A new supermarket

Okay. In my mind, the difference between "grocery store" (which is what I think of the Green Spray as) and "supermarket" is one of scale.

A grocery store has sufficient food from the four food groups (or the nine food pyramid blocks, or whatever the heck it is these days) but little in the way of bells and whistles, nothing like an in-store bakery or anything, and you may have one or two brands to choose from.

I ran by the Pruett's Foods on the way home. This is a fairly new incarnation of an existing small supermarket: when I first moved here, they were the Winn-Dixie (may it rest in peace: it was where I did most of my shopping). Then that became Nichol's Dollar Saver, which was notorious (in my circle at least) for not "pulling" long-expired food from the shelves and which generally had a really sad vibe (at least to me): the store seemed not-clean, the color scheme was harsh, they carried downmarket brands.

(And yes, yes: I acknowledge my privilege but it's discombobulating to be faced with a wall of canned fruit where almost none of it is a brand you've heard of before). So I sighed, and went to the (then fairly-new) wal-mart supercenter, and drove to the Kroger's in Sherman when I had time.

Then, early last year, a rumor started: Pruett's, a regional chain, was going to take Nichol's over. Women I knew from church were excited; they kept talking about how great Pruett's was and how they sometimes drove up to Atoka (as far as Sherman, but in the other direction, and you'd still be paying sales tax on the groceries) to shop there.

So I went in after the initial changeover. Was slightly positively impressed, but wanted to wait for the remodel.

It started this fall. It's not done yet. But the store is MUCH nicer. And perhaps Pruett's is banking on the fact that there are a few of us here in town willing to pay a bit more for more unusual stuff or tonier brands, because they have some of that stuff.

I stopped there on my way home today. (The beauty of it is they are just a couple blocks out of the way home for me - unlike Wal-mart, which is on the other flipping side of town). So it's convenient. And the remodel - it's not done - does make the store look better. And it has nicer choices. The produce section looks really nice. It's not as big as the really huge ones I've been in (the Meijer's near my parents, where the produce section is practically as big as the entire Green Spray), but it looks like they take better care of their produce than the Wal-Mart.

And they have a meat counter. A real by-gosh meat counter, where you can buy ONE pork chop if you live alone and want just ONE pork chop and don't want to have to eat pork for the rest of the week or break down and freeze a family-pack.

(They also had some different stuff - crayfish and alligator meat can be purchased from them. Not that I care for either, but it's cool to see them for sale. And heck, maybe I try alligator some time)

I bought some "skirt steak: for fajitas" (thanks, I knew that already). I haven't had fajitas in ages so I think that will be my weekend cooking. I also got what I need to make another from-scratch pizza (they have Sargento cheese, my preferred brand). So I probably won't need to go to Sherman for a while. (Which is good, I have something next Saturday and won't be able to go then). I looked for frozen artichoke hearts (there is a crabmeat casserole in one of my cookbooks that I want to try) but I couldn't find any. I do want to run to Mart of Wal this afternoon for a few things so I can look there - or I can think about a substitute. (Spinach? Would lightly-cooked spinach be too outre?). I don't think I've ever seen frozen artichoke hearts, maybe they are a thing of the past, or a regional thing. (I have never seen shad roe, but many of my cookbooks refer to it). And I have stuff for another round of those black-bean burgers I like so well. (Seriously: I could eat those a couple times a week and not tire of them)

Their dairy section is more limited and unless that changes I may still have to go to the wal-mart for that stuff - but a lot of the things, I can get them there. And it's a game-changer to decide, while at work, "Gee, I really feel like making chicken fingers" and being able to get them with a minimum of agony (Driving to the wal-mart and shopping there at the end of the day is a fairly agonizing experience).

I also found a penny in the parking lot. It was heads-up and yes I picked it up because yes I am that superstitious (After this week, I need any infusion of good luck I can get...). Turns out it was a wheat penny, which you almost never see any more* It was a 1958 D penny. So I don't know. (I really hope that wasn't some person's "lucky penny" or penny-commemorating-something that they dropped....)

(*I remember as a kid getting penny rolls from the bank and hunting through them for wheat pennies. I think a lot of other kids did - a few years ago, I realized I hadn't seen one in circulation forever)

I do still have to get the stuff to clean up the blood. Not sure if I will do it today: it's chilly and overcast (temperature in the 40s). Maybe I clean house this afternoon and if it warms up tomorrow, do it tomorrow? I don't know. Or maybe I just cowgirl up and do it because I know I'll feel better once it's done...