Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

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nordsteve
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by nordsteve »

I've had good success getting household supplies (like hand sanitizer and bleach) at the hardware store. Not the cheapest place though.
Valuethinker
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Valuethinker »

musicmom wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:35 am Bosch dishwasher

Really
That's not surprising.

Wherever your dishwasher is assembled (mine in Eastern Europe, but the American ones might be in Mexico or southern states?) it is the end product of streams of components that run all the way back to China (& probably other places we have not thought of*).

All of that was shut down for 3 months. Plus the logistics problems as every logistics company was straining at the limit to meet increased demand from customers at the retail end.

* for example, there was bad flooding in Thailand about 10-12 years ago, and the price of hard drives doubled. Turns out 80% of the world's hard drives were then, made in Thailand. Who knew? When the tsunami hit Fukushima Prefecture in Japan, it led to shortages of key automotive electronics chips - the only place in the world they were made was in that area. Toyota and Honda had to defer some production.

There's probably never more than 30 days of any key component in the world, now, in the entire supply chain. Once that is used up, that's it until someone makes some more.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Valuethinker »

6bquick wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:56 pm
ddurrett896 wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:15 pm
Mudpuppy wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:09 pm People doing things like this are why I refuse to pay surge pricing for something unless it's absolutely necessary. And it's also why I wish more retailers had item limits. I try to keep all my purchases at no more than 2 of each item unless it's something small like individual servings of yogurt.
The good news it that when people surge the price, the people who actually need them has access to them.

I live in an area that gets hit by hurricanes. The week before, somebody goes and buys all the generators to mark up. If he didn't do that, every other person would buy a generator and sit on it thru the storm, never posting it up for sale.

Those who actually need one (medical device that require power, mother with a ton of frozen break milk, etc.) don't have access since everyone purchased a single unit.

The guy that bought a bunch will gouge you, but at least you can actually get one. In a perfect world, only those people who really need them (medical devices, etc.) would purchase them but that's not that case and will never be.

PS I would never bulk buy stuff like that but it's a necessary evil.

I feel that gougers are scumbag troglodytes by-and-large, but that is an unusually optimistic outlook on price gouging and an angle I'd honestly never considered. I appreciate the different perspective. Thanks.
You never took ECON 101 in college, then ;-).

It's almost the first thing they teach you, that the free market's way of rationing anything is by price, and that any other way of doing it is less efficient and in the long run unfair to those who need it.

(If you go on in economics, or if you study managerial economics in business school, they teach you about strategies for market dominance, monopolies & regulation; also about what happens if one party has an informational advantage over another (generally bad things).

But the lesson that sticks with most people - including the US president who attended Harvard Business School - was that price controls are a very bad thing).
ArchiteuthisDux
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by ArchiteuthisDux »

retiringtype wrote: Fri Jul 17, 2020 6:12 am Hunter Douglas Silhouette Blinds. 4-6 week lead time. Normally 2 weeks.
We tried to order no-name blinds from Lowe's (for the basement home theater that substituted for this summer's vacation..) and the order just got canceled, not even backordered. I wonder if those factories are all making masks now.

CO2 for sure--we use a SodaStream to make sparkling water and it's been very difficult to get cartridges.

The mom's group I follow on Facebook has been full of complaints about the shortage of inflatable hot tubs.

My 9 year old has outgrown his bike and there are no bikes in his size available anywhere. Frustratingly, our city decided to get rid of its bike-share program last fall.
6bquick
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by 6bquick »

Valuethinker wrote: Sat Aug 08, 2020 12:34 pm
6bquick wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:56 pm
ddurrett896 wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:15 pm
Mudpuppy wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:09 pm People doing things like this are why I refuse to pay surge pricing for something unless it's absolutely necessary. And it's also why I wish more retailers had item limits. I try to keep all my purchases at no more than 2 of each item unless it's something small like individual servings of yogurt.
The good news it that when people surge the price, the people who actually need them has access to them.

