Hanco

I wouldn't use Google for that. You do right asking for recommendations. Same for moving your life possessions if you ship a container. Just because there is a website does not make a company "legitimate"

TorFX and Halo Financial are both companies I have used. Both provide professional secure fund transfers that are efficient in my experience. They are also pretty good if you mess up and need help with something. One of them, I forget which, has an online account access where you can do the deal without picking up the phone and that is good, though I found the rate I can get online to be less than I can get by calling them (which makes no sense to me since online should cost them less to enact? Hey ho)

Hope this helps. Good luck, because you do need a bit of luck with such a change!

cautiousjon

Sure, in the UK, there is often a large number of high quality stores within 10 - 20 miles if you live in a built-up area, like a town or city. However, I would still argue that the selection isn't as good. In my experience, if you want particular 'natural' / low/no-chemical items, you often have to go to very expensive, specialist shops like Holland & Barrett or online where it is equally as expensive, although Amazon UK is definitely doing much better these days. However, in the USA, you can find most things in actual brick and mortar stores (e.g. Whole Foods) or relatively cheaply online with free or low cost shipping.

I live in a suburb of San Diego, CA, and by driving for up to 15 miles, I can drive to two Whole Foods stores, two Trader Joes stores, several Sprouts stores, many Vons stores, three Costco stores, and several Farmers Markets and mom/pop farm stores. That's excluding Amazon Prime Now, which offers home delivery within two hours of items from Sprouts Farmers Market, Sprinkles Cupcakes, Bristol Farms, and Northgate Gonzalez Market.

Pulaski

Your experience in and around San Diego is FAR from typical across the length and breadth of the US!

What you describe might only be typical, I suspect, of no more than a couple of dozen metropolitan areas. The largest city in NC doesn't come close to what you describe even over a much larger area, perhaps a circle radius 20 miles centered on downtown.

Hanco

I'm fortunate I think.

We have, within 10 miles (metro Atlanta area):

Trader Joes
Publix
Sprouts
A farmers market store
Ingles
Target
Kroger
Walmart Neighborhood Market
Walmart Supercenter
Dollar General/Dollar Tree and an Aldi opening soon apparently
Whole Foods is here somewhere and it is amazing (with amazing/shocking prices!!)

Pulaski

What, exactly, do you buy at a dollar store other than soda, candy, salted snacks, cheap beauty products, and cheap plastic crap?

Hanco

Well... I don't go there with a list to do the weekly groceries

They have basics like milk, soda, pasta, soups in tins etc and that packet pasta that you add milk and a knob of butter to for a snack...

I must admit, it is not a weekly visit. More the occasional stop for snack things. It is next to the Growler shop (fabulous draft beers which can go with the junk quite well in an emergency)

Pulaski

I'll shop at Walmart, but I still have some self respect!

scottyvisa

What exactly is a no-chemical item? What kind of dark magic makes this possible?

Pulaski

If SultanofSwing sees that, steam will start coming out of his ears!

Bob

Well not every one is as fortunate as you to be as choosy.

That said, they sell Silk Soy for a buck that's normally $2-3 for a small carton, which isn't a bad saving if one has a dairy intolerance.

Hanco

I never said I go to the Dollar ones without a disguise! Plus, when I do visit the Growler these days, they are very friendly (the "only three" sample cups rule doesn't apply to "everyone")

cautiousjon

Oh, I genuinely didn't know. I'll consider myself quite fortunate then.

Technically, everything is made up of chemicals, but... what I am referring to is things that are not full of various natural and artificial chemical substances, but are simpler and (sometimes) more naturally-derived. I can think of two things that I use everyday.

Hand wash:
Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil Liquid Soap
Natural Soaps - Tropical Traditions

I use the lavender scented variety, and it's ingredients list is:
- Saponified organic virgin coconut oil
- Organic lavender essential oil

Compared to a hand soap that can be bought in the UK from a company like Holland & Barrett:
Faith in Nature Coconut Soap | Holland & Barrett - the UK’s Leading Health Retailer

- Sodium palmate
- Sodium cocoate
- Water
- Glycerin
- Parfum
- Coconut oil
- Sodium chloride
- Sodium citrate
- Benzyl alcohol

Another thing that I use every day is a Thai Crystal Deodorant Stone, which is basically just a big stick of mineral salts that you wet and rub on your body. You can buy this in the US and the UK.


Compared to... pretty-much every other deodorant from pretty-much anywhere.

Pulaski

You've settle in nicely to the west coast "ivory tower mindset", I see. You have swallowed the marketing hype hook line and sinker!

For starters, your "natural soap" almost certainly has more than two ingredients. ..... And "sodium cocoate" IS saponified coconut oil, and it is almost certain that not all the coconut oil was saponified so your "natural soap" is going to have some coconut oil left over. The saponification/ base hydrolysis necessarily takes place in water, so your fancy soap must have some of that in it.

Then to make soap, because it doesn't occur naturally, you need an strong base to act as a hydrolysing agent. Then you need to neutralize the base (alkali), which is what the sodium citrate is doing in the British product - it's a pH buffer. I would be most intrigued to know how "natural soap" is made if they don't use a base and a buffer. ..... And the act of neutralizing sodium hydroxide (a commonly used hydrolysing base), necessarily produces a salt, so that would be the NaCl in the British soap.

The Parfum is the "lavender essential oil" ..... and don't get me started on the BS of declaring something an "essential oil"!

So it appears to me that the two soaps you contrasted are likely very similar in actual content and method of manufacture.

themadpooper

You sound deprived compared to us in Chicago

Aldi - much nicer than UK ones
Costco - the membership fee is well worth it, the gourmet salsa (mateo's) they sell in here is a particular favourite of mine. Haven't seen it anywhere else
Devon Market - local market, very international but not as fancy as other places here
Dollar general - mostly tat but I would recommend one thing in here - TFI Friday's crisps (jalapeño cheddar flavour)
Fresh Thyme - farmer's market
Jewell-Osco - 100s of these, bit like Sainsbury's but much bigger and more choice. Amazing beer selection
Joong Boo Market - Asian local market, an Aladdin's cave if you're into Chinese cooking
Local Foods - very pretentious local market, literally everything sourced from the surrounding area
Mariano's - very fancy, bit like M&S but on a bigger scale
Treasure Island - local and international stuff, some of which from the UK
Stanley's - another local farmer's market, really cheap fruit and veg
Pete's Fresh Market - fancy local market
Potash Markets - fancy local market
Save-A-Lot - local chain supermarket, bit like a UK Lidl
Target - the only one in the country that serves alcohol on the premises
Trader Joe's - fancy chain, huge beer selection
Walmart Neighbourhood Market
Walmart Supercenter
Whole Foods - fancy chain

Pretty much all of these are within a 30 minute drive of my house, my nearest 24 hour supermarket is a 10 minute drive away

cautiousjon

I'm sorry if I gave you the impression from my comment of any sort of 'ivory tower mindset'.

I stand corrected and will eat my humble pie. Clearly I've listened to a few too many hippies on the West Coast.