John, Author at ILoveCostco.com

September 2021 – Personal

Posted by: John | September 17, 2021

Gal Costa – Folhetim
I adore Brazilian songs like this. This song is from the late 70s, and I don’t know Portuguese. This is a perfect song to relax to – around the house, or when I drive a convertible on an open road.

Costco European Cookies

I am running out of these Costco European Cookies (AKA Belgian Cookies, Christmas Cookies). They are available at Costco during the holiday season. These cookies are the best, and I always buy 3-4 cans and make them last 12 months by freezing them. The goal is to taste a little Christmas every weekend. But, I ate them too fast this year because I stayed home all year. I am already on the last tray… (photo taken on September 12, 2021)

Costco European cookies – 2020 Edition

Nicolas Cage

I’ve been watching Nicolas Cage movies obsessively lately. I cannot get enough of his movies. This handsome Academy Award-winner’s movie credit goes back to 1982, and he’s in 100 movies so far. Nicolas Cage gives me that cozy, nostalgic, and drive-in theater feeling I am fond of. His movies are exciting, romantic, cheesy, cool, funny, stupid, and everything in between. And I like them all. I love it when he loses his temper and goes ape shit. Nicolas Cage seems amiable that I would like to have him at my house for food and chitchat. That’s saying a lot because I refuse to have Tom Cruise or Daniel Craig in my house. That would be freakin’ uncomfortable. The same goes for Nicole Kidman and Scarlett Johansson. They are the most beautiful people and I love them. But, please, don’t come to my house… again, freakin’ uncomfortable.

What about Leonardo DiCaprio?… I’m gonna pretend I didn’t hear that.

I believe America loves Nicolas Cage more than we realize. He is my favorite actor, without a doubt.

God bless Louisiana

According to the online personality test, I belong in Louisiana. And I agree. I’ve visited New Orleans a few years ago, and I enjoyed it a lot. When I travel, I would like to experience how regular folks live their everyday life. For example, if you come to California to visit me, I will not take you to Disneyland, but I will give you my typical life experience, such as drinking coffee, going to garage sales, and driving to the beach in a convertible. Oh, In-N-Out Burger, of course.

New Orleans was hot, and it rained at random without warning while the Sun was still up. But it didn’t matter. The food was amazing. Louisiana is a state of food. I wish I can retire there and eat until I die.

God bless Louisiana.

Just saying…

The Spanish word “Quesadilla” does not translate to “What’s the deal?” Just saying…

What I Don’t Buy At Costco, or Should I?

Posted by: John | September 13, 2021

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| Personal, Single Living

As a single person living alone, there are items I don’t buy at Costco. One category is the seasonings (spices) for cooking.

I check out the spice section at Costco every time I’m there because it’s fun looking (I love Costco). Sometimes I find items such as Everything Bagel Seasoning. In most cases, Costco-size spices are way too big for typical single people like me. In fact, even if I had a family of four, I don’t think my family would finish the big container of Lawry’s Seasoned Salt before the expiration date. But, sometimes it makes sense to buy from Costco and throw them away as they expire. It’s OK if you don’t finish the entire container. As long as you are financially ahead of the game, that’s all it matters. For that, I have to strategize according to my unique cooking style. This takes brainpower and effort.

What I consider when I buy a spice:

How much of this spice will I use for the next few years?
How much does it cost at local grocery stores in a smaller packaging?
Is this spice readily available elsewhere? – Costco sometimes sells exotic seasonings that are hard to find elsewhere.
What’s the expiration date?

What I don't buy at Costco. Single Living.

My spice rack – September 2021

I have made many mistakes by purchasing large containers of spices at Costco. The learning process was long. But I am getting better at my spice game. In my case, it doesn’t make financial sense for me to purchase large containers of spices at Costco. There will be rare exceptions, of course.

Salt & pepper grinders at Costco

I bought the salt and pepper grinders in January 2020. 2 salt containers were $4.99. 2 black pepper containers were $6.49. They all had an expiration date of October 2022 (4+ years).

I will keep the salt long after its expiration date. I think the salt is OK as long as they are visibly clean. Correct me if I’m wrong about this, but they are Himalayan salt. The salt must be many million years old. So, I don’t worry about keeping them for extra10-20 years in the kitchen.

As for black pepper, today, I threw away the unfinished opened container and switched to the new container (pic). In October 2022, I will throw away this pepper container about 80% full. Kirkland Signature black peppers are cheap, have a long expiration date, and I trust their quality. For under $7, I will not waste my energy thinking about black pepper. I will pick it up at Costco and move on with my life. Here, after throwing away half of the black pepper, if I consider all the variables, I neither lose nor gain financially.

