.– HUGE shoutout to Trail Baboon’s own Krista for driving all the way from Northfield to Red Wing on Saturday to meet me and buy my books at Fair Trade Books. You folks are so incredibly supportive. Thanks to all who have come to one or more of my events in the past–VS (and YA), tim, BiR, Linda, Krista, Jacque and her husband (Jim?). Sorry if I forgot someone. I’m getting old too. 😦
It means so much that this online group of friends has gone the extra mile in a small way for me the way they really go the extra mile for those in the group who had serious trials and travails. THIS is what makes America great–everyday people doing good things for others, every day.
C
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It was very nice to meet you, Chris! I’ve enjoyed meeting many fellow Baboons over the years and I enjoy being able to put faces with your names. I’ve got your books waiting to be read after the three I’m currently working on. I’ve got to get Louise Erdrich’s ‘The Sentence’ back to the library today. What a great read that was! I love her work. And now I want to take an excursion to Birchbark Books in Minneapolis.
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Hey Chris, I asked this a couple of days ago but it was pretty late and you may not have seen it. I saw that we are supposed to pre-order the books from Once Upon a Crime before Saturday? Is this correct? But I’m assuming that they get a big chunk as opposed to you and a little brothers getting the big chunk? Can I just slip you a check under the table while they’re not looking? I love supporting small businesses but I love supporting my authors more.
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HI, VS. I thought I replied yesterday but for some reason don’t see the post. I always prefer buyers to support the local bookstore first even though I don’t get as much $ compared to selling books “out of my trunk.” But you can certainly buy from OUAC and give me a separate donation to Big Brother Big Sisters. Many people have done that in the past at events. I even bought a small donation box that I put on my table for that purpose.
I always give BBBS at least $1.00 for each book I sell no matter who sells it (other than reselling used copies, of course). And if the bookstore stays in business, that means more authors will have a chance to appear there in the future and sell their books too.
Bottom line: Bookstore appearances don’t make me a lot of money but I think of it as advertising and getting my name out to a wider audience.
Chris
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I’m partial to diet Dr. Pepper but don’t tell anybody. I only drink it when I have to work a late shift and I feel tired. I got away from soft drinks many years ago but there is something about work – we all drink pop there. I might have to give Cherry Diet Pepsi a try. I’m after the caffeine when I’m working.
A product I miss is Pantene Full and Strong shampoo and conditioner. They stopped making it the year before covid. When I heard they were going to stop making it, I went to all the local stores and bought them all. I’ve still got about half of my stash so I haven’t run out yet. I’m sure that when I do, it will be time to cut off my hair. I really credit that chemical shampoo and conditioner with helping my hair to grow so long and healthy.
The other product I miss is Breyer’s Natural Vanilla Ice Cream. No, it’s not gone. It’s still there but I don’t walk past the ice cream section in the grocery store anymore. I can’t. I can’t have that ice cream anymore. It’s a gateway drug for me so I had to quit and now I miss it. Sometimes I fantasize about sitting back with a whole carton and a spoon…
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Häagen-Dazs Butter Pecan is my downfall. Cashwise was out of it on Saturday, so I went without.
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This is one of Nonny’s favorites as well.
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When we had a Sams Club membership, we’d buy the turtle cheese cake from their freezer section; man that was good stuff.
There was a restaurant called ‘Edwardos’ here in Rochester. It was a popular post show bar and they served a heaping plate of deep friend cheese curds. Or you could get mozzarella sticks that were the size of a small log. Course now all I can think of all that is “heart attack!” but it sure was good.
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I don’t wear make-up, except a little lipstick on non-mask outings. The color is so neutral people probably can’t even tell it’s there, but it seems like as soon as I find the perfect shade I like, the maker discontinues it…
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Soaker hoses for gardens were in short supply last year. We stocked up as ours disintegrated last year.
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I used to buy Old Home refrigerated mashed potatoes, but they stopped making them. They were less expensive than the other brands, and locally made. Probably grown elsewhere, but processed here. Does that count? Old Home also used to have a very nice lemon yogurt that was called Velvet. I suppose they can’t always keep making the same products all the time, but there are some I would bring back if I could.
During the pandemic I’ve pretty much been able to buy all the usual stuff. When I still had Sammy, I noticed I was having trouble finding the Gerber ham baby food that he liked, so I had it shipped from Amazon for awhile. It was set up as a recurring shipment. Kinda sad when he died and I had to cancel it.
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I miss a milk tea. Extra heap of Sri Lankan black tea for a deep dark extra strong tea with a light touch of milk powder and with three teaspoons of sugar. Yes it’s a very sweet version. I probably won’t run into the supply chain issues with this one but I have decided to cut sugar off from my diet and this is what I miss the most .
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