I live in an area that gets hit by hurricanes. The week before, somebody goes and buys all the generators to mark up. If he didn't do that, every other person would buy a generator and sit on it thru the storm, never posting it up for sale.

Those who actually need one (medical device that require power, mother with a ton of frozen break milk, etc.) don't have access since everyone purchased a single unit.

The guy that bought a bunch will gouge you, but at least you can actually get one. In a perfect world, only those people who really need them (medical devices, etc.) would purchase them but that's not that case and will never be.

PS I would never bulk buy stuff like that but it's a necessary evil.

I feel that gougers are scumbag troglodytes by-and-large, but that is an unusually optimistic outlook on price gouging and an angle I'd honestly never considered. I appreciate the different perspective. Thanks.
You never took ECON 101 in college, then ;-).

It's almost the first thing they teach you, that the free market's way of rationing anything is by price, and that any other way of doing it is less efficient and in the long run unfair to those who need it.

(If you go on in economics, or if you study managerial economics in business school, they teach you about strategies for market dominance, monopolies & regulation; also about what happens if one party has an informational advantage over another (generally bad things).

But the lesson that sticks with most people - including the US president who attended Harvard Business School - was that price controls are a very bad thing).
No, I did take Econ 101. which was my only Econ class ha. I did fairly well in it, IIRC. you're exactly right though and your explanation makes sense; I guess I just never took this particular thought exercise that far in my mind.

Having said that, I still think that hoarders and gougers are troglodytes. They might be economically efficient, but that doesn't mean they aren't a-holes.
If your outgo exceeds your income, your upkeep will be your downfall
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Watty
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Watty »

I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
stoptothink
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by stoptothink »

Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
I've already told my kids that Halloween essentially isn't happening this year; does anybody expect any different?
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by sailaway »

stoptothink wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 11:46 pm
Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
I've already told my kids that Halloween essentially isn't happening this year; does anybody expect any different?
Door to door trick or treating shouldn't happen, but no reason not to decorate or wear costumes.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by brandy »

I've been using grocery pick-uo or delivery for about a year. I have put the o'cedar spin mop system on the Walmart list, always told it is out of stock. DD picked up today, and went into the store to get a couple of items for herself, and lo and behold, she said there were several in the store. She brought me one! :happy
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Tubes
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Tubes »

Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
More than that. Think about the lumber shortage, primarily due to all the "nesting" activity.

With people not traveling through the woods to Grandma's this year, they'll instead focus energy at home. That means more decorations and time to decorate at home. So, yeah, I think there will be a run on decorations.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by TheGreyingDuke »

Although expensive"designer" versions are available, run of the mill apple cider vinegar has been MIA for months,BJs, Costco, Wegman's, We use it to capture vinegar flies that are all over the ripening fruit.
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retiredjg
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by retiredjg »

Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
Maybe we should start a list of "pandemic blessings". :D

I hope this means we won't see Christmas decorations in the stores starting in early October any more. When I was younger, "Christmas" started the day after Halloween. Now it starts in October. Extending the commercial season dilutes the joy in my opinion. I've always thought that was a shame.
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Tubes
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Tubes »

retiredjg wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 6:36 am
Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
Maybe we should start a list of "pandemic blessings". :D

I hope this means we won't see Christmas decorations in the stores starting in early October any more. When I was younger, "Christmas" started the day after Halloween. Now it starts in October. Extending the commercial season dilutes the joy in my opinion. I've always thought that was a shame.
I've got bad news for you. I'm a "review starter" for a big box chain. I review products before they hit the shelves in order to get momentum on them. It is like the "Amazon Vine" program. (https://www.amazon.com/gp/vine/help)

Anyway, they just pushed a bunch of Xmas stuff to us. That means it hits the shelves about 6 weeks later. Just in time for Oct 1.
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heartwood
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by heartwood »

Kenkat wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:50 am Caffeine free Coke or Pepsi. We talked to one of the Coca-Cola reps at the store and he said there was an aluminum shortage and so they were only making their core product lines.
Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi still out where I live.
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retiredjg
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by retiredjg »

Tubes wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 7:48 am Anyway, they just pushed a bunch of Xmas stuff to us. That means it hits the shelves about 6 weeks later. Just in time for Oct 1.
Well that's unfortunate!