This concluded my example of salt and pepper. Now I apply similar logic to each spice I purchase. And I apply similar logic to everything else around the house, everything and more. This requires memorization and an analytical thinking process. I believe the level of the task I perform equals high-paying professions. This is what most stay-at-home moms do every day while turning babies into upstanding citizens.

Also, I salute single people doing it all alone. Represent.

Talk to you later.

June 2021. Soon after taking this picture, I throw away the basil & dill weed which was expired a long time ago.

Costco Shopping – September 9, 2021

Posted by: John | September 9, 2021

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| Costco Blog

20th Costco Shopping in 2021 – $118.65 / $2,324.34 this year

No! It was not Christmas time at Costco yet. I only saw one small stack (pic). It was a sad-looking Christmas display.
I have had a huge craving for chocolate for the last few months. So, I bought some chocolates.
All American Chocolate Cake is back in mini size. I tried one, and it tastes just like the original big cake.
Flu shot was free with insurance.
Kirkland Signature Cheddar Cheese is my go-to snack that I enjoy so much.
I bought a bag of Coache’s Oats Oatmeals 2 months ago. I almost finished this huge bag. I ate this much oatmeal because I work from home and have access to the kitchen. The pandemic changed my diet.
Vienna Sausage is my guilty pleasure – I always buy some at local grocery stores for about $0.70 a can. I often get a huge craving for these. Buying a case at Costco is much cheaper ($0.44 each can, 37% savings). BUT, only If I make them last a year.
Instant savings saved $22.40.
Kirkland Signature shampoo was unavailable. There were conditioners, but no shampoos. I hope I will find them on my next visit.
I tried Dunkin’ Donuts coffee several years ago, and I didn’t like it. But I wanted to give it one more chance. It was on sale.

Flu shot

I had a mixed experience today getting my flu shot. When I checked in, the lady said “wait 10-15 minutes”. But, I waited 40 minutes. At that point, I thought something was not right. I had to check to see if they didn’t lose my paperwork. So, I became THAT guy, asking for special attention. I finally paid for my flu shot ($0). And the shot was absolutely painless. This guy was amazing. I barely felt the needle. “Wow!, you are good!” I exclaimed.

My shingles shot last December (2020) was painful, and I bled. I could tell that pharmacist was reckless. I felt the negative energy from his core, and I didn’t like that. But today’s pharmacist was pleasant. He was careful, and I barely felt the needle. This made me think. Those two pharmacists wake up and go to work the same. They probably take home similar paychecks. But, one guy was pleasant and the other guy was negative. From now on, I shall be mindful of my attitude. I want to be like the Costco pharmacist I met today.

Hulu Price Increase & Cost of Watching TV

Posted by: John | September 8, 2021

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| Personal

My Hulu price is going up by $1.00. I think I am OK with that.

Currently, I pay $18.98 a month on TV, soon to be $19.98. I subscribe to Hulu with No Ads ($11.99) and Discovery Plus (Ad-Free $6.99). They provide more than enough TV entertainment for me. I get free local news from Pluto, which I rarely watch anyway. Basically, I gave up watching NASCAR, NBA, and some others.

I don’t live in a big city, so the antenna won’t pick up any channels.

My philosophy is simple. If I enjoy basketball very much, then I will have no problem paying extra to watch it. If I have a girlfriend who loves to watch the WE channel? then I will subscribe to it. It’s a simple rule.

For now, I save roughly $720 a year ($60/m) by not subscribing to a big TV package. Also, I hate TV service providers so much. I refuse to give them the pleasure. Screw them. Screw all of them. I will keep $720 and skip the Super Bowl.

After cutting cable, I quickly got used to having fewer channels. It’s OK if I don’t have every channel under the Sun.

I guess I am OK paying $20 a month for TV. $0.67 a day sounds somewhat reasonable. Still, that’s $240 a year. One thousand dollars every four years.

If I become very rich, after taking care of my retirement, I will buy a house with a three-car garage. Then I will buy a Porsche. After that, I will subscribe to a full package cable TV.

It’s fascinating that my financial priority is shifting. When I was poor, I had NO~~ problem paying $60.00+/month on cable TV. Now that I have more money, I feel sick to my stomach paying more than $30/m for TV. There must be a scientific (psychological?) explanation for this. I don’t think I’m cheap or stingy. I just bought a cashmere Berluti winter coat. Cheap people don’t wear Berluti coats.

