Our Government says WHAT inflation rate????

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maddy the Turbo Beagle I am surprised nobody has pulled out the trump card….stories of when a candy bar was a nickle..

Oh, so you're not spending enough quality time with my FIL either, eh?

[free4now]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maddy the Turbo Beagle I am surprised nobody has pulled out the trump card….stories of when a candy bar was a nickle..

I was trying to remember what a candy bar cost when I was young. I think it was 25 cents at the local corner store. Plugging that into a CPI calculator gives a current price of 78 cents. Candy bars now probably cost a bit more at corner stores, but I can buy them in bulk for less than 40 cents each at costco, which is an option we didn't have before.

[justin]

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Originally Posted by Laurence Go with a coworker, split the bill, ~$9 each.

Holy crap, $9 each AFTER the coupon? You guys in California, the land of high cost of living! Our local (OMG WTF soooooo good) mongolian bbq place is $6-7 for the obligatory 2 bowls piled 1 ft high. Two words for ya - "Meat Mountain" (my engineer buddies were awestruck the day I made an 11" tall stack of meaty goodnesss that was structurally sound). Plus unlimited rice refills. Nice way to get a cheap 3000 calorie meal

When DW goes, she gets it in a "to go" plate, and it usually serves as two more meals later.

Too bad my local mongolian bbq joint got flooded.

[justin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by free4now Candy bars now probably cost a bit more at corner stores, but I can buy them in bulk for less than 40 cents each at costco, which is an option we didn't have before.

I think they retail individually at Walmart for $0.44. That equates to $0.29 when I was a kid (1990). Probably $0.50 in actuality, if memory serves.

The same frozen dinners (Michelina's) mom bought at the fancy grocery store on sale for $1 when I was a kid are still $1.00 (regularly priced) at walmart. Same size and everything.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Have you ever tried to eat one of those michelina things lately? Look like a yak hurled into a little box and they sealed it up and froze it :P

[justin]

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Originally Posted by Cute n Fuzzy Bunnay Have you ever tried to eat one of those michelina things lately? Look like a yak hurled into a little box and they sealed it up and froze it :P

Luckily they taste much better. Michelina's is the main course for lunch 1-2 times per week for me. It gets the job done cheaply and efficiently without compromising taste much. I Know which ones are good and steer clear of the new "creative" sounding varieties.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

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Originally Posted by justin Luckily they taste much better.

I think thats anecdotal evidence that wouldnt be borne out if you used actual measurement, or if a scientist or someone that went to medical school looked into it.

[justin]

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Originally Posted by Cute n Fuzzy Bunnay I think thats anecdotal evidence that wouldnt be borne out if you used actual measurement, or if a scientist or someone that went to medical school looked into it.

I disagree since I went to medical school* and I consider myself well-versed** in this "science" thing you refer to. Make no mistake, if you come cook me a meal for lunch, I'd probably take it over the Michelina's. Until then, as long as I can exchange $1 for 8-10 oz of pure Italian frozen entree goodness, Michelina's will always have a place at my keyboard for workplace lunches.



* "went to", in this usage, means I spent 2 hours at the UNC med school looking at slides of dead bodies, dead bodies, and more dead bodies during law school.

** I took shop class in high school near the science building.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

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Originally Posted by justin dead bodies, dead bodies, and more dead bodies.

They probably ate Michelinas...

[justin]

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Originally Posted by Cute n Fuzzy Bunnay They probably ate Michelinas...

Some were poisoned. Some "fell down the stairs*", others drowned, some killed themselves, some were killed by guns, knives, baseball bats. No record of any of them eating the Italian goodness that is Michelina's.



*had multiple lacerations and blunt force trauma to the back of the head and neck consistent with a hammer or mallet blow

[cute fuzzy bunny]

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Originally Posted by justin Some were poisoned.

By michelinas

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Some "fell down the stairs*"

Tripped on michelinas

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others drowned

Slipped and hit head on michelinas near a pool

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some killed themselves

When they found that their lives were so destitute that they were eating michelinas

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some were killed by guns, knives, baseball bats

Now this is news. Tough to get those things into a package of michelinas

Quote:

No record of any of them eating the Italian goodness that is Michelina's.

When I see a study done by a huge panel of scientists and people who went to medical school, I'll buy it.