:( :( :(
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by neilpilot »

TheGreyingDuke wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 6:25 am Although expensive"designer" versions are available, run of the mill apple cider vinegar has been MIA for months,BJs, Costco, Wegman's, We use it to capture vinegar flies that are all over the ripening fruit.
Guess it depends on where and when. I shop Krogers every 2 weeks, and last Saturday there were several plastic gallon jugs of their inexpensive vinegar on the shelf. Both cider and white vinegar.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by LadyGeek »

I removed an off-topic political comment. See: Politics and Religion
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Please stay on-topic, which are the consumer aspects.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by radiowave »

The local King Supers (Kroger) is no longer stocking Private Selection pasta for some reason, not available anywhere??
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Clever_Username »

stoptothink wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 11:46 pm
Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
I've already told my kids that Halloween essentially isn't happening this year; does anybody expect any different?
Of all the things that we can't do because of this pandemic, having Halloween on a Saturday night with a full moon and when we get an extra hour of sleep because of the clock changing 2am on November 1... :x
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BarbaricYawp
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by BarbaricYawp »

Poultry equipment.

Incubators have been sold out for months. Feeders for my birds have been back-ordered over a month now and its impossible to find metal waterers of any size. Apparently people are feeling enough food insecurity to try raising chicks because Tractor Supply is STILL selling them at this extraordinarily late date. From what I'm hearing though the joke has been on the in-store procrastinators though because the hatcheries are selling the hen-chicks to their direct online customers and shipping the roo-chicks to places like Tractor Supply to sell as 'straight run'. People are finding themselves with 12 roosters instead of the dozen egg-layers they wanted. :shock:

At least the stores are finally able to stock chicken feed, although nearly everything from Purina is coming in a generic bag because there is also apparently a nationwide feed sack shortage. Who knew?
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by MadHungarian »

stoptothink wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 11:46 pm
Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
I've already told my kids that Halloween essentially isn't happening this year; does anybody expect any different?
Just wear masks under your masks!
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by 3of10 »

retiredjg wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 6:36 am
Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
Maybe we should start a list of "pandemic blessings". :D

I hope this means we won't see Christmas decorations in the stores starting in early October any more. When I was younger, "Christmas" started the day after Halloween. Now it starts in October. Extending the commercial season dilutes the joy in my opinion. I've always thought that was a shame.
I use to only hear the Xmas songs being played after Thanksgiving. But, lately, stations have been playing them in October. I know its not right, but I enjoy listening to them, even though its right after Halloween.
"You don't stop playing because you're old. You're old because you've stopped playing"
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by sailaway »

3of10 wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 3:18 pm
retiredjg wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 6:36 am
Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
Maybe we should start a list of "pandemic blessings". :D

I hope this means we won't see Christmas decorations in the stores starting in early October any more. When I was younger, "Christmas" started the day after Halloween. Now it starts in October. Extending the commercial season dilutes the joy in my opinion. I've always thought that was a shame.
I use to only hear the Xmas songs being played after Thanksgiving. But, lately, stations have been playing them in October. I know its not right, but I enjoy listening to them, even though its right after Halloween.
Christmas in October brings out the scrooge in me. I do what I can to avoid retail for nearly three months of the year. This year, it will be nine months, though, so whatever.
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retiredjg
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by retiredjg »

sailaway wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 3:22 pm Christmas in October brings out the scrooge in me.
Me too! :annoyed
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by LilyFleur »

Valuethinker wrote: Sat Aug 08, 2020 12:34 pm
6bquick wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:56 pm
ddurrett896 wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:15 pm
Mudpuppy wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:09 pm People doing things like this are why I refuse to pay surge pricing for something unless it's absolutely necessary. And it's also why I wish more retailers had item limits. I try to keep all my purchases at no more than 2 of each item unless it's something small like individual servings of yogurt.
The good news it that when people surge the price, the people who actually need them has access to them.

