The other day, we went to the boat show.  Since I had never been to the boat show, I didn’t really know what to expect.

But, I was surprised to see a huge selection of pontoon boats.  And, what’s more, I was surprised to see that they were all pretty much the same.

I mean that they all pretty much had the same floor plans.  The “captains” consoles looked the same and they all seem to have the same style of music systems.  Even the canopy area was the same.

While I am sure that there must be differences between the various manufacturers, I wasn’t all that interested so I didn’t bother to ask.

The other day when I was in Meijer (regional grocery chain) I  could help but notice that there was a lack of good beef.  By that, I mean that there were no Porterhouse, Tbones, Rib eyes, New York Strips or Tenderloins.

Since they usually have an ample supply, I can only conclude that meat case was cleaned out by the Super Bowl.

I recently had lunch at Applebee’s, one of my favorite restaurants.  When they asked me what I wanted to drink, I told them Diet Pepsi.  (They don’t carry Coke products.)  They told me that they were all out of soft drinks.

No diet cola??!!!!!  I was planning on a junk food meal with a burger, fries and a diet cola.  But, when they told be that they were out of cola, I opted for soup and and a salad.  I purchased my Diet Coke at Menard’s.  (A regional lumber/hardware chain.)

It sounds really really strange to be out of ALL soft drinks.  I suspect that this Applebee’s is going out of business.

Having finished my first bag of Schuil blend decaf. it was time to try another blend.  So, I decided on the Decaf Schuil Supreme Gourmet Blend.  I choose that blend just because it had Supreme and Gourmet in the name.  So, I asked for a bag of whole bean.

When I arrived at home, I immediately ground up enough for a pot and proceeded to brew.  It smelled wonderful but the proof would be in the tasting.

When it was done brewing, I poured a cup and took a taste.  It was very good.  But, it still didn’t have as much flavor as I was looking for.  Yet, it was still a contender.  When the bag is done, I will have to try another blend in my never ending quest for a decent cup of coffee.

I buy quite a few items that need to be weighted in order to be priced.  And I tell them in general terms what I want.  For instance, I might ask for “about” a pound of ground beef.  This seem to put the clerk into a tizzy as I am not looking for an exact pound.  Some clerks can deal with 9/10ths of a pound while other go for the whole pound.  Whatever.

Our Burger King closed recently and the building is up for sale.   But, would you ever get the smell of onions and grease and burgers out of the building?  I mean, unless another restaurant moves into the building, the old burger smells are going to be present for several years.

But, this is not my problem, only an observation.

I was in a book store the other day looking at cookbooks.  And, I couldn’t help but notice that the cook books were located right next to the books on intimacy.  Well OK, food and sex.  Works for me.

The other day, I went to Meijer (regional grocery chain) to buy some dried chilies.  The package had a nice Hispanic sounding name as I would have expected. But when I got them home, I discovered that there were a product of India.

Now, I know that dried chilies are not the exclusive domain of Mexico but I wasn’t expecting a Mexican company to be  importing chilies from India.  I guess we really do have a global economy.

Many years ago, my wife issued me a Pet Smart Pet Perks card.  And, she instructed me to use it every time I shopped there.

Thinking that the card entitled me to some sort of discount, and, since I always do what my wife tells me to do, I gladly presented my card for every Pet Smart purchase.  But, the other day when I was shopping at Pet Smart, I noticed that their kitty litter was a dollar more than Meijer (regional grocery chain).  But, since I would be using my Pet Perk card, I was sure that I would get a discount.

However, when I checked out, I discovered that the price was still the same regardless of my card.  So, this prompted me to ask the clerk about the card.  She said that the card keeps track of my purchases and emails me when something that I normally buy is on sale.

That’s it??  I have been using that stupid card for 10 years just so Pet Smart can send me spam?  I don’t think so.  I suspect that my Pet Smart card is history.

Spring is in the air.  Or, at least it is at Meijer (regional grocery chain).  The new lawn furniture has arrived and is ready for any one wishing to get a jump on summer.  On the other hand, today I used my snow blower for the first time this winter.   Go figure!