# Stupid convenience items **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 13, 2004, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-convenience-items/250202 "2004-06-13T23:54:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-convenience-items/250202/101 "2004-06-22T13:29:55Z")
> [@Cinnamon Girl](#): > > Same reason I use a Downey ball; so I don’t have to time a second trip to the washer to catch the rinse cycle. I don’t get the Downey Ball at all - my washer came with a fabric softener dispenser that fits on the agitator. I guess if your washer is old or secondhand or you go to the laundromat, you wouldn’t have one, but I have a tall plastic thing that sits on the agitator. You add a capful of Downey (or whatever brand you like) and add water, and it dumps it in at the proper time. It’s not a new thing; my washer’s about 8 years old. Don’t most washing machines come with those? Mine’s certainly not a high-end model. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-convenience-items/250202/102 "2004-06-22T14:06:54Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by BiblioCat_ > Mainly I’d buy it for the bottle - and I’d save the bottle and re-use it. Wow, I didn’t even think of that! Great idea! Now I might just have to change my tune and buy me some o’ that. I _do_ do laundry on vacation, because if we go, say, to Florida to visit family, we’re gone for a couple of weeks, minimum. I just can’t pack enough clothes for the five of us to last for two weeks. Easier to pack fewer clothes (which means fewer to unpack on the flipside) and do laundry at a hotel laundromat or something. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-convenience-items/250202/103 "2004-06-23T17:34:57Z")
> [@](#): > > And tuna in a bag. Puh-lease! Have you seen the price difference from already outrageously priced canned tuna? I don’t buy the tuna-in-a-bag because it’s can-opener-free or anything, I buy it because the texture and taste seem much fresher and nicer. But you gotta buy the albacore solid white stuff. Mmm, tasty. I found a great tuna casserole recipe online that has a bit of mustard in it, and water chestnuts, and it’s sooooo good. But you gotta make it with real egg noodles. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-convenience-items/250202/104 "2004-06-23T17:41:55Z")
Regarding the pre-wrapped potatoes: I weighed and produced a bar code for one: $0.45. I scanned the original bar code at the check out: $0.50. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-convenience-items/250202/105 "2004-06-23T18:23:21Z")
I buy bagged salad because it comes with fancy greens that I can’t buy in any other form. So there. And Kraft Mac & Cheese is an item unto itself. It has nothing to do with homemade macaroni and cheese. It’s a different food that has to be appreciated for what it is. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-convenience-items/250202.md?page=5)