*had multiple lacerations and blunt force trauma to the back of the head and neck consistent with a hammer or mallet blow

[laurence]

Don't forget the Tina's burritos! *They used to be 4 for a dollar in the frozen food isle, now they are 3 for a dollar regular and 4 for a dollar on special. *All the bean and cheese, green burrito, beef* and bean, and shredded chicken* goodness you could ever want! *60 seconds in the microwave usually explodes one end all over the inside wall while the other half remains frozen. *Ah, memories.

When I was really poor, I would eat top ramen every day (10 for a dollar!) and had the deli special "you cook it" pizza on weekends. *2 pizzas shrinkwrapped uncooked for $5. *They were a good value in that they were ~16 inch, but they had about 4 pepperoni slices and a sneeze of cheese on each pie. *

I can't even smell top ramen anymore....

[justin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cute n Fuzzy Bunnay When I see a study done by a huge panel of scientists and people who went to medical school, I'll buy it.

Now you're just talking crazy.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I agree with you.

Ah yes, I remember the day a mouse got into my hidden stash of top ramen and the little bastard nibbled a little bit out of each and every one of them. Cutting the rodent bits off of a corner of a chunk of top ramen in order to then cook and eat it has got to the close to the bottom of the barrel. Michelinas is no doubt closer to the bottom. The very bottom is my old roommate who would go through the local salad bar line, eat about 2lbs of sliced meat and eggs and then go through the checkout line with about 22c worth of lettuce in his container. I saw him pop 6 hard boiled eggs into his mouth in about a 10 second period of time.

Now *thats* fighting inflation.

Wonder how the CPI accommodates eating food while using a salad bar.

[justin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cute n Fuzzy Bunnay The very bottom is my old roommate who would go through the local salad bar line, eat about 2lbs of sliced meat and eggs and then go through the checkout line with about 22c worth of lettuce in his container. I saw him pop 6 hard boiled eggs into his mouth in about a 10 second period of time. Now *thats* fighting inflation. Wonder how the CPI accommodates eating food while using a salad bar.

They price the salad bar knowing they'll be a certain amount of this eating on the line. I do it on purpose so they'll hurry that line up. I just view it as them compensating me for wasting my time. 6 hard-boiled eggs though? That's just gross.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Then i'm not telling you what he did with a whole roast chicken...

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cute n Fuzzy Bunnay Ah yes, I remember the day a mouse got into my hidden stash of top ramen and the little bastard nibbled a little bit out of each and every one of them.* Cutting the rodent bits off of a corner of a chunk of top ramen in order to then cook and eat it has got to the close to the bottom of the barrel.*

If you're planning to sterilize the rodent-chewed ramen noodles in boiling water then I'm not sure why you'd waste all that time & money trimming the corners off.

I'll bet you throw away jars of peanut butter just because they get broken glass in them...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cute n Fuzzy Bunnay Michelinas is no doubt closer to the bottom.

After reading this thread, I'll take your word for it. Now every time I see a Michelinas box in the display cabinet the word "yak" is going to pop up in my brain!

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Then i've done my job here.

Off to other endeavors!

Actually they're not that horrifying. Just tiny and largely composed of some kind of noodle or rice. I get a few of them to give to Gabe for dinner when I dont feel like cooking something for him. He likes the penne pasta with the mediterranean olive sauce and the mac and cheese.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cute n Fuzzy Bunnay Seems a lot higher. So whats your agenda in this? That CPI equals inflation for almost everyone and can be trusted as a true measure of broad based inflation for an early retiree, and that CPI indexed investments are good ideas to invest in without actually measuring your personal rate of inflation, because as far as you know, everyone who has done so ended up finding that CPI was right on target? Everyone else is a buffoon with a bunch of anecdotal evidence that doesnt measure up?

Probably all of the economic experts that claim that CPI is a true measure of inflation are the buffoons, and all of the internet posters with anecdotal evidence really know what the inflation level is.

So what is the level of inflation on average in the U.S.?

[modhatter]

Just went to the grocery store to pick up some Bryers ice cream. $5.50 for 1/2 gal. Last year it was 3.99 and sometimes on special for two for $5.00.

Is it just where I live. Everytime I turn around I am seeing large increases.

I don't need to buy electronics every day, it's ice cream I need!!!