Going to Wal-Mart while in Port

I would suggest it has more to do with the desire to secure any number
of small items that failed to make it into your luggage than it does
with the desire to touch base with something familiar. Who hasn't
suddenly realized he should have brought along some aspirin or
deep-heating rub or that it might have been a good idea to have packed
another eight pairs of socks?

Wal-Mart is a one-stop shopping location that generally always has
whatever it is you need, and at a fairly decent price too. It's a place
to go to buy that umbrella you never thought you'd need or that
windbreaker there wasn't room for but which suddenly you can't live
without if you're going to spend any time on deck.

Barbara "sometimes it's more about the cold, freezing American than it
is about the ugly American" Mikkelson
--
Philly is to stoopid what L.A. is to weird. - Barry Traylor
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Urban legends and more -- http://www.snopes.com

"Charles" wrote in message
d...

I am sure they would have to be paid employees. Why would anyone do it
for free?

True, I guess I was in the *volunteer* mode when I posted that..Ed and I
both do volunteer work at the hospital and if I remember correctly, the
times that I did go into the store, the greeters looked of retirement
age...so it was just a fleeting thought. ;-)

--Jean

We don't have a Wal*Mart and I doubt we ever will. I live in a very
NIMBY kind of community. I have mixed feelings about that. Our tax base
is almost nil. Budget cuts right and left. The AVERAGE price of a home
is $737,000. It's obnoxious, really. Now then, I have been to the
Wal*Mart about 35 minutes away. Since I hate driving more than 4 miles
to ANYWHERE, I try to make this a "Wal*Mart kind of day". In other
words, I plan to spend a few hours in there, IF I'm on a roll. NEVER on
a weekend. ALWAYS drive over at 8:00 AM. This probably happens MAYBE
once in every two years. Like I said, I hate to drive. Admittedly, if
we had one down the street I would most likely be there every chance I
get. I'm a bargain-hunter kinda gal. It's in my blood. (Thanks, Dad!:-)
NOT to say he spends much time there, if any. He's just good at finding
a bargain...including on cruises. As for quality and selection, the
Wal*Mart I have shopped at is still fairly new in comparison to others
and I've found it to have some GREAT items at prices I can deal with.
Household stuff. Food items for school lunches. Shoes. Clothing. All
the practical stuff. I get no thrills out of walking into a
Neiman-Marcus or I.Magnins. But, let me walk through the doors of a
Wal*Mart (when it's not busy) and I suddenly have this adrenaline rush.
Don't ask me why! I equate it to the ladies who drive up to the
Goodwill in their Mercedes and BMWs and come out with an armful of
"nearly new" designer clothes and can pat their "still fat" wallets,
feeling smug.

Lindsay ---- who asks for "no flames, please". :-)




Bob Gow wrote:
[Rant mode selected]
I have been to a few and quality and selection wise, they are for
bottom feeders. Yes, the prices are very low, but there are
tradeoffs
for those low prices. Add on that they tend to drive wages down,
drive out smaller retailers and cater to the christain right on media
selection and I see little reason to throw money away there. Having
said that, Wal-mat (Volder-mart for those Harry Potter fans) does
provide low prices to bottom tier wage earners (who likely work at
Wal/Volder-mart because there are no other jobs available in the
area). Like dung beetles or carrion-eaters, they do have their place
in the economic ecology.
[Rant mode deselected]

On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 17:40:08 GMT, (Karen
Segboer) wrote:

Charles wrote:

In article , E.k.R.
wrote:

Good question Scott. Frankly I think that would be a complete
waste of
precious time spent ashore. Personally I would not step foot in
a Wal-Mart
while I'm home (can't stand the place) so I sure as hell wouldn't
visit one
while on vacation.

I stepped into one last year to return an item I had purchased from
their online store, as they suggested. I agree, yuck. I would avoid
visiting one from home or on a cruise.

Interesting thread. I've never been in a Wal-Mart and always wanted
to go to one; in fact, I just discovered there's one up the highway
and I plan on visiting soon, just to look around. Wal-Mart's
building
a new store in our neck of the woods, too.

