# Went to Costco This Morning. Was a Little Bit Scary. **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [March 11, 2020, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294 "2020-03-11T18:58:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/21 "2020-03-12T01:59:14Z")
Hey, remember after 9/11 we were all supposed to stock up on duct tape? ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/22 "2020-03-12T03:41:45Z")
> [@susan](#): > > Amazon had TP last I looked. They had slim pickings for disinfecting wipes though. And we actually needed them at work because they’re running low. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/23 "2020-03-12T03:44:46Z")
Tonight, after the university announced it was closing, the same grocery I went to earlier in the day was ow low on some locally-preferred breads and dried beans/lentils/peas/garbanzos. There were no dried lentils at all i the bulk section. Still plenty of TP and water. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/24 "2020-03-12T03:46:59Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Hey, remember after 9/11 we were all supposed to stock up on duct tape? And plastic sheeting. It’d be a hell of a Saturday night in some quarters. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/25 "2020-03-12T03:49:14Z")
> [@susan](#): > > There were no dried lentils at all i the bulk section. Still plenty of TP… Well if you bulk up internally on enough Lentils, It will come out so dry that no TP is needed, ie; fight the cause not the symptom is just good strategy ;). ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/26 "2020-03-12T08:43:48Z")
The fifth horseman of the apocalypse - panic buying. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/27 "2020-03-12T10:52:07Z")
> [@AlTraina](#): > > I have often said that the Clifton Costco is where humanity went to die. I learned to go there at 9:30am on Saturday. Yes, there’s a crowd waiting to get in. No, they haven’t set up the samples yet. But you can buy your stuff and actually get out of the parking lot without wanting to slit your wrists. I went to the Bayonne location a couple of days back, busier than usual, but the scary part was the upper shelves of the warehouse were empty, at least for all the dry goods. I’ve never seen that much empty space at a Costco. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/28 "2020-03-12T12:28:22Z")
Some (all?) Costco stores are suspending the sample stations for the duration. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/29 "2020-03-12T13:25:56Z")
I haven’t noticed any panic buying in southern Merrylande, tho there was a large empty expanse of shelves in Aldi where they usually have their miscellaneous gadgetry, so probably not related, unless there’s a new run on cutting boards and stainless utensils. Our Food Lion is undergoing some construction and rearranging, but I was eventually able to find everything I wanted - no obvious emptiness. As for TP, since it doesn’t have a sell-by date, I always stock up when there’s a good sale. We’ve got 5 12-packs in reserve, along with whatever is in drawers in each bathroom, so we’re good. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/30 "2020-03-12T15:32:37Z")
I’ve been thinking of going to costco and buying a couple 50# bags of rice just in case there is a more serious quarantine. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/31 "2020-03-12T15:38:55Z")
How much rice do you consume that you’re thinking of stockpiling a hundred pounds of it? ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/32 "2020-03-12T15:40:06Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > How much rice do you consume that you’re thinking of stockpiling a hundred pounds of it? Not a lot, but if things get really bad it would help me get enough food for a few months. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/33 "2020-03-12T16:10:48Z")
Rice has hashtags now? ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/34 "2020-03-12T16:12:47Z")
Just got back from Walmart in Dallas. No shortages, but they did have a sanitary station set up at the entrance. And there was a line at said sanitary station. I’ve never seen that before. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Quatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc8723/32.png) [@Mr\_Quatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Quatro)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/35 "2020-03-12T16:26:01Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > Well if you bulk up internally on enough Lentils, It will come out so dry that no TP is needed, ie; fight the cause not the symptom is just good strategy ;). Thanks for the tip of the week wolfman :smack: May I also add that bagels make everything come out hard and dry too 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/36 "2020-03-12T17:38:19Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > Well if you bulk up internally on enough Lentils, It will come out so dry that no TP is needed, ie; fight the cause not the symptom is just good strategy ;). Lentils make things, um, “smoother” in this regard. Eat too much of them and you’re going to visit the bathroom a lot. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/37 "2020-03-12T18:01:12Z")
Well, the toilet paper is vanishing here in southern Ontario. Some grocery stores are completely out; Fortinos at Brant and Upper Middle, which is a really big store, had not a single roll. I was able to find it at Freshco (when I wasn’t even trying to get any) and Food Basics, but their stocks are dwindling. But everything else (except hand sanitizer) is plentiful. There is enough food to feed an army. I do not understand the toilet paper thing. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/38 "2020-03-12T18:23:23Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Well, the toilet paper is vanishing here in southern Ontario. Some grocery stores are completely out; Fortinos at Brant and Upper Middle, which is a really big store, had not a single roll. I was able to find it at Freshco (when I wasn’t even trying to get any) and Food Basics, but their stocks are dwindling. > > But everything else (except hand sanitizer) is plentiful. There is enough food to feed an army. I do not understand the toilet paper thing. Ha, you’ll be sorry when the TP factories shut down and you have to make do with corncobs and newsprint. Actually I don’t get it either. Kroger was nearly out of TP today. I also don’t understand the bottled water frenzy (cheap wine is more antiseptic). ---
**Author:** ![markdash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@markdash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markdash)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/39 "2020-03-12T18:29:43Z")
What the TP thing says to me is that people are chronically understocked on toilet paper. I normally buy TP at Costco and it lasts us forever (even for a family of 4), but maybe most people normally just buy 3 packs, making them unprepared for any extended period of home quarantine? ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2020, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294/40 "2020-03-12T18:32:21Z")
I have to go to Costco after work to pick up a prescription, alas. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/went-to-costco-this-morning-was-a-little-bit-scary/849294.md?page=3)