Originally Posted by cpltony (Post 5750089)

I've noticed this also.
People in Oklahoma can buy beer and lobster on the food stamps....and they do.
My wife and I shop smart. We buy lots of items that can be mixed and matched for different meals. Like mash potatos, salads and frozen vegetables.
One thing they do over here (and I'm not knocking it, but it costs so much more) is buy everything for one meal.

We lived with our inlaws when I first emigrated and to help us move out and get out on our own my wife went on food stamps for about 6 months. Mainly because our employer would not let us shop for groceries anywhere else and his prices were too high for min wage employees. Alva, Oklahoma.....what can I tell you.
We hated doingit, but it got us where we are today which is self sufficient, empowered and out on our own. Isn't that what its supposed to do?

Anyway, our food stamps lasted us for a lot longer than it did the others.
My mother bought me up to be economical, I now am truly thankful for that.

But in a nutshell, yes. Some people it seems look for help more than they'll look on how to help themselves.

Originally Posted by :Huey (Post 5750098)

Surely it's cheaper to mash your own potatoes?

Originally Posted by cpltony (Post 5750107)

Well we tried buying the smallest bag of potatoes....for just the two of us we couldn't use a whole bag before they went bad. And its cheaper to buy instant than buying the single potatoes.
We do buy the singles......just only once during our regular grocery trip though.

Originally Posted by Ash UK/US (Post 5750062)

Do people on welfare really have that hard of a time feeding themselves in US?...the place they pay to process the deer so it can be eaten also runs a program where hunters can donate a deer and it will be given to people in need. She said that while her husband was there a guy came in to ask if anyone had donated a deer.

Originally Posted by cpltony (Post 5750089)

I've noticed this also.
People in Oklahoma can buy beer and lobster on the food stamps....and they do.
My wife and I shop smart. We buy lots of items that can be mixed and matched for different meals. Like mash potatos, salads and frozen vegetables.
One thing they do over here (and I'm not knocking it, but it costs so much more) is buy everything for one meal.

Originally Posted by cpltony (Post 5750089)

I've noticed this also.
People in Oklahoma can buy beer and lobster on the food stamps....and they do.
My wife and I shop smart. We buy lots of items that can be mixed and matched for different meals. Like mash potatos, salads and frozen vegetables.
One thing they do over here (and I'm not knocking it, but it costs so much more) is buy everything for one meal.

We lived with our inlaws when I first emigrated and to help us move out and get out on our own my wife went on food stamps for about 6 months. Mainly because our employer would not let us shop for groceries anywhere else and his prices were too high for min wage employees. Alva, Oklahoma.....what can I tell you.
We hated doingit, but it got us where we are today which is self sufficient, empowered and out on our own. Isn't that what its supposed to do?

Anyway, our food stamps lasted us for a lot longer than it did the others.
My mother bought me up to be economical, I now am truly thankful for that.

But in a nutshell, yes. Some people it seems look for help more than they'll look on how to help themselves.

Originally Posted by cpltony (Post 5750107)

Well we tried buying the smallest bag of potatoes....for just the two of us we couldn't use a whole bag before they went bad. And its cheaper to buy instant than buying the single potatoes.
We do buy the singles......just only once during our regular grocery trip though.

Originally Posted by Silly Sod (Post 5752458)

Do you have a freezer? When we make a large meal we freeze what we don't eat. You can actually freeze mash potatos. We also freeze curry and spag bol. In fact, there is no end to the amount of food stuffs one can freeze and eat later. :thumbsup:

Originally Posted by Thydney (Post 5752513)

I have a freezer and come the end of February it will be full of Coffee:) He's a big Angus steer sat in my pasture.

I think Tony means that the American way is to buy a home cooked meal from 'ready made' rather than ingredients.

Originally Posted by Thydney (Post 5752513)

I have a freezer and come the end of February it will be full of Coffee:) He's a big Angus steer sat in my pasture.

I think Tony means that the American way is to buy a home cooked meal from 'ready made' rather than ingredients.

Originally Posted by cpltony (Post 5750089)

I've noticed this also.
People in Oklahoma can buy beer and lobster on the food stamps....and they do.
My wife and I shop smart. We buy lots of items that can be mixed and matched for different meals. Like mash potatos, salads and frozen vegetables.
One thing they do over here (and I'm not knocking it, but it costs so much more) is buy everything for one meal.

We lived with our inlaws when I first emigrated and to help us move out and get out on our own my wife went on food stamps for about 6 months. Mainly because our employer would not let us shop for groceries anywhere else and his prices were too high for min wage employees. Alva, Oklahoma.....what can I tell you.
We hated doingit, but it got us where we are today which is self sufficient, empowered and out on our own. Isn't that what its supposed to do?

Anyway, our food stamps lasted us for a lot longer than it did the others.
My mother bought me up to be economical, I now am truly thankful for that.

But in a nutshell, yes. Some people it seems look for help more than they'll look on how to help themselves.

Originally Posted by Ash UK/US (Post 5750062)

I want to start out by saying I am in no way making fun of people on welfare, I am a little confused and asking an honest question.

Do people on welfare really have that hard of a time feeding themselves in US?

The other day one of the girls I work with was telling me about her husband (a deer hunter). She was telling me that the place they pay to process the deer so it can be eaten also runs a program where hunters can donate a deer and it will be given to people in need. She said that while her husband was there a guy came in to ask if anyone had donated a deer.

A commercial that runs on the radio station I listen to asks people to donate food/money to the food pantry. They have a guy on there telling how he lost his job and would go to the food pantry to collect food to feed his family.

A few times a year there is also the postal food drive (mail man collects the food left out).

I know they have similar projects for the eldery around Christmas time in the UK but it seems more wide spread here. I guess what I also find confusing is seeing people at the store paying with food stamps buying high end food items that even I wouldn't pay for, for my family.

Originally Posted by Ash UK/US (Post 5750062)

I want to start out by saying I am in no way making fun of people on welfare, I am a little confused and asking an honest question.

Do people on welfare really have that hard of a time feeding themselves in US?

The other day one of the girls I work with was telling me about her husband (a deer hunter). She was telling me that the place they pay to process the deer so it can be eaten also runs a program where hunters can donate a deer and it will be given to people in need. She said that while her husband was there a guy came in to ask if anyone had donated a deer.

A commercial that runs on the radio station I listen to asks people to donate food/money to the food pantry. They have a guy on there telling how he lost his job and would go to the food pantry to collect food to feed his family.

A few times a year there is also the postal food drive (mail man collects the food left out).

I know they have similar projects for the eldery around Christmas time in the UK but it seems more wide spread here. I guess what I also find confusing is seeing people at the store paying with food stamps buying high end food items that even I wouldn't pay for, for my family.