# Help settle an annoyance: Can potato chip/crisp bags be stored on the kitchen counter? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 7, 2011, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519 "2011-04-07T14:14:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/41 "2011-04-07T22:32:20Z")
Problem solved - Eat the chips before Mom comes over. Anyone that tried to hide my fire extinguishers would quickly discover that under a generally calm Zen-like exterior formed by living in California for a couple of decades, there’s a manic raving beast that doesn’t appreciate when important things like fire extinguishers are messed with. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/42 "2011-04-07T23:07:11Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > In my house, any bags of chips left on a kitchen counter would quickly get chewed open by cats, so they go in the pantry. Ha! This is my situation exactly. Otherwise I’d keep 'em on the counter, too. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/43 "2011-04-07T23:18:49Z")
I put mine away just like I put all other food away. I would have thought most people would too, though this thread makes it seem not. But as someone else up above said, it’s your house, so your rules. And I bet she said those exact words about your family home when you were growing up. Mothers often have a hard time backing off from actively mothering you, though. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/44 "2011-04-07T23:44:20Z")
On top of the fridge with the crackers and bread. ---
**Author:** ![nonacetone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonacetone/32/2819_2.png) [@nonacetone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nonacetone)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/45 "2011-04-08T00:22:11Z")
We have the same issue with the cats chewing through the bags. So, the chips/pork rinds/whatever live in the pantry until they’re rescued and opened. After that, their remains get dumped into an appropriately-sized Tupperware container, and then they live on one of the kitchen shelves, or the counter, until they are finally ingested. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/46 "2011-04-08T09:57:26Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > I’m not sure what being single has to do with snacking in bed. To try and entice other single folk into the bed with him/her, obviously. (what kind of crisps/chips are we talking about? I could be convinced) 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/47 "2011-04-08T11:01:13Z")
> [@psychobunny](#): > > You are all wrong. They belong in the bedside table so you can eat them while watching TV in bed. > _(Yes-I’m single-why do you ask?)_ You pig! I like your style. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/48 "2011-04-08T11:24:02Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Open chip bags go on the counter, so you don’t forget you have them. If you put the bag in the cupboard, you forget and they go stale. Very wasteful. This. Chips, crackers, stuff like that I leave on the counter or I forget to eat them until they go stale. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/49 "2011-04-08T12:52:17Z")
I _never_ leave them out in the open. Others might eat them. mmm ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/50 "2011-04-08T14:26:11Z")
I prefer the neat look so all my counters are clear. Even most of the small plug-in apliances are in cabinets unless actively being used. But you can do whatever makes you happy. And tell Mom she’s being old-fashioned; don’t tell her she’s wrong. That way you can both be right and you can still win. Makes her feel good too to know she’s upholding the vital traditions of yore. The thing I \*really \*want to know from this thread is what is this mythical thing called “an open bag of chips”??? I’ve never heard of such a thing. They are either factory sealed, being eaten, or empty. There is no 4th state of chip matter. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/51 "2011-04-08T17:06:07Z")
One problem with bags of chips, opened or not, is they take up a fair chunk of room in a cabinet. One bag of potato chips in the pantry can displace a dozen cans of tomato sauce or jars of peanut butter or similar-sized stuff, or several dozen cans of tunafish. IOW, the consideration inside the pantry is **volume** , and the bag takes up a lot of it. On the counter, the key consideration is **area** , not volume. And at the end of the counter, where you can usually prop them up against the adjacent wall, refrigerator, or whatever, the base of a potato chip bag just doesn’t take up that much counterspace. The fact that the bag stands over a foot tall isn’t a problem; that’s airspace that you weren’t using anyway. So there’s a fair amount of logic to storing bags on the countertop, if you’ve got countertop to spare. Of course, on top of the fridge is even better. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/52 "2011-04-08T18:08:01Z")
> [@hermette](#): > > To try and entice other single folk into the bed with him/her, obviously. Ah, the old Trail of Pringles trick! ---
**Author:** ![Marc\_Xenos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@Marc\_Xenos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marc_Xenos)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/53 "2011-04-08T18:50:44Z")
I have a mother like that. She doesn’t visit often. Whenever she criticizes how I do things in my own home, my response is who’s paying the mortgage there. (Remember HER adage about as long as you’re in HER home, you’ll do things HER way? Well, in MY home, things are done MY way. Don’t like it, don’t visit.) Yes, you do have the obligation to be a Proper Host(ess), but she also has a similar obligation to be a Proper Guest. Would YOU go into anybody else’s home and start pointing out all their failures in home maintenance? And while allowances can be made for immediate family, they’re still not limitless. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/54 "2011-04-08T19:13:20Z")
What would your mother say about my wall-mounted wine rack full of Pringles? ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/55 "2011-04-08T19:52:54Z")
I can sympathize with the OP, and here’s a more extreme example. When I relocated back here to help take care of my father, I had brought my set of dishes, packed securely in two cartons. I knew I wouldn’t be using them until both of my parents passed away, so I left the cartons unopened in the basement, along with other things I wouldn’t be using. Sure enough, while I was out, my mother brought the cartons of dishes up to the kitchen, unpacked and washed everything. When I got home she asked me “Where do you want to put your dishes?” I then proceeded to re-pack them into the cartons and take them back down to the basement. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/56 "2011-04-08T20:19:16Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > What would your mother say about my wall-mounted wine rack full of Pringles? Now thats funny. Makes me wish I ate them on a regular basis so I could put something classy like that up at my house. ---
**Author:** ![Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Living_Well_Is_Best_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/57 "2011-04-08T20:22:14Z")
Everyone knows the correct place for chips is on top of the fridge! They don’t take up counter space, but they are still in sight so they don’t get lost in the shuffle of the pantry. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/58 "2011-04-08T20:25:23Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > What would your mother say about my wall-mounted wine rack full of Pringles? If you stick it in an attractive display, you can put anything you want, pretty much anywhere you want. I’m a fan of nailing lots of junk on my walls to save horizontal space. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/59 "2011-04-08T20:36:10Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > What would your mother say about my wall-mounted wine rack full of Pringles? Nice rack! ---
**Author:** ![perfectparanoia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a5b964/32.png) [@perfectparanoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/perfectparanoia)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519/60 "2011-04-08T20:39:50Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > If you stick it in an attractive display, you can put anything you want, pretty much anywhere you want. > > I’m a fan of nailing lots of junk on my walls to save horizontal space. My brain read the alternate meaning of junk. Please pass the brain bleach. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-settle-an-annoyance-can-potato-chip-crisp-bags-be-stored-on-the-kitchen-counter/577519.md?page=4)