I told you earlier this week that I was in contact with someone who was covid positive. You can read more about that in THIS POST. I feel perfectly fine except I have a bit of a stuffy nose and scratchy throat but decided to just get tested anyway. I’d rather be cautious.
My test was scheduled for Tuesday morning. That got me thinking…I needed meds, I needed a couple of groceries. Dang. I could have Karl do that but I hated to ask if I was already going to be in town. That’s when I remembered WalMart’s grocery pick up.
I quickly sat down and put in an order. It’s really easy. I sat down, typed in what I wanted, and put it in the shopping cart. Easy Peasy.
As for my medicine pickup, I use Walmart Pharmacy. I called there and they said they have curbside pick up too.
Great!! I could handle this on my own.
So I jumped in the truck and headed to my 9 am appointment for my test. Karl had used the truck last and he burns CDs and plays them. His CD came on as I started the truck. Karl has a WIDE range of music that he listens to…anything from smashing rock to Taylor Swift to classic country music.
The first song that played was David Allan Coe singing “You Never Even Called Me by My Name.
It took about my about 5 seconds and I was crying and singing along. I’m sure if you listen to the song you’ll be wondering why I would be crying. Well, it was one of Kramer’s (my husband who passed away last year from lung cancer) favorite song. Kramer wasn’t one to sing, but that song, he’d sing.
We even have a picture from a night when we were singing it together much to the shock of the friends we were hanging with. It was the New Years’ Eve 1999.
It is a favorite memory of mine. He could be such a hoot!
Next, Karl had this song…Tom T. Hall singing “I Love”. It was also another Kramer favorite. As odd it sounds, this was also a favorite song of Jody’s (my niece who passed away last year too)..more tears.
I was ready to be done with the grief and just as I was about to turn the CD off the next song was total hard rock….blessed be. That got me thinking…
I’m doing pretty good with the whole grief thing but sometimes it still gets me. I have thought it, and said it, time and time again that if Kramer was going to be sick and pass away, I’m so thankful it was last year rather than this year. My heart goes out to all of you who are dealing with hard medical stuff plus Covid. That would just plain suck. Dealing with it pre-Covid was hard enough.
I can’t imagine dropping him off at the hospital to not see him. I can imagine him here dying and us being afraid to let the kids come and be with him. That would have been more than I could have taken. As I said, my heart truly goes out to you.
So with a totally sniffly nose, I pulled up to the Covid test sight. There were four cars in front of me and a couple behind. It didn’t take too long. Here we still doing this from people’s cars. When it was my turn I rolled down the window, handed her my driver’s license and testing papers. She gave me tissues to blow my nose, (thank heavens she did) she left with my paper, came back and gave them back to me, and swabbed my nose all while in the driver’s seat of my vehicle.
I was told I’ll get my results in 24-48 hours. I totally expect to be negative and will be shocked if it’s anything different.
From there I went to the Walmart pickup. I have the app on my phone so I just messaged them and said I was there. About two minutes later they came out with my groceries and loaded them into my back seat. I asked the guy if pickup was popular. He said yes…they do about 75 pickups a day and would do more if they could hire more help. For our small rural area, that is a lot.
If you have not tried the Walmart pickup, I totally recommend it. It beats going in the store and getting all germed up. It saves a ton of time and I don’t get sidetracked buying something that wasn’t on the list. If you haven’t tried it before and are interested, I have a referral code for you HERE. You get $10 off your first order if you use the code. You need to order a minimum of $35 worth of product. The good news is that you can add any product from the store so I got lotion and cleaning supplies in my order too.
Depending on your store, you do have to order a day or two in advance. At that time you schedule a time to pick up. There is an hour window for you to pick up. So I had the 9-10 am slot. You can change the items in your order up to 8 hours before your scheduled pickup time. For me, after I place the order I saw a recipe I was interested in trying so I added a couple of ingredients to the order. You can do that as many times as you want until the 8 hours before pickup. I actually got a message at 8:40 am that told me the order was ready.
Kalissa and Kelli use Walmart pickup all the time. No matter how you shop, a stop at the store is at least a half-hour of time. That’s a big time-saver to do pickup instead. Also, they can have the kids with but don’t have to take them inside the store. It’s a win-win all the way around.