I live in an area that gets hit by hurricanes. The week before, somebody goes and buys all the generators to mark up. If he didn't do that, every other person would buy a generator and sit on it thru the storm, never posting it up for sale.

Those who actually need one (medical device that require power, mother with a ton of frozen break milk, etc.) don't have access since everyone purchased a single unit.

The guy that bought a bunch will gouge you, but at least you can actually get one. In a perfect world, only those people who really need them (medical devices, etc.) would purchase them but that's not that case and will never be.

PS I would never bulk buy stuff like that but it's a necessary evil.

I feel that gougers are scumbag troglodytes by-and-large, but that is an unusually optimistic outlook on price gouging and an angle I'd honestly never considered. I appreciate the different perspective. Thanks.
You never took ECON 101 in college, then ;-).

It's almost the first thing they teach you, that the free market's way of rationing anything is by price, and that any other way of doing it is less efficient and in the long run unfair to those who need it.

(If you go on in economics, or if you study managerial economics in business school, they teach you about strategies for market dominance, monopolies & regulation; also about what happens if one party has an informational advantage over another (generally bad things).

But the lesson that sticks with most people - including the US president who attended Harvard Business School - was that price controls are a very bad thing).
Former president Obama has an undergraduate degree from Columbia and a J.D. from Harvard Law, magna cum laude. President Trump has a bachelor's degree from Wharton at the University of Pennsylvania. Not sure which one you are referring to?
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Mudpuppy »

MadHungarian wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 11:52 am
stoptothink wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 11:46 pm
Watty wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 7:17 pm I have heard from a source that Halloween and Christmas decorations will be in short supply this year because of the factories being shut down when they would have been making them.
I've already told my kids that Halloween essentially isn't happening this year; does anybody expect any different?
Just wear masks under your masks!
You could always dress up for Halloween as a plague doctor and build the mask to serve both purposes. Several people are already making such costumes for Halloween, although one got the wrong fabric for the mask (not breathable enough) so the nose crinkled and expanded with each breath. Comical for a quick social media psost, but not very wearable.

Although I hadn't thought of it before this post, it wouldn't surprise me of there's a shortage of packaged Halloween costumes this year. In addition to the supply chain disruptions, a part of the supply chain is being redirected towards fabric mask production.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by stoptothink »

LilyFleur wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 4:38 pm
Valuethinker wrote: Sat Aug 08, 2020 12:34 pm
6bquick wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:56 pm
ddurrett896 wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:15 pm
Mudpuppy wrote: Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:09 pm People doing things like this are why I refuse to pay surge pricing for something unless it's absolutely necessary. And it's also why I wish more retailers had item limits. I try to keep all my purchases at no more than 2 of each item unless it's something small like individual servings of yogurt.
The good news it that when people surge the price, the people who actually need them has access to them.

I live in an area that gets hit by hurricanes. The week before, somebody goes and buys all the generators to mark up. If he didn't do that, every other person would buy a generator and sit on it thru the storm, never posting it up for sale.

Those who actually need one (medical device that require power, mother with a ton of frozen break milk, etc.) don't have access since everyone purchased a single unit.

The guy that bought a bunch will gouge you, but at least you can actually get one. In a perfect world, only those people who really need them (medical devices, etc.) would purchase them but that's not that case and will never be.

PS I would never bulk buy stuff like that but it's a necessary evil.

I feel that gougers are scumbag troglodytes by-and-large, but that is an unusually optimistic outlook on price gouging and an angle I'd honestly never considered. I appreciate the different perspective. Thanks.
You never took ECON 101 in college, then ;-).

It's almost the first thing they teach you, that the free market's way of rationing anything is by price, and that any other way of doing it is less efficient and in the long run unfair to those who need it.

(If you go on in economics, or if you study managerial economics in business school, they teach you about strategies for market dominance, monopolies & regulation; also about what happens if one party has an informational advantage over another (generally bad things).

