Stay healthy and wash your hands well and frequently. These are the suggestions I would have considered a priority in an effort to avoid and, if necessary, survive coronavirus.
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Never - not in my wildest dreams - would I have anticipated a need to stock up on toilet paper. Yes I know there are several other items that people have targeted in a panic buy to ensure they are well prepared for a possible pandemic. And the hoarding of all these items baffles me.
Without a doubt the growing number of social media memes about this excessive buy up has provided great amusement. I am truly impressed by the quick wit of some people. But I cannot begin to understand the motivation for those that are embracing the concept of overstocking there pantries with rice, pasta and tin tomatoes as well as toilet paper and hand sanitiser. There are a few simple messages I would like to pass onto these people:
- We live in the 21st century - deliveries of stock are made daily to the supermarkets, and if you didn't go on this irrational buying spree there would be enough for everyone - as has always been the case.
- Such over-the-top shopping is at the very least selfish. The animal kingdom's unwritten rule about survival of the fittest is about health, strength, fitness level - not about how much toilet paper you have stored.
- If by chance you do fall ill and are confined to your home in quarantine for 14 days or more you still have the perfectly good option of online shopping and home delivery and even toilet paper is delivered through that service.
I am a person who has long bought toilet paper, washing powder, dishwashing tablets and similar in bulk. And when I say bulk I mean a pack of 45 toilet rolls for $19. Not because I'm preparing for Armageddon, but because it is quite simply better value for money. Once every four to five weeks you could potentially see me carrying a pack of said toilet rolls to my car. The same applies to laundry powder although a bulk buy of that lasts much longer.
I embrace the concept of cost-effective shopping. I also like the idea of not having to carry heavy, bulky items from the car to the pantry on a weekly basis. It is my shopping survival routine.
I can assure you if you happen to see me carrying any of these items from the supermarket at any time it will be because the cupboard at home is nearly bare...not because I have joined the panic buying frenzy. I urge everyone to stick to what they have always done so no-one gets stuck without a square to spare.