I'm obsessed with the Bett's Cheddar and Horseradish spread. Luckily, it's all gone now....

I just got cheddar with caramelized onion bits in it from TJs--haven't had any yet, but am expecting Teh Yum.

Scrappy has my second favorite cheese from TJ's . My favorite is the white Stilton with apricots

It's hard to get cheese at the Manhattan TJ's when it's crowed (always), because the lines go right in front of the cheese/meat/etc. section. I had to ask someone in the other line to grab my cheese spread for me.

What I love is the cash register people there. They're always so nice and engaging. When I asked the guy today how he was (in response to his asking me) he said, "Well, as usual, I didn't have to wait in line for 20 minutes to get here, so I'm doing pretty good!"

when we had the grocery strike a few years back it looked like soviet russia inside Trader Joes. I made it to the front of the line and the clerk said, "hi" and started checking through my order.

I said teasingly, "aren't you going to ask me if I found everything, OK?"

The clerk sighed, "oh thank goodness, a regular!"

I just dropped nearly $100 at the Jewels and ended up with a bagger who didn't care if he threw the bread in with some of the canned goods (I had to tell him to put them in a separate bag), and then didn't bother double-bagging all of the canned goods so that I had two bags shred before I even got into the apartment building. Grr.

But, at least I got the supplies for some decent chili cooking tomorrow!!

Jewel! I remember Jewel. I used to get a logo sucker every time Mom cashed a check there with me in tow.

K-Bug is working at TJ's today during the rainpocolyps. She is a courtesy clerk - bagging, chasing carts, helping customers as needed. She took 3 sweatshirts and a rain poncho. I'm thinking of sending her directly into a hot shower when she gets home.

It is just "Jewel," but I had to be a Chicagoan and turn it into "the Jewels." It's a local dialect thing that I love to play up when I can. ChiKat likes to mock me in my Chicagoese--I was showing her pics from my sister's wedding on my computer and pointing out fun shots ("That's a good one there...I like that one there...") and she kept on saying "Where is it, Kathy? Where???" Also, she giggled when I asked a friend of hers "Where do you work at?"

ChiKat likes to mock me in my Chicagoese

I love your dialect! And, I totally noticed "the Jewels." Your dialect comes out mostly in word usage and phrasing, not so much in pronunciation. I do hear a Chicago dialect in your sound, but it's not a strong one. Like some Sout' Siders.