But the lesson that sticks with most people - including the US president who attended Harvard Business School - was that price controls are a very bad thing).
Former president Obama has an undergraduate degree from Columbia and a J.D. from Harvard Law, magna cum laude. President Trump has a bachelor's degree from Wharton at the University of Pennsylvania. Not sure which one you are referring to?
George W. Bush is a Harvard Business grad.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by tooluser »

Just to put the education question to rest:

List_of_Presidents_of_the_United_States_by_education:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_P ... _education

Plenty of Halloween candy showed up in L.A. on 01 Aug, though I am not a connoisseur of such purveyances, so would not notice if certain treats were missing from the milieu.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by sailaway »

tooluser wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 5:35 pm Just to put the education question to rest:

List_of_Presidents_of_the_United_States_by_education:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_P ... _education

Plenty of Halloween candy showed up in L.A. on 01 Aug, though I am not a connoisseur of such purveyances, so would not notice if certain treats were missing from the milieu.
Costco had large Halloween decorations and racks of costumes yesterday.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by F150HD »

heartwood wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 7:55 am
Kenkat wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:50 am Caffeine free Coke or Pepsi. We talked to one of the Coca-Cola reps at the store and he said there was an aluminum shortage and so they were only making their core product lines.
Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi still out where I live.
why not just grab some Tab?

Most stores probably can't give it away :mrgreen:
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by F150HD »

Liquid hand soap- Softsoap antibacterial - every store shelf is empty, has been for a while.

Used it for years before Covid, now I see it on Amazon for like $40 a bottle. :shock:

Though, the Lord works in mysterious ways....I found some Dial Antibacterial liquid hand soap the other day. Its the gold color so maybe not as popular (vs clear color), but, things as they are I just bought it.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Halicar »

Valuethinker wrote: Sat Aug 08, 2020 12:30 pm
musicmom wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:35 am Bosch dishwasher

Really
That's not surprising.

Wherever your dishwasher is assembled (mine in Eastern Europe, but the American ones might be in Mexico or southern states?) it is the end product of streams of components that run all the way back to China (& probably other places we have not thought of*).

All of that was shut down for 3 months. Plus the logistics problems as every logistics company was straining at the limit to meet increased demand from customers at the retail end.

* for example, there was bad flooding in Thailand about 10-12 years ago, and the price of hard drives doubled. Turns out 80% of the world's hard drives were then, made in Thailand. Who knew? When the tsunami hit Fukushima Prefecture in Japan, it led to shortages of key automotive electronics chips - the only place in the world they were made was in that area. Toyota and Honda had to defer some production.

There's probably never more than 30 days of any key component in the world, now, in the entire supply chain. Once that is used up, that's it until someone makes some more.
I work at a small, nondescript manufacturing facility in a small town in the Midwest--the kind of place you might drive right by and not even notice--and we crank out millions of components a year for certain common items. If something were to shut us down for a month, it would be noticed across the entire country.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Old Guy »

Three ply napkins at Kroger.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by CardinalRule »

Lean Pockets are nowhere to be found in my area.

They were something I would sometimes eat if I came home very late from work. Probably less impactful for me now, during these WFH days.

But I still miss Lean Pockets and also Diet Mountain Dew in cans. :mad:
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Talisker »

tim1999 wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 10:06 am Golf push carts.

I was looking for a push cart when I read your post. Nothing available anywhere. Costco online has them in stock and about$120

Shipped on the 19th and arrived on the 28th. 4 wheel and nice.
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Halicar
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Halicar »

Kenkat wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:50 am Caffeine free Coke or Pepsi. We talked to one of the Coca-Cola reps at the store and he said there was an aluminum shortage and so they were only making their core product lines.
Still no A&W Cream Soda at my grocery store. I haven't seen it in months.
bighatnohorse
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by bighatnohorse »

Our local bike shop is almost out of bikes.
Their usual inventory of 60 to 70 bikes is now about 6 or 7 bikes.
The worker said that whole families have come in to buy bikes and clean them out - same for competing bike shops - none can get inventory.

