HINTS FROM HELOISE

PRACTICAL, DEPENDABLE TIPS FOR TODAY’S BUSY CONSUMERS

Dear Readers: Today’s Sound Off is about our grocery stores and the products they carry:

Dear Heloise: I’ll keep this as brief as possible. I have to go shopping for groceries about once a week. Prices keep rising, so I have to be very careful to shop for lower priced items. I’ve noticed that my local store is now carrying different brands than it used to, and many are much higher in price.

I know there have been shipping problems, and getting certain materials has been hard, but even products normally made in

America have become hard to get. I’ve had to switch brands of pet food, laundry soap, household cleaners and various food items. My grocery budget increased by almost $100 a month, which on a fixed income affects not only me but many other retired people. For many people, this just feels like price gouging, especially when we’re paying $4.99 or more at the gas pump!

When will it end?

— Harriet S., Biloxi, Mississippi

Harriet, believe me, we’d all like to know when it will end. I know things are difficult right now, but we’ll all have to tighten our belts, make do or do without. It’s not the first time in our history that we’ve been in this position. Personally, I look upon this time as a challenge to my creative abilities. Instead of buying flowers at a nursery, I plant seeds (I start them in egg cartons). I have a vegetable garden, too. I can go to the library instead of buying books or buy them at garage sales. I buy cheaper cuts of meat, or we go meatless a couple of nights a week. If it’s not on sale or in a garage sale, I usually don’t buy it.

Readers, I’d love to hear how you economize during this time of inflation! — Heloise

Dear Heloise: Recently, a cable network contacted me to let me know that my personal information had been breached.

They would have to cut off my service to that provider if I didn’t reinstall the required information, such as my name, address, banking info and more. Everything looked as if it was professionally done, but I looked at the email address and knew immediately it was a scam.

Apparently, several scammers have been using this type of trick to get our banking information. It’s people impersonating online payment services, cable providers, even banks.

The public needs to be extra vigilant about who gets their information. If it’s an email, check the sender’s email address. If it’s a letter in the mail, call the company and check with them.

— Cliffton D., Lansing, Michigan