These were the shelves in Woolworths in our second largest shopping centre .........
....so the next day I checked the shelves in Woolworths in our largest shopping centre and it was the same. I went to the checkout and asked when it would be possible to buy just ONE pack of toilet paper and the girl said the shelves are full at 8am and they sell out within twenty minutes. So if you really, really need to buy toilet paper you need to be up early. I feel a tad fragile at the moment so I really don't want to be lining up with other people and rushing to the shelves when the supermarket doors open so hope things settle down before we do run out.
There was no flour for baking bread either. I am finding it all rather amusing. You may have seen on the news the funny story of a local mum who orders her toilet paper online and she thought she had ordered one box of 48 rolls but in actual fact ordered 48 boxes of 48 rolls. This was before people started stockpiling. Her family won't be running out any time soon!
+I was a little miffed when I checked out the second store and found the shelves empty but felt a bit better when one of the staff asked me if I would like some flowers as they had reached their 'use by date' and she thought they were too nice to throw out. They still look quite fresh a couple of days later.
I believe that the stockpiling of toilet paper is happening in other countries as well as Australia but I really think it is quite odd. A few people my age were gathered around the empty shelves the other day and we were saying how we could remember using newspaper when we were little. LOL! I guess these days it would clog the system though. There were a lot of older shoppers having a good laugh this week. Who knew that a virus could cause such upheaval :-)
I do find it strange indeed. Of all the things..you can't feed yourself or hydrate with paper towels & TP. I was at the grocery store yesterday, the shelves were stocked, but I did notice that some had more than enough of paper goods in their carts. I'd rather have food/water myself. I bought an extra flour, and bottled water, and our regular groceries. No panic shopping.
ReplyDeleteFaith, there wasn't even much flour in the supermarket. I think everyone should chill out and not be selfish and there woild be more than enough for everyone.
DeleteEven our shops here are running low on different things, and we live in the country!
ReplyDeleteThe world has gone a little crazy I think. Hopefully this virus turns out to be not as bad as we are led to believe. It is definitely a scary thing though.
I have prepared but not panicked. Now to wait and see what happens.
xTania
Yes Tania, time will tell how this all progresses. Hopefully it will just be a storm in a teacup as a lot of people don't even have any symptoms who are diagnosed with having the corona virus,
DeleteThere’s no toilet paper shortage here, at least at the nearby stores. But it’s hard to find hand sanitizers.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if some of these people think COVID 19 diarrhea.
Nil, you would just have to wonder about that. LOL!
DeleteI think the media reported.....wrongly....that all our to comes from China, and there'd be shortages because the borders were closed!
DeleteHope you find some loo paper soon. I have a carton of the loo paper the lady ordered 48 boxes of. I wonder how she managed to do this. The costs are quite obvious when you go through the online process and she must have realised 48 rolls would not be in the thousand dollar range. Oh well I guess I am so paranoid of making a mistake like this that I check everything on an order before making a payment. The loo paper shelves in our supermarkets were empty on Friday but were back to normal today. Hope the same is happening your way.
ReplyDeleteI haven't checked the supermarket today but will tomorrow. I got an email from Coles saying they are restricting sales of loo paper to one pack. I noticed that 'who gives a crap' have sold out as well.
DeleteIt is the strangest thing. I live in two houses so can get confused as to what has run out of which house so list on my phone anything that has run out. When we dropped into the shops at Lithgow on our way to Kandos this week I checked my list and you guessed it, toilet paper was on the top. I am going to have to bring some from my other house because the supermarket shelves were empty and don't look like going back to normal any time soon.
ReplyDeleteWe are discussing it as church this morning and a couple of the ladies said they had no problem because they had bidets, a portable type one that replaces the toilet seat. I guess there will be a run on them next, or perhaps the plumbers will get busy because of old hands using telephone books and newspapers (not that I want to go back to that!)
Yes I would imagine that newspaper would clog up the system these days and personally I wouldn't want to go back to that. If desperate one could always use cloths and treat them like the old nappies by soaking in Napisan etc. I know of some people who have been doing that for years but I have never been tempted but it is amazing what one will do when choices run out.
DeleteI bought some last Tuesday morning as a matter of my normal grocery shop however after that I have not seen it available. I went to 4 stores yesterday and all out. I was trying to get some for my sister who was away in Tassi last week and came home to only 3 rolls. She tried 2 stores and couldn't get any. I thought the best thing would be to go when the shops open so at 7.15 am I went to Woollies and bought one lot for us and one lot for her [max of 2 per customer anyway]. They did have plenty however by 9.00 am I would say those shelves would be empty again. Apparently it's also happening in England too. Kathy, Brisbane
ReplyDeleteKathy, the shelves were empty at Woolies again today but I had to take my sister to the doctor who has a surgery just out of town and I bought two packs of 10 which should see us through a fortnight of quarantine if necessary. Of course it was dearer than at the supermarket but I am not up to fighting the masses just to stock up 😳
DeleteI actually felt quite embarrassed to be buying one small pack of toilet paper while doing our fortnightly grocery shopping last week. Of all the things to panic buy and stockpile...why toilet paper?? I heard a psychologist speaking on the radio yesterday that it's something to do with feeling in control! Wow.. now there's something I would never have guessed. :-) XX
ReplyDeleteSally, I read on the ABC site about the four reasons people are panic buying toilet paper. Most of them were a bit far fetched I think. As it turned out I had to take my sister to a doctor out of town today and asked at the chemist next door if they had any toilet paper and they did. Then my husband went shopping at Coles or Woolies and came back with a pack as well. He thinks the supermarket might be just putting out half their stock in the morning for the hordes to panic buy when they open and are stocking the shelves again later in the day allowing others to buy a few rolls.
ReplyDeleteNone here today, in any of the stores, and I'm down to my last roll. I bought a box of tissue "just in case" but I'm cross because I've avoided buying bleached, coloured, patterned, fancy quilted for years now, and now I have to use bleached tissues. At least they're not perfumed. It all seems a bit unreal, wouldn't you buy soup, or tined food.....anything but tp? No rice or oats in either supermarket either. I feel for people who aren't able to go from shop to shop, or don't have spare cash to stock up.
ReplyDeleteNanette, it is quite odd. I wonder too why people aren't buying food or even soap if they don't make their own. Whoever would have thought that toilet paper would disappear from the supermarket shelves 😳
DeleteJust the same here in the UK folk have gone crazy.
ReplyDeleteI thought only Aussies had lost the plot 😂😅🤣
ReplyDeleteI think the reason for stocking up on toilet paper, is because if one does come down with the coronavirus you will be quarantined for at least two weeks. That means no leaving the house. For that reason, I understand not wanting to run out of toilet paper. That would be scary, haha!
ReplyDeleteWhat I don't understand is why people are buying up bottled water. Has everyone forgotten we can get water from the tap?
I guess if one had a few children and had to go into quarantine then the toilet paper would be needed but then again people would also need soap and food and there were plenty of cans of food when I looked today in the supermarket. Time will tell what happens and hopefully it won't be as bad as people fear.
ReplyDeleteCrazy seeing those empty tp ailes. Plenty of toilet paper here still, I accidentally doubled up as I forgot I had 48 rolls in the upstairs storage room. The shelves are still full though. I am noticing some canned goods and allergy products are getting low though, also certain medicines. Pam in Norway
ReplyDeleteGlad the toilet paper stockpiling is not happening in Norway, Pam. Seeing as toilet paper is produced in Australia there is no reason for Aussies to panic at all.
DeleteThat knitted bunny on your side bar is adorable, I wonder if there is a crochet one. Stay well.
ReplyDelete