Whole Foods VS. Trader Joe's

I know, I know. Fans of both sides could ask indignantly how I could even compare the two. But let's just do this monetarily.  Below is a table I made of an actual grocery run I made at Whole Foods (Sugarhouse). The next day, I went to Trader Joe's (400 S.) to buy some different things, but went around the store pricing everything I had bought at Whole Foods the day before. Cheaper is highlighted, as is the item itself when both stores have equal prices.

Behold, the $23 difference.

There are a few things to note, since the comparison can't be entirely equal. I wanted the paleo ketchup for flavor and it's only at Whole Foods, so we can call that a specialty item. I thought that the coconut oil was sort of specialty and wouldn't be available at Trader Joe's, but it was, for much cheaper. If I hadn't already started using it for oil pulling (that's another post), I would go to the trouble to return it. The gruyere was a hard comparison, too. I didn't actually want the cave-aged, which was much more expensive, but for purposes of comparison, Trader Joe's only had cave-aged and Whole Foods had both. I actually bought regular gruyere at $4.59 for 6 ounces.

More broad comparisons - Whole Foods has name brands as well as a house brand, and of course Trader Joe's only has TJ house brands, typically. So at Whole Foods, I can get Kettle Chips, Liberte yogurt, and Simply Lemonade. Then again, I can get those at Smith's, which is literally across the street from Trader Joe's and is definitely cheaper than Whole Foods. Whole Foods also has a meat counter, while Trader Joe's doesn't, but Sprouts does and is probably cheaper.

So, the conclusion. Except for actual specialty items that I can't get anywhere else (like paleo ketchup), most everything is available for less at Trader Joe's, with a little bit of shopping at Smith's to round it off. Oh, and Trader Joe's has cheaper flowers. It seems we'll be keeping Whole Foods as a lunch buffet and cookie counter stop only :)

See, here's the thing. I'm not opposed to spending $23 "extra" dollars if I'm making up for buried negative externality costs, like paying the developing world farmers a fair price for their crops and products, or even using my dollars to vote for more sustainable and healthy farming and processing practices. But I have a strong suspicion that most of the Whole Foods mark-up is for the privilege of shopping at such a holy, trendy, urban haven of consciousness. It's nice to walk into the store and know that every single thing in it is free of (list of 70 or so banned ingredients and processes). It means you don't really have to think about things. But most people can't afford to do that, and must pay that $23 markup in time and effort by getting good stuff at Trader Joe's (that has a shorter, but still good, list of banned ingredients and processes), driving across the street to Smith's, and reading ingredient labels.

TRADER JOE'S FOR THE WIN!!!

I rest my case.

this many books

It's been a little more than a month since Andy got a job and we moved to Salt Lake. It's semi-permanent. And complicated :)

Short version: He was offered a full-time job at DreamWorks in L.A. Very last minute, he was also offered a six-month contract position with nVidia in Salt Lake. We felt really good about Salt Lake and decided to take a risk and go for it, even though it's not guaranteed to turn into a full-time position.

We're renting a lovely little house and it feels so much like home. We're pretty well settled, but I'm still unpacking lots of things. Which leads us to this.

I'm unpacking the boxes of books today and getting them on our three cheap bookshelves (propped with folded fabric on the front sides to try and lean them back towards the wall a bit, since we can't anchor them into these 100+ year-old wood-lath and plaster walls). I've only got two of the bookshelves loaded and this is what I noticed:

Economics
Public policy
Strategy & management
Statistics
Negotiation
Grantmaking
Fundraising
Evaluation
Budgeting
Human resources
Afghanistan
Medieval art & culture
African politics
Law
Breastfeeding
Fertility
Anxiety
Philosophy
International development
African cultures
Women's issues
African literature
French literature
French culture
French language
Japanese culture
Japanese language
Swahili language
German language
Welsh language
Malagasy language
Phonetics
Calculus, advanced
Algebra, abstract & linear
Physics
Biology
Geography
Poetry/anthologies
Computer programming
Graphics & animation
Artificial intelligence
Machine learning
Geometry
Sign language
Humanities
U.S. Constitution
American Founding
American Civil War
Anthropology
Writing/tutoring
Scottish literature
Business innovation
Cooking/baking
Religion/scripture
Quilting

This is before we really get into the fiction(!) which includes American, British, Colombian, Mexican, Japanese, French, Ghanaian, Kenyan, South African, Senegalese, Czech, and Greek settings and authors, to name a few. There are essays, short stories, cartoons, science fiction, fantasy, and memoir. It includes war and peace, home and abroad, spiritual and physical. Yes, our Harry Potter collection takes up more than one shelf, but that's because we have a set in English, a set in French, and the Philosopher's Stone in Latin (how is this useful? I don't know. but it's awesome).

It blows my mind.

I have THIS MANY books! I am lucky beyond belief. I have not only the education to be able to read, understand, and apply this many varied and difficult topics - I have been taught to be interested! to want to learn about a bazillion things and to know that I can.

Yes, the math and programming books are Andy's. Yes, the language and humanities books are mine. But half of them are his. And the economics, business, and politics books are mine.

I am the luckiest woman alive. I have shelves of books. I can read them all. I can go to work. I can stay home. I can have children - as many or as few as I want. I have a toilet, and a shower, and as much water as I'll ever need. I have medicine. I can cook and worship and touch people while I'm on my period! I have tampons! I can wear whatever the hell I want! I can say what I want. I can have sex or not have sex. I can buy a house or a farm or a car. I can open my own bank account. I can vote.

And the beauty of having all of those things is that I get to choose what I will do with them. And I get to be responsible for what I do.

There's no culture or patriarchy or religion that is forcing me to have sex or not have sex. To dress a certain way. To have kids. To not have kids. To work. To not work. To read. To not read. I can choose to be educated. I can choose who I will be, what I believe, what I want, and what I will do with that education.

I can say what I want - and if I say hurtful, judgmental, hypocritical things, then I am responsible.
I can wear what I want - and I choose to wear things that are comfortable, that are a reflection of myself, and that show my belief in the body as a sacred, beautiful, empowering, and wonderful gift.
I can choose to work or stay home - and do what is best for me and my family at any given time.

Yes, there are limitations. There are unfair influences and exceptions. Yes, someone can rape me, beat me, kill me. Someone can limit my opportunities in the world and at work because I am a woman. Someone can treat me unfairly. Someone can misjudge me. People can break the rules and infringe on my vulnerability and sacred rights as a person. But I live in a time and place, and have the education, the opportunities, and the money, so that these things are surprisingly rare. So that they are (generally) acknowledged and treated as the violations they are. I live in a world that defends me! That defends my freedoms and rights as an individual, as a woman, as a human.

And most of the world can't say that.

I guess that's the reason I have all of those nonprofit management and international development books. Because I can choose to do something about it.