Karen





__ /7__/7__/7__
\::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.cupcaked.com/reviews =AE
(...and leave off the "potatoes" to e-mail)

Bob Gow
"Experience is what you get when
you expected something else."

We don't have a Wal*Mart and I doubt we ever will. I live in a very
NIMBY kind of community. I have mixed feelings about that. Our tax base
is almost nil. Budget cuts right and left. The AVERAGE price of a home
is $737,000. It's obnoxious, really. Now then, I have been to the
Wal*Mart about 35 minutes away. Since I hate driving more than 4 miles
to ANYWHERE, I try to make this a "Wal*Mart kind of day". In other
words, I plan to spend a few hours in there, IF I'm on a roll. NEVER on
a weekend. ALWAYS drive over at 8:00 AM. This probably happens MAYBE
once in every two years. Like I said, I hate to drive. Admittedly, if
we had one down the street I would most likely be there every chance I
get. I'm a bargain-hunter kinda gal. It's in my blood. (Thanks, Dad!:-)
NOT to say he spends much time there, if any. He's just good at finding
a bargain...including on cruises. As for quality and selection, the
Wal*Mart I have shopped at is still fairly new in comparison to others
and I've found it to have some GREAT items at prices I can deal with.
Household stuff. Food items for school lunches. Shoes. Clothing. All
the practical stuff. I get no thrills out of walking into a
Neiman-Marcus or I.Magnins. But, let me walk through the doors of a
Wal*Mart (when it's not busy) and I suddenly have this adrenaline rush.
Don't ask me why! I equate it to the ladies who drive up to the
Goodwill in their Mercedes and BMWs and come out with an armful of
"nearly new" designer clothes and can pat their "still fat" wallets,
feeling smug.

Lindsay ---- who asks for "no flames, please". :-)




Bob Gow wrote:
[Rant mode selected]
I have been to a few and quality and selection wise, they are for
bottom feeders. Yes, the prices are very low, but there are
tradeoffs
for those low prices. Add on that they tend to drive wages down,
drive out smaller retailers and cater to the christain right on media
selection and I see little reason to throw money away there. Having
said that, Wal-mat (Volder-mart for those Harry Potter fans) does
provide low prices to bottom tier wage earners (who likely work at
Wal/Volder-mart because there are no other jobs available in the
area). Like dung beetles or carrion-eaters, they do have their place
in the economic ecology.
[Rant mode deselected]

On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 17:40:08 GMT, (Karen
Segboer) wrote:

Charles wrote:

In article , E.k.R.
wrote:

Good question Scott. Frankly I think that would be a complete
waste of
precious time spent ashore. Personally I would not step foot in
a Wal-Mart
while I'm home (can't stand the place) so I sure as hell wouldn't
visit one
while on vacation.

I stepped into one last year to return an item I had purchased from
their online store, as they suggested. I agree, yuck. I would avoid
visiting one from home or on a cruise.

Interesting thread. I've never been in a Wal-Mart and always wanted
to go to one; in fact, I just discovered there's one up the highway
and I plan on visiting soon, just to look around. Wal-Mart's
building
a new store in our neck of the woods, too.

Karen





__ /7__/7__/7__
\::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.cupcaked.com/reviews =AE
(...and leave off the "potatoes" to e-mail)

Bob Gow
"Experience is what you get when
you expected something else."