As I drove by our local kayak shop, only two kayaks were outside - normally there's about a dozen.
It appears that people are going to outdoor activities, a lot.

My air gun varmint rifle (made in Spain) took six weeks to arrive.
All local stores such as Cabela's and Dick's were sold out.
That was probably due to the Corona Virus shut down impact in Spain.
egrets
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by egrets »

F150HD wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 5:55 pm Liquid hand soap- Softsoap antibacterial - every store shelf is empty, has been for a while.

Used it for years before Covid, now I see it on Amazon for like $40 a bottle. :shock:

Though, the Lord works in mysterious ways....I found some Dial Antibacterial liquid hand soap the other day. Its the gold color so maybe not as popular (vs clear color), but, things as they are I just bought it.
One thing that's happening is I'm getting to try different brands. Either what I normally buy is out of stock, or peapod displays similar products at lower prices. My product loyalty seems to have gone into the bit bucket, and now I aim for low price. I suspect that will continue if things ever get back to normal. There are only a couple of things where the actual brand now matters to me.
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retiredjg
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by retiredjg »

egrets wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 9:27 am One thing that's happening is I'm getting to try different brands. Either what I normally buy is out of stock, or peapod displays similar products at lower prices. My product loyalty seems to have gone into the bit bucket...
I've had a lot of this experience.

Started with toilet paper and I've still not gotten back to my original brand. Yesterday, there were no english muffins so I had to settle for bagels. Flexibility is a special virtue this year.
InMyDreams
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by InMyDreams »

** Mylanta (liquid) and its generics. Weird, but two different big-chain grocery stores, and the shelf is either empty, or has one (and now has none).

** I went looking for rum extract - good luck with that. I noticed that a few basic flavors were there (vanilla, peppermint, almond) but not the plethora of flavors that are usually there. Similar with herbs/spices - pretty good selection, but not complete.
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heartwood
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by heartwood »

heartwood wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 7:55 am
Kenkat wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:50 am Caffeine free Coke or Pepsi. We talked to one of the Coca-Cola reps at the store and he said there was an aluminum shortage and so they were only making their core product lines.
Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi still out where I live.
There was story about the can shortage in the WSJ in the last week.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronaviru ... ge=1&pos=2

They attribute it to closed bars and restaurants that sold beer in kegs. With the closings, that volume of beer goes to cans and bottles, hence the shortages for less popular products like caffeine-free diet soda.

Toilet paper and other paper products are still problems in my area. No Vanity Fair napkins anywhere. Finally ordered from Amazon
No Press & Seal plastic wrap.
No longer able to order Costco style Charmin toilet paper. It's wider and softer than standard. Not even listed online anymore.
I could go on ...
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by CardinalRule »

heartwood wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 12:03 pm
heartwood wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 7:55 am
Kenkat wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:50 am Caffeine free Coke or Pepsi. We talked to one of the Coca-Cola reps at the store and he said there was an aluminum shortage and so they were only making their core product lines.
Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi still out where I live.
There was story about the can shortage in the WSJ in the last week.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronaviru ... 1598356980

They attribute it to closed bars and restaurants that sold beer in kegs. With the closings, that volume of beer goes to cans and bottles, hence the shortages for less popular products like caffeine-free diet soda.
Thanks - I read the WSJ but had not seen that. Remarkable that two new production lines from Ball Corp. that can produce a billion cans each year aren't enough.

Unrelated (I think) to cans - 16.9 oz. bottles of Diet Mountain Dew (and Zero Sugar, for that matter) have recently disappeared from grocery shelves in my PNW area.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Jeanz »

White vinegar has disappeared from the shelves here in the suburbs of DC. Are people making pickles, or are they soaking their coins in vinegar -- a very old habit, that. I don't think it does any good.

We've been through shortages of bleach, flour, yeast, and rice, but they all seem to be back now except for yeast. Cleaning stuff, too.
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ResearchMed
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by ResearchMed »

Jeanz wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 2:12 pm White vinegar has disappeared from the shelves here in the suburbs of DC. Are people making pickles, or are they soaking their coins in vinegar -- a very old habit, that. I don't think it does any good.

