After the snow and blizzard from the north subsided, a brief hiatus ensured (very brief) then the wind swung around from the west and hit hard last evening, and still is gusting to 98 this morning.

There is a quite and warmth inside the house which tells me that we must have a very good snow build up all around the outside. 

Our meal last evening was not what one would normally have on blizzard y days,still one has to use up what is in the fridge. Nice salad with canned salmon.

Which is a segue to what I realy want to write about. Can you guess?

Those that said food prices, in this instance cucumbers and cherry tomatoes win the prize. 

Last week I purchased an English cucumber among other things. I did not checked the receipt until I arrived home. The cucumber cost $3:99. I thought that was a bit high but let it slide.

Then Monday I attempted to purchase a similar cucumber, this one was very small. The price tag on the shelf said $3:99.
Not wanting to get ripped off further I had it price checked, it came up $3:99 on the till. I questioned the validity of this with co manager, she said it seemed steep and said the other type of cucumbers are :99 cents. She added that she would have to check with HQ in Winnipeg about the 3:99 one.

So yesterday I go down and lo n behold the English cucumbers are priced at $1:45 on the shelf.

Got that sorted out-then right after I had to question the $7:49 I was charged for plastic box of cherry tomatoes.
There was no shelf sticker  with that price on it, with no management available it takes a little longer to sort these things out, but I was determined.

The closest thing on the sticker prices was $4:99 for cherry tomatoes, so that is what we went with.

Just on these two items I prevented a rip off of $5:04. This is not an anomaly with other items being miss priced in the computer, bags of potatoes double what they should be, many other items I'm sure overpriced but who has time to overseer this very troubling issue full time.

Northern stores should be ashamed of themselves. Not so much local as the HQ in Winnipeg where apparently all the pricing is done before entered in the computer. It has been on going for years with no correction in sight.

Under normal circumstances I guess an argument can be made that it is *customer beware*, shop at Northern at your own peril.

Alas this is not normal circumstances is it. NNC provides a subsidy of $2:50 a Kg on freight for perishable foods. This is paid to the retailer to ensure affordable nutritious foods for all northerners.

As is clearly the case in this instant, and many many others like it, all the subsidy is doing is padding the margins for the retailer Northern stores. Northern is owned by The North West Company.

Boy O boy, the storm has been worse than I thought  64 cm of snow and winds to 113.