2021 Supply Disruptions

[dlsterner]

Is there a corresponding shortage of mustard/mayo/horseradish/BBQ/etc. packets as well? All media accounts I've seen refer to a "ketchup shortage," not a "condiment packaging shortage."

As I understand it, the issue arose because so many restaurants were long in the habit of automatically throwing packets of ketchup in the bag whenever someone had an order to go or for delivery involving french fries. With a dramatic increase in the number of take-out/delivery orders... eventually they started running out of ketchup packets. Since there was not a widespread habit of throwing packets of mayo or whatever in the bag without being specifically asked for them, a similar phenomenon did not occur with other condiments.

Myself, I certainly threw plenty of unused ketchup packets in the garbage in 2020 (since I don't use it). Then at some point in the last few months the flow of wasted ketchup packets shut off, as places started asking if I wanted it rather than just providing it unrequested.

My local Five Guys always throws about a dozen ketchup packets in my bag every time, without asking.  And I don't use ketchup on anything, so it's pointless to save them.  And I doubt they would take them back due to health regulations, especially in the COVID era.

[SkyPesos]

For all the bubble tea lovers here like me: recent shortage on tapioca, a primary ingredient in bubble tea.

[Rothman]

For all the bubble tea lovers here like me: recent shortage on tapioca, a primary ingredient in bubble tea.

Yep.  It is very strange whatever is going on with tapioca -- especially Kraft Minute Tapioca.  Can't find it in stores.  Wegman's has some weird brand of "organic" tapioca, though.

But here's the thing:  You can find it online.  So, that seems to indicate it isn't a simple shortage, but one of distribution.

[NJRoadfan]

Like, 48 rolls per case.  I imagine plenty of shoppers wouldn't even be able to carry one.  Yeah, a case only weighs about 30 pounds, but it's bulky enough to fill a whole shopping cart.

This is precisely how I buy toilet paper. A friend of mine has a Sam's Club membership, so he just buys the 96 count case (yes, its 2-ply) and we split it. Quite a bit cheaper to buy in bulk, and I never came close to running out last year. I do the same thing with paper towels. They'll get used eventually and they don't expire.

If anything, this whole thing exposed the truth..... that people were just taking rolls of TP home from the restrooms at work instead of buying it. 

[webny99]

If anything, this whole thing exposed the truth..... that people were just taking rolls of TP home from the restrooms at work instead of buying it. 

I once had a co-worker that did that. I found it a little disturbing! It was well before the pandemic, though.

[Scott5114]

Who the hell uses the toilet paper at work and is like "Man, I wish I had some of this at home?"

Maybe if you're into woodworking you want to avoid trips to the hardware store for 120 grit sandpaper.

[kphoger]

he just buys the 96 count case (yes, its 2-ply) and we split it.

Why not just buy two cases of 1-ply?  Then you each get one case, and you don't have to do any splitting.

Who the hell uses the toilet paper at work and is like "Man, I wish I had some of this at home?"

Maybe if you're into woodworking you want to avoid trips to the hardware store for 120 grit sandpaper.

People who are broke and would rather have stuff for free.

[webny99]

Who the hell uses the toilet paper at work and is like "Man, I wish I had some of this at home?"

Maybe if you're into woodworking you want to avoid trips to the hardware store for 120 grit sandpaper.

People who are broke and would rather have stuff for free.

Yes, I can confirm this, at least in the case of the guy I referred to. He was gone as soon as the company figured out what was happening.

[webny99]

he just buys the 96 count case (yes, its 2-ply) and we split it.

Why not just buy two cases of 1-ply?  Then you each get one case, and you don't have to do any splitting.

LOL, I'm not sure if this is how you meant this or not, but now I'm imagining unraveling and separating the layers of all 96 rolls. 

[jmacswimmer]

he just buys the 96 count case (yes, its 2-ply) and we split it.

Why not just buy two cases of 1-ply?  Then you each get one case, and you don't have to do any splitting.

LOL, I'm not sure if this is how you meant this or not, but now I'm imagining unraveling and separating the layers of all 96 rolls. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLq6whfg2pA

[kphoger]

"Envision"? That's the stupidest brand name for toilet paper I've ever seen. What exactly are we supposed to be envisioning when we're on the can with a roll of 1-ply toilet paper?

Cleaning out from under your fingernails when your fingers invariably poke through the paper while you're wiping.

My dad would joke that they taught him this in the Army.  Recently, I found out that the Army still teaches such.  I honesty thought he was joking.  If you are that desperate, who needs toilet paper anyway?

Wait, what exactly is taught in the Army?  Cleaning under your fingernails after your fingers poke through the toilet paper?

I tend to save leftover ketchup packets and leave them in a drawer in my kitchen for later use whenever I forget to ask for them, or when the drive-thru cashier is in such a hurry they close the window before I have the chance to ask. For a while there, during the lockdown, we were ordering through Doordash/Grubhub enough that my ketchup packet tray was overflowing, because we were bringing in more ketchup than we were using.

I tend to save ketchup packets, put them in a bag or small dish, pretend we'll eventually use them, and then throw them out a few months later.

he just buys the 96 count case (yes, its 2-ply) and we split it.

