Walmart Will Be The Downfall of the World

Okay. After one too many bad experiences at the local Walmart, I am deciding to boycott. Now this is not an easy decision to make considering where I live. Our community is small and rural, lacking retail variety and many specialty stores. What little we do have available can be antiquated and expensive. Let's face it, it's nice and easy to run to the local Walmart and get everything you need in one place. We have decided that we will no longer be supporting a store that flourishes despite their non-existent customer service. I'm also fairly certain that Walmart has some other major flaws within the entire scope of its existence, so maybe we also have a moral and ethical obligation to turn our backs to them as well. Here's a list of some ways we will be able to break the chains of bondage (a little dramatic, yes, I know...) to Walmart:

1. Shop at the only other grocery store: Food Lion. This will be more expensive and with fewer organic choices, but usually with better produce and meat.

2. Look into buying grass-fed beef and free-range chicken every six weeks from the natural grocery store in the city and freeze for later use.

3. Buy local eggs on the way to the library every week.

4. Utilize the Internet for more of our shopping.

5. Shop in the city (combine this with the meat buying trip) for fabric, crafting supplies, etc.

6. Try the local department store for clothing and shoe needs.

7. Grow more of our own vegetables.

8. Buy fruit from the local farm stands. Though this fruit isn't organic or completely local, it is at least from VA. It's also supporting a small, local business.

It used to be that if you needed hardware, you went to the hardware store. If you needed plants, you went to a nursery. Need groceries? Go to the grocery store. We've become so used to one-stop-shopping (thank you, Fred G. Meyer) that I believe we are lazy. I also believe that our patronage of these Big Box stores has lowered our expectations for quality products, knowledgeable service people, and good service. I am going to take a little more time, energy, and money and search for stores where quality and service matter. In the end, I'm hoping that my hard-earned money and time will be spent in a way that makes me feel content with my consumer purchases. Not bewildered, cheated, unsatisfied, and taken advantage of.