Redken Hair Care Products at JC Penney

Posted by: John | September 7, 2021

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| Personal

I think I still have this record somewhere

I am a man and I have a hard time finding decent hair spray at a decent price. Costco has some hair sprays, but they are expensive high-class stuff I don’t have cash for. Redken’s Fashion Work 12 is my everyday hair spray. But they are still too expensive. If I’m lucky, I can find them on eBay at $10-$15 a can on used conditions. Used, as in 80% full, dented can, cap missing, etc… I constantly look for a cheaper version of Redken, but everything I see at discount stores says “Maximum Hold” and “Extra Hold”. It’s as if people with long hair don’t exist – that we are all members of some punk bands. I cannot find any good and cheap medium hold hair sprays. As a grown man, I spend way too much time looking for hair care products.

I just want to do my hair and leave it soft to touch. The goal is to look natural. I am not asking much. Why is it so difficult to find such a product? Well, I found Fashion Work 12. It does exactly that…

Anyway, JC Penney currently has a good deal on Redken hair care products. I just ordered 6 cans of my favorite hair sprays at the best price I have ever seen. They even have a discount code that they didn’t have 2 days ago. They deliver to JCPenney stores for free. Now, I don’t have to think about hair spray for the next 2-3 years.

Even though I work from home, I always do my hair in the morning. I use 4-6 hair care products depends on the mood of the day. I start my morning with a fresh attitude. Obviously, I stopped dressing up for work because of the pandemic. As a result, I now have 4 pairs of brand new Italian shoes that I haven’t worn outside. I also have 3 Winter coats that I have never worn outside.

But, working from home is the best.

JC Penney

So, I shopped at JC Penney.

I was surprised that Penney still existed, let alone having excellent prices on Redken products. I think the last time I shopped at JC Penney was in the 80s. I believe I actually bought a Members Only jacket there. Remember the Members Only jacket? At that time, I didn’t know the significance of the jacket. I bought the jacket because it looked cool. Then 10-20 years later, people started to talk about the Members Only jacket as a part of the 80s reference. Anyway, I am glad my money is going to JC Penney. I look forward to visiting there to pick up my hair sprays.

Under the master bathroom sink, Sept 21
Used Redken hair sprays I found from eBay

Ground Coffee vs Whole Bean Coffee

Posted by: John | August 30, 2021

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| Uncategorized

Peet’s Organic French Roast. Costco item #1471986 – Purchase price $11.49 (instant savings $4.50)

I slowly became a coffee snob in the past 13 years. I am picky about my coffee. I use 2 coffee grinders so I don’t mix flavors. I used to have 4 coffee grinders. I cannot enjoy Starbucks Coffee because I find it inferior to my taste. I like strong coffee that’s not acidic.

I favor whole bean coffee over ground coffee. I assume I get a better coffee experience if I grind the coffee beans just before I brew it. Whole bean coffee seems superior overall.

On my August 2021 Costco Shopping, I picked up a ground coffee by mistake. And I thought I would try it.

And you know what? This coffee is just as enjoyable. I cannot tell the difference. Maybe if I taste both whole bean coffee and ground coffee side-by-side, I will know the difference? But, this is not a competition. I enjoy this coffee a lot. And that concludes my experiment. Only the evil people go through a war to decide which coffee is 1% better than the other. And if you are hell bent on enjoying the coffee, that’s 1% better? More power to you. I used to be like you.

From this point, I will look at ground coffee and coffee beans as equal. If I see a (good) ground coffee on sale, I will buy it.

Peet's Ground Organic French Roast Coffee — This morning – August 30, 2021

Costco Coffee Pumpkin Spice — 2008. My first coffee grinder and a pot – $15 for both.
I remember buying these at Riteaid. I was excited about grinding coffee for the first time – just like rich people (that’s what I thought).

Coffee Grinders — 2013. I used to enjoy 4 varieties of coffee.
All 4 coffee grinders were from Costco

Thank you for the hot dog

Posted by: John | August 26, 2021

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| Costco Blog

19th Costco Shopping in 2021 – $1.64 / $2205.69 this year

Friday, August 20, 2021 – Sunny and warm. Lazy day. Still working from home.

I took a quick ride to Costco for a hot dog lunch. I didn’t go inside the warehouse.

The food court was busy. The drink station was open for everyone. Catchup, mustard, & relish dispensers were back, but there was no onion. And they still had sippy cup tops instead of straws. They cut down the number of the tables by about 75%. I was lucky that I found the only empty table.

Thank you for the hot dog donation. It’s fun killing time. Yum..