Can you survive without the Grocery Store?

[Jehote]

Ok, another tuesday, another sad day...
I stumble when i get to the grocery. i KNOW this lol! but it is SO hard for me.
i have a great farmers market i can go to but the grocery is so easy to stop at.
can you do it with out the grocery store?things like TP, water, (yes im going to go back to buying water. the britta is not cutting it. ) toothpaste etc. how would you get these things??
i would like to donate to my church the few canned things i have, and go full raw and use the farmers market for all my foods.
possible? pit falls? maybes?
matthew

[RawHeaven]

it's a trip when i think about it, but yes I can survive without the traditional grocery store. i used to go to the big S (which is hardly safe, ha) 3-4x per week around the corner from my house for years. if i walk into a grocery store now, it just seems humungous as i'm usually just traveling along the outskirts anyway. so much packaged stuff, floor to ceiling. just not for me anymore.

these days...i prefer

farmer's market
whole foods
or my natural foods co-op

grocery stores look and feel low energy to me now...and they smell funny. :p

[RawHeaven]

oh forgot to answer your question...got caught up in the grocery store vision. :o

yes, you'd better believe you can do it. it's entirely possible. admirable of you to donate to your church. i gave a lot of food and appliances away too when i went raw. i still have my pots though...the final frontier.

if you have to venture into a grocery again depends on what types of foods you're consuming and if they're available at the markets. ie in season or not. sometimes you may need to go, but you can always purchase raw goodies on-line as well. sometimes that's even better!

i don't see any of it as a problem. just personal choice and what works for you personally.

good luck!

[Jehote]

But where do you buy your non-food items? i would like to try to stay OUT of the grocery store. i know this sounds so DEE DEE DEE but really, i can do a lot better if i stay away! from the SAD food pusher. KWIM?

[RawHeaven]

But where do you buy your non-food items? i would like to try to stay OUT of the grocery store. i know this sounds so DEE DEE DEE but really, i can do a lot better if i stay away! from the SAD food pusher. KWIM?

oh do you mean like toiletries and stuff like that?

hmmm i'm in the sf bay area and we have a lot of options on that front. all natural cleaning products/toiletries and such are available even in the traditional groceries. i'm probably not going to be of much help.

if you're in an area where that's not available, again try purchasing on-line if you really don't want to "go there". or learn how to make your own products. soaps, cleaning products, stop using TP (lol) etc. not sure if you have the time to do that...but it's something to consider.

i'm sure you'll get more advice....

[iluvmangos]

You can get non-food items such as shampoo, soap, toothpaste, even toilet paper at health food stores. They will have non-raw food items there, though. That's kinda hard to get away from completely.

[Jehote]

thanks! yea im seriously considering this option. i get so frustrated with myself. im looking at options. trying to remove variables to failure. i dont buy a lot of stuff at WF so there is that option for toilet supplies. its a bit of a drive, but that will make it better actually.
so yea, im thinking this is the way to go...
im thinking sunday is my Go for it full bore and just Do it and DO my best.
hmmmm...... im liking this idea more an more....

[Jehote]

You can get non-food items such as shampoo, soap, toothpaste, even toilet paper at health food stores. They will have non-raw food items there, though. That's kinda hard to get away from completely.

thanks and yea lol i just posted something to that extent! im thinking the same thing along those lines. just a full blown SAD grocery is a BAD place for me! so thank you for the reply i appreciate all of them you guys!

[Dimond]

For a couple of years I barely went to the grocery store or really any store. I buy unique products, most that need to be purchased online anyhow. I use chemical-free natural personal care products. Also I don't need much stuff. Really no one does. It's a matter of cutting down to the basics and using multi-purpose products, which using natural products allows you to do. Even if you don't use all natural products you can buy online and often get better deals too.

Toilet paper is one of the things I use that isn't natural because no one has made a good quality natural one, in my opinion. If they would make one thick and soft, I'd switch immediately.

It's much easier to go to a grocery store now than ever as you just go to the produce section, then whatever couple aisles you may need for other stuff and you're done. I don't even look at the other stuff as it has no interest for me.

[Jehote]

Wal-greens for toothpaste type stuff! just thought of that..ok. im still thinking of stuff and actually geeking out about this idea. im setting sunday as a start day. saturday and friday i have a heavy schedule and not a good time to start. sunday is a fresh week and im intown by the Farmers. M. so its a good time so pull the trigger.
oh, and i am not giving a LOT away to the church. i dont have that much canned stuff.

[LilacLavender]

Is the farmer's market the grocery store? If so, then no, I cannot survive without it!

[iwuvmydoggy]

amazon.com has a plethora of natural/organic toiletries and cleaning supplies... and if you get their amazon prime thing ($75.00 a year) you get free 2 day shipping.. you can buy toilet paper in bulk, and they have a variety of stuff on there in regards to food... and you can even buy heirloom seeds from vendors on there. :)

you may also check on ebay. they have pretty much everything.

i use holy cow cleaning products. they're organic & don't contain any harmful chemicals.. you can buy them in bulk at amazon, too! (yay!) they are really good cleaners & they smell nice. you can use them in the kitchen or in the bathroom. i use them for everything! the heavy duty cleaner & the all purpose cleaner even get stains out of your carpet or clothes. :)

here's the all purpose cleaner: http://www.amazon.com/Holy-Cow-AP1G-Gallon-Cleaner/dp/B000UL8W5E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1245224093&sr=8-2

here's the heavy duty cleaner concentrate: http://www.amazon.com/Holy-CG1G-Gallon-Glass-Cleaner/dp/B000ULCMOG/ref=pd_sbs_hg_3

and here's the glass cleaner: http://www.amazon.com/Holy-CG1G-Gallon-Glass-Cleaner/dp/B000ULCMOG/ref=pd_sim_k_3


here's some toilet paper: http://www.amazon.com/Seventh-Generation-Bathroom-Tissue-500-Sheet/dp/B000C7OHFK/ref=pd_bxgy_hg_text_b

laundry detergent: http://www.amazon.com/Seventh-Generation-Detergent-Non-Chlorine-112-Ounce/dp/B000C7P4JS/ref=pd_sbs_hpc_6

and so on! :)

[contessa20]

Why not make your own non-food items? It's easy, cheap and you can restock your supplies at a drug store instead of grocery store if necessary.

Cloth toilet "paper" (if I'm not mistaken Aleesha uses these too), cloth napkins, baking soda/peroxide toothpaste, peroxide/water mouth wash, baking soda shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, homemade cleaning supplies, order soap nuts online to wash laundry and, of course, water jugs can be filled at most health food stores.

[iwuvmydoggy]

Why not make your own non-food items? It's easy, cheap and you can restock your supplies at a drug store instead of grocery store if necessary.

Cloth toilet "paper" (if I'm not mistaken Aleesha uses these too), cloth napkins, baking soda/peroxide toothpaste, peroxide/water mouth wash, baking soda shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, homemade cleaning supplies, order soap nuts online to wash laundry and, of course, water jugs can be filled at most health food stores.

oooh good ideas! i have read about soap nuts! didn't even cross my mind! lol

there's also a plant called soapwort..

http://www.cherrygal.com/images/Soapwort1.jpg

you can buy some here: http://www.cherrygal.com/herbsoapwortheirloomseeds2009new-p-11991.html

(this girl also has a plethora of fruit & veggies that are organic & heirloom from all over the world!)

[Jehote]

thanks but ahhh.... I'm still buying the bathroom supplies. Lol! Trying to avoid the food areas for now but thank you!!