Why not just buy two cases of 1-ply?  Then you each get one case, and you don't have to do any splitting.

LOL, I'm not sure if this is how you meant this or not, but now I'm imagining unraveling and separating the layers of all 96 rolls. 

I'm getting better and better at this humor stuff.

[webny99]

he just buys the 96 count case (yes, its 2-ply) and we split it.

Why not just buy two cases of 1-ply?  Then you each get one case, and you don't have to do any splitting.

LOL, I'm not sure if this is how you meant this or not, but now I'm imagining unraveling and separating the layers of all 96 rolls. 

I'm getting better and better at this humor stuff.

Humor disguised as math is the best humor.

I reckon a lot of people probably skimmed over your post and totally missed the joke. I did myself until I re-read it.

[Scott5114]

I read it as "1-ply is cheaper, so you should just get that because then you can buy twice as much", so I missed the joke too. That's the problem with subtle jokes...I've had people miss a few of mine that way too.

[webny99]

I read it as "1-ply is cheaper, so you should just get that because then you can buy twice as much", so I missed the joke too. That's the problem with subtle jokes...I've had people miss a few of mine that way too.

Oh, same here. More than I can count, probably. I think it's somewhat specific to the internet, or maybe just writing in general. It can be really hard to convey your tone - like in this case, it reads like a fairly sensible and legitimate question.

I'll often use one of the emojis so people know I'm joking, but sometimes I'll decide a joke is too dry to wreck with an emoji. And of course, those are usually exactly the kind of joke that's easy to miss, so it becomes self-reinforcing.

[Scott5114]

Usually if I am not sure whether people will get that it's a joke, I'll eschew capitalization and punctuation, though I think that comes across clearer in a chat room environment where you're used to people's "normal" writing style. It may not stand out as much on a forum, where there's more posters, so someone may not see my post and realize there's anything unusual about the way I wrote it.

[kphoger]

Usually if I am not sure whether people will get that it's a joke, I'll eschew capitalization and punctuation ...

Same here, and I also try to make it as short as possible.  So, like three or four words with no capitalization or punctuation.  I usually reserve that for the driest of sarcasm.

[hbelkins]

Who the hell uses the toilet paper at work and is like "Man, I wish I had some of this at home?"

Same for most hotel toilet paper. I don't even think about taking the spare roll with me when I check out.

[Duke87]

See, I only ever buy single-ply TP because I actively dislike the thicker fluffier stuff. So public restroom TP feels exactly the same as what I'm used to at home. That said, I've never swiped a roll of it from anywhere.

[kphoger]

See, I only ever buy single-ply TP because I actively dislike the thicker fluffier stuff.

I like neither one.  What my wife and I prefer is two-ply TP that isn't very fluffy.

Big-booty bears be damned, I don't want to wipe my butt with a quilted pillowcase, nor do I want there to be little bits of fluffy paper chaff left behind on my left behind when I'm done.  However, neither do I want to wipe my butt with 30 grit sandpaper, no matter how effective that might be at cleaning said butt of defecatory detritus.

The cheerful clairvoyant happy medium for our pooper-polishing product purchase is purple-packaged Cottonelle.

[hbelkins]

I've found Angel Soft (or its Dollar General or Family Dollar store-brand equivalent) to be ideal for my uses. Two-ply, not overly fluffy, not sandpaper-rough, and not prone to leaving little flaky white remnants on your anal crevice.

[ZLoth]

Rental Cars in case you are planning on vacationing.

[citrus]

In case anyone's wondering where their stuff is, I saw all of it while crossing the SF Bay Bridge yesterday. https://sfist.com/2021/04/21/a-record-number-of-container-ships-are-anchored-in-sf-bay-as-u-s-imports-boom/

[JayhawkCO]

Rental Cars in case you are planning on vacationing.

I have a trip to Alaska coming up in late June and I booked a car right when we got the tickets sorted.  I checked the price for the same car if I were to have reserved it now and it's 2x the cost. 

Chris

[Duke87]

Rental Cars in case you are planning on vacationing.

What makes rental cars interesting is that the price of them has already been abnormally high for the entire past year. Now the prices are climbing higher still. They seem to have gotten caught in a rent-seeking market condition.

It's also been generally speculated that while rental car prices will come down to earth a bit as agencies are gradually able to regrow their inventory and the glut of backlogged vacation demand passes, they will always remain higher than they were in 2019 because there will not be as many business travelers renting cars for a week and putting 50 miles on them to help subsidize vacationers racking up hundreds or even thousands of miles taking them on road trips.

[JayhawkCO]

Rental Cars in case you are planning on vacationing.

What makes rental cars interesting is that the price of them has already been abnormally high for the entire past year. Now the prices are climbing higher still. They seem to have gotten caught in a rent-seeking market condition.

It's also been generally speculated that while rental car prices will come down to earth a bit as agencies are gradually able to regrow their inventory and the glut of backlogged vacation demand passes, they will always remain higher than they were in 2019 because there will not be as many business travelers renting cars for a week and putting 50 miles on them to help subsidize vacationers racking up hundreds or even thousands of miles taking them on road trips.

The problem is that they sold half of their fleets when no one was traveling, and now they don't have the capital yet to reup. 

Chris