We don't have a Wal*Mart and I doubt we ever will. I live in a very
NIMBY kind of community. I have mixed feelings about that. Our tax base
is almost nil. Budget cuts right and left. The AVERAGE price of a home
is $737,000. It's obnoxious, really. Now then, I have been to the
Wal*Mart about 35 minutes away. Since I hate driving more than 4 miles
to ANYWHERE, I try to make this a "Wal*Mart kind of day". In other
words, I plan to spend a few hours in there, IF I'm on a roll. NEVER on
a weekend. ALWAYS drive over at 8:00 AM. This probably happens MAYBE
once in every two years. Like I said, I hate to drive. Admittedly, if
we had one down the street I would most likely be there every chance I
get. I'm a bargain-hunter kinda gal. It's in my blood. (Thanks, Dad!:-)
NOT to say he spends much time there, if any. He's just good at finding
a bargain...including on cruises. As for quality and selection, the
Wal*Mart I have shopped at is still fairly new in comparison to others
and I've found it to have some GREAT items at prices I can deal with.
Household stuff. Food items for school lunches. Shoes. Clothing. All
the practical stuff. I get no thrills out of walking into a
Neiman-Marcus or I.Magnins. But, let me walk through the doors of a
Wal*Mart (when it's not busy) and I suddenly have this adrenaline rush.
Don't ask me why! I equate it to the ladies who drive up to the
Goodwill in their Mercedes and BMWs and come out with an armful of
"nearly new" designer clothes and can pat their "still fat" wallets,
feeling smug.

Lindsay ---- who asks for "no flames, please". :-)




Bob Gow wrote:
[Rant mode selected]
I have been to a few and quality and selection wise, they are for
bottom feeders. Yes, the prices are very low, but there are
tradeoffs
for those low prices. Add on that they tend to drive wages down,
drive out smaller retailers and cater to the christain right on media
selection and I see little reason to throw money away there. Having
said that, Wal-mat (Volder-mart for those Harry Potter fans) does
provide low prices to bottom tier wage earners (who likely work at
Wal/Volder-mart because there are no other jobs available in the
area). Like dung beetles or carrion-eaters, they do have their place
in the economic ecology.
[Rant mode deselected]

On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 17:40:08 GMT, (Karen
Segboer) wrote:

Charles wrote:

In article , E.k.R.
wrote:

Good question Scott. Frankly I think that would be a complete
waste of
precious time spent ashore. Personally I would not step foot in
a Wal-Mart
while I'm home (can't stand the place) so I sure as hell wouldn't
visit one
while on vacation.

I stepped into one last year to return an item I had purchased from
their online store, as they suggested. I agree, yuck. I would avoid
visiting one from home or on a cruise.

Interesting thread. I've never been in a Wal-Mart and always wanted
to go to one; in fact, I just discovered there's one up the highway
and I plan on visiting soon, just to look around. Wal-Mart's
building
a new store in our neck of the woods, too.

Karen





__ /7__/7__/7__
\::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.cupcaked.com/reviews =AE
(...and leave off the "potatoes" to e-mail)

Bob Gow
"Experience is what you get when
you expected something else."

Ernie,

Now this is where your Wal*Mart and the one I shop in once every two
years differs. It's actually CLEAN and organized. Granted, it's not set
up like Target. A little more warehouse-looking. I enjoy Target when I
get over there. Again, my town wouldn't allow one. They have some great
clearance sales. I just bought 7 nice looking blouses for a steal. I
also like Mervyn's California. Again, good sales.

Yes, if the Wal*Mart I shop in occasionally looked like the one you
described, I'm sure I wouldn't be so quick to defend it.

Lindsay

Ernie said:

Karen,
Believe me, you are missing nothing. The place is a filthy hole and I
can't
understand it's popularity (then again I can't understand the
popularity of
a lot of things in this country). I'm not against discount shopping,
in
fact I shop at Target all the time and I love it. The difference is
that
Target is clean, well lit, organized, and a class act for a discount
store.
In fact it's usually a pleasure to go there. People say that Target is
more
expensive than Wal-Mart. Frankly I don't care and I'm willing to pay
more
for a significantly better shopping experience. Wal-Mart is dirty,
unorganized, chaotic, dingy looking .... basically a dump. It's loaded
with
hordes of people (usually with 10 kids) and personally I would rather
get a
few cavities filled then go back! As for a "Super Wal-Mart" ... well,
take
up all the negatives about a regular Wal-Mart a few notches and now you
have
a Super Wal-Mart. More like Super-Disgusting!

