Hard Times

Sunday, September 12 was a beautiful California day. It was hot, but not humid, the sky was blue and the kids were in the mood to swim. My 4-year old daughter and I decided to spend the afternoon at my friend Brandi’s house because she was the only one with a pool. Brandi was watching her step children, John 10 and Genna, 7. She suggested that we all meet at a nearby train station and walk to Wal-Mart to buy snacks for the kids. I quietly turned up my nose, but did not object. I tend to avoid Wal-Marts as much as I can. I resent how they demolish small businesses in their quest to expand. But I went along thinking I could kill two birds with one stone; get snacks and do research for my Unit 3 project!

We shopped at a Wal-Mart in a San Leandro, CA. “ San Leandro is a friendly and diverse city with a colorful heritage and numerous cultural amenities including a 450-berth Marina, two golf courses and a large community library” (sanleandro.org). The median income in San Leandro is $51,081.

As always the Wal-Mart was aisle after aisle of products. I decided to observe a Caucasian woman. She appeared to be in her mid-forties. Nothing about her gave me the impression that she was a person with a large amount of disposable income. She was modestly dressed and groomed. Her hair did not appear professionally styled; her nails were clean and trimmed but not manicured. And the dead give-away - she carried a no-name-brand purse! Her shopping cart contained staples: milk, cheese, eggs, cereal, paper products and cleaning supplies. She appeared to be selecting very carefully. She peered at the confusing price tags and stopped for a moment to consider items before dropping them into her cart. I watched other shoppers and noticed a trend. In the line ahead of me, many shoppers had a half empty cart of staples and not a single discretionary item. Several shoppers had large bags of dog food. Many had junk food: chips, sodas, and candy. We picked up lemonade, hot dogs, chips...