For a long time now, I've dissed the concept of having someone grocery shop for me. I just thought it was the stupidest thing ever. And now, I eat those words. Is that a pun that I am talking about groceries and I also eat the words? Anyway.
Food Lion has had a sign about home delivery in front of there store for a minute, so I thought I'd give them a go. I am done with going out to stores by now. Food Lion felt like I was doing the order on their site, but it's tied into InstaCart (IC), for whom the shoppers actually work. It's like Uber - an order comes in and they see a list of potential shopping gigs on the app, and boom, you're paired with a shopper. In the beginning, the Food Lion site was not well synched with the IC site and it was very frustrating to make the order. It was unable to be edited, etc. But, it was paid for and tip was given at the same time for no contact delivery.
When it's your turn, you get a text saying that Zane (our shopper for the purposes of naming a shopper) has begun your shopping trip. And you can text back! So, that first time, Zane would tell me what they were out of and what he could substitute for items. I was worried about having no control, but the back and forth made me feel like part of the process. Eventually, I got a text telling me my shopper was done. The shopper brought items to the porch and I told them I'd take care of it from there.
The second time I used delivery was with Publix, also through IC. They are limiting items in a bit of an odd way, so some things were not available in the quantity I needed. I get it, but Ravioli in a can? Again, the shopper was super communicative, but the groceries were more expensive and less available. This second time, though, I opted in for free delivery for a month for $9.99 that will renew every month, but can be canceled at any time.
Here's a good, though long and super detailed, video about what to do when you get stuff delivered.
Food Lion has had a sign about home delivery in front of there store for a minute, so I thought I'd give them a go. I am done with going out to stores by now. Food Lion felt like I was doing the order on their site, but it's tied into InstaCart (IC), for whom the shoppers actually work. It's like Uber - an order comes in and they see a list of potential shopping gigs on the app, and boom, you're paired with a shopper. In the beginning, the Food Lion site was not well synched with the IC site and it was very frustrating to make the order. It was unable to be edited, etc. But, it was paid for and tip was given at the same time for no contact delivery.
When it's your turn, you get a text saying that Zane (our shopper for the purposes of naming a shopper) has begun your shopping trip. And you can text back! So, that first time, Zane would tell me what they were out of and what he could substitute for items. I was worried about having no control, but the back and forth made me feel like part of the process. Eventually, I got a text telling me my shopper was done. The shopper brought items to the porch and I told them I'd take care of it from there.
The second time I used delivery was with Publix, also through IC. They are limiting items in a bit of an odd way, so some things were not available in the quantity I needed. I get it, but Ravioli in a can? Again, the shopper was super communicative, but the groceries were more expensive and less available. This second time, though, I opted in for free delivery for a month for $9.99 that will renew every month, but can be canceled at any time.
Here's a good, though long and super detailed, video about what to do when you get stuff delivered.
Fast forward to today. Fill-in groceries from Food Lion. They've fixed their web site and it's synching with IC just fine. You can chat with the shopper through the site or through the app (IC app). I think hoarding may be getting better - Food Lion had toilet paper. It wasn't my brand, but who cares?
When the guy arrived, I kept my distance. I had on gloves and had a pocketful of alcohol wipes. I took the bags in (wiped the door knob after using it) and proceeded to wipe each item with wipes and putting them in a clean space. When the cleaning was done, Winnie and I put stuff away. Afterward, I wiped down the counter where the bags had been.
So, that's shopping for now with this frickin virus in the world. Winnie got news that an old, very good friend at one time passed away last night. Not sure if it's the virus or not, but it's maddening. John Prine is probably going to die from this mess. This world changing event is so odd and from time to time, it's hard to make sense of it all.
G'night.