Ernie

Ernie,

Now this is where your Wal*Mart and the one I shop in once every two
years differs. It's actually CLEAN and organized. Granted, it's not set
up like Target. A little more warehouse-looking. I enjoy Target when I
get over there. Again, my town wouldn't allow one. They have some great
clearance sales. I just bought 7 nice looking blouses for a steal. I
also like Mervyn's California. Again, good sales.

Yes, if the Wal*Mart I shop in occasionally looked like the one you
described, I'm sure I wouldn't be so quick to defend it.

Lindsay

Ernie said:

Karen,
Believe me, you are missing nothing. The place is a filthy hole and I
can't
understand it's popularity (then again I can't understand the
popularity of
a lot of things in this country). I'm not against discount shopping,
in
fact I shop at Target all the time and I love it. The difference is
that
Target is clean, well lit, organized, and a class act for a discount
store.
In fact it's usually a pleasure to go there. People say that Target is
more
expensive than Wal-Mart. Frankly I don't care and I'm willing to pay
more
for a significantly better shopping experience. Wal-Mart is dirty,
unorganized, chaotic, dingy looking .... basically a dump. It's loaded
with
hordes of people (usually with 10 kids) and personally I would rather
get a
few cavities filled then go back! As for a "Super Wal-Mart" ... well,
take
up all the negatives about a regular Wal-Mart a few notches and now you
have
a Super Wal-Mart. More like Super-Disgusting!

Ernie

Sunny, I have to agree with you! I have only seen CLEAN ones with CLEAN
surroundings, etc. And, CHEAPER prices for a lot of merchandise. Also,
I have always felt that their employees seem happy compared to the
KMarts I have shopped in. ---- talk about low morale!

Lindsay

Sunny wrote:


The Wal-Marts I have read about in this ng have me wondering if we
speak
of the same chain. Here, in our area, Boca Raton/Delray Beach, Florida,

we have three Wal-Marts one being a super store. They are clean, well
lit, name merchandise, helpful personnel. Parking lots spotlessly
clean,
patrolled with surveillance cameras in the parking lots.
Those med prescriptions I do not have filled overseas are filled in
their pharmacy. Much less expensive than any other pharmacy
SUNNY


S'nd I
XXX

Sunny, I have to agree with you! I have only seen CLEAN ones with CLEAN
surroundings, etc. And, CHEAPER prices for a lot of merchandise. Also,
I have always felt that their employees seem happy compared to the
KMarts I have shopped in. ---- talk about low morale!

Lindsay

Sunny wrote:


The Wal-Marts I have read about in this ng have me wondering if we
speak
of the same chain. Here, in our area, Boca Raton/Delray Beach, Florida,

we have three Wal-Marts one being a super store. They are clean, well
lit, name merchandise, helpful personnel. Parking lots spotlessly
clean,
patrolled with surveillance cameras in the parking lots.
Those med prescriptions I do not have filled overseas are filled in
their pharmacy. Much less expensive than any other pharmacy
SUNNY


S'nd I
XXX

"Linsifer" wrote in message
ups.com...
Ernie,

Now this is where your Wal*Mart and the one I shop in once every two
years differs. It's actually CLEAN and organized. Granted, it's not set
up like Target. A little more warehouse-looking. I enjoy Target when I
get over there. Again, my town wouldn't allow one. They have some great
clearance sales. I just bought 7 nice looking blouses for a steal. I
also like Mervyn's California. Again, good sales.

Yes, if the Wal*Mart I shop in occasionally looked like the one you
described, I'm sure I wouldn't be so quick to defend it.

Lindsay


Hey Lindsay,
I guess I've just been to the wrong Wal-mart! As I mentioned, the one I was
in was dingy, dirty, and depressing. The clientele included every
stereotypical person from the South you ever heard about (and not in a good
way). I'll leave it at that.

Unfortunately I've been turned off to Wal-mart for life .... or maybe it's a
fortunate thing!

Ernie