We've been through shortages of bleach, flour, yeast, and rice, but they all seem to be back now except for yeast. Cleaning stuff, too.
Vinegar can be added to water, etc., as a cleaning agent, such as home-made Windex.
Because alcohol and bleach are disappearing fast, if they are even arriving in stores currently, that may be why vinegar is now being grabbed.

RM
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ballons
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by ballons »

Jeanz wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 2:12 pm White vinegar has disappeared from the shelves here in the suburbs of DC. Are people making pickles, or are they soaking their coins in vinegar -- a very old habit, that. I don't think it does any good.

We've been through shortages of bleach, flour, yeast, and rice, but they all seem to be back now except for yeast. Cleaning stuff, too.
This entire thread is self fulfilling prophesy for shortages.

One comments X is out. Those that use X now buy more "before the shortages hits my area." Those that don't have any X, buy more when it is available. Manufacturer wonders how X just sold 2500% more. They either produce more or just announce X is in short supply. This causes people to seek out X even more.

America isn't running out of sugar, water, or AL yet people are stockpiling sugar water in AL cans like we are.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by neilpilot »

ballons wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 2:48 pm
Jeanz wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 2:12 pm White vinegar has disappeared from the shelves here in the suburbs of DC. Are people making pickles, or are they soaking their coins in vinegar -- a very old habit, that. I don't think it does any good.

We've been through shortages of bleach, flour, yeast, and rice, but they all seem to be back now except for yeast. Cleaning stuff, too.
This entire thread is self fulfilling prophesy for shortages.

One comments X is out. Those that use X now buy more "before the shortages hits my area." Those that don't have any X, buy more when it is available. Manufacturer wonders how X just sold 2500% more. They either produce more or just announce X is in short supply. This causes people to seek out X even more.

America isn't running out of sugar, water, or AL yet people are stockpiling sugar water in AL cans like we are.
I think you overestimate the influence of the thread.

However, I am intrigued that you are "stockpiling sugar water in AL cans". How do you seal the cans to prevent spoilage or evaporation?
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by Mudpuppy »

neilpilot wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 3:11 pm However, I am intrigued that you are "stockpiling sugar water in AL cans". How do you seal the cans to prevent spoilage or evaporation?
I think that was a tongue-in-cheek way of referring to people who are stockpiling canned sodas.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by livesoft »

ballons wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 2:48 pmThis entire thread is self fulfilling prophesy for shortages.
I agree. I've been going to the grocery store about once every 3 weeks. No shortages of anything. Tons of all the stuff people seemed to find scarce back in March: masks, hand sanitizer, bleach, alcohol, TP, baby wipes, cleaning supplies, soap, fresh veggies, meats, eggs, Dr Pepper, whatever.

Well, maybe there is still a shortage of Common Sense.
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by jlawrence01 »

radiowave wrote: Tue Aug 11, 2020 10:12 am The local King Supers (Kroger) is no longer stocking Private Selection pasta for some reason, not available anywhere??
Seven of the nine Private Selection pasta varieties are available at the local Fry's store. I believe that the reason for some of the shortages in past weeks is that the product is sourced from Italy.
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retiredjg
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Re: Oddly Difficult to Find Items During the Pandemic

Post by retiredjg »

livesoft wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 3:15 pm
ballons wrote: Sat Aug 29, 2020 2:48 pmThis entire thread is self fulfilling prophesy for shortages.
I agree. I've been going to the grocery store about once every 3 weeks. No shortages of anything. Tons of all the stuff people seemed to find scarce back in March: masks, hand sanitizer, bleach, alcohol, TP, baby wipes, cleaning supplies, soap, fresh veggies, meats, eggs, Dr Pepper, whatever.
That may be the nature of where you live and where you shop. It is certainly not the same in the stores I use in my smaller town. Things are there one week and not the next. It's always a crap shoot when looking for some items and certainly for some brands.

Well, maybe there is still a shortage of Common Sense.
That's likely the same. :happy
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