I wore my mask while the guy put my groceries in the back seat and he had one on too. It was about as safe as shopping as you can get!
From there I drove through the parking lot to the pharmacy pickup. I called the number and 2 minutes later the lady came out with my prescription. Again, I wore a mask and so did she…totally safe.
From there I headed back home. I didn’t listen to the CD. Instead, I listened to my audiobook…I’m much better when I stay distracted!
I’m home…groceries are put away and I’m at the computer writing about my Tuesday. I’m going to make myself some lunch and then head to the sewing room. I have a quilt that is calling. Thank heavens I have hobbies and things to keep my mind off all the other things in the world. What a blessing to have a hobby I love!!
Keeping fingers and everything crossed that your test will be clear xx
About Walmart online service, don’t let them substitute items on your list. If you ask for lettuce, you might get cauliflower. I live in a more populated area and often could only get about half of what I ordered and waited 3 days for it. We have a thing like banks to deliver our medications so that works out great.
I pray you are well. No COVID-19 for you. Take care.
I know several people who use walmart pickup i think I need to get on the bandwagon and try it out. Happy sewing and thanks for taking us through the day with you. Grieving still stings.
Jo, thanks for sharing your thoughts and Karl’s choices of music…I, too lost my husband last October and it’s been a hard/easy year…all because of family and my faith in Jesus and knowing Jim isPraying your test where he longed to be. Yesterday those two songs would have kept me in tears, but today I can rejoice and enjoy them. Thank you again. Praying your test is negative.
I started using Walmart pickup when we started isolating. I will never go back to my “old” way of shopping. It saves me tons of time and money. I was not a regular Walmart grocery shopper in the past. For staples their prices are great. I designate which items can or cannot be substituted. I don’t buy meat or produce from Walmart – I am too fussy. But for pantry items, dairy, cleaning – it is the way to go. At our pickup the delivery person is waiting for me when I get there because, like you, I text that I am on my way and they track my route so know when I arrive. Safe, convenient, and I save money!
Praying for your negative test. And all things you stay healthy. My daughter uses Walmart Pick up and loves it . She says she got really good fruit from them this summer. And it saves lots of shopping time .
Praying for your negative test. And all things you stay healthy. My daughter uses Walmart Pick up and loves it . She says she got really good fruit from them this summer. And it saves lots of shopping time .
Jo losing people you love stings a lot even when it’s been going on 30 years. I’ll here one of my husband’s favorite song or remember something sweet he had done and the years flow. Maybe not as often as at 1st. I also am glad for the things I love to do to stay busy and fruitful. I may have to try that Walmart pick up sometime although I like being out and seeing people. Praying that you are negative on your Covid test.
My first order is coming today at 4pm. Our positivity rates are going up here in Omaha, so I feel it best not to go out. I am 83 and in that “danger zone”. Have been sewing a lot this week and so saving that time is a good thing. Walmart is my favorite store, and the most money-saving. Plus I only have to make one stop as they have everything I need besides groceries. Hope your test is negative. Take care now.
I was using Wal Mart pick-up several years before COVID. I find it so helpful because I don’t do impulse shopping. When things were first shut down, it was very difficult to get a pick-up time. Think it took about 3 weeks before you could get something scheduled. And you can decide what you will allow to be substituted or not. They also have a drive-thru pharmacy so I can get almost everything I need in one stop. Bonus for me.
I was using Wal Mart pick-up several years before COVID. I find it so helpful because I don’t do impulse shopping. When things were first shut down, it was very difficult to get a pick-up time. Think it took about 3 weeks before you could get something scheduled. And you can decide what you will allow to be substituted or not. They also have a drive-thru pharmacy so I can get almost everything I need in one stop. Bonus for me. Some things are still “out of stock,” but I rarely have things that aren’t available right now.
Hoping for NO covid, Jo!!
I use Walmart pickup all the time–probably every other week for all the staples. I love it. We have a local store that does pickup and I use them for fresh food. They have better quality in my opinion. I occasionally go into a store but this is so easy it is hard not to order everything and if they still had fabric I would probably order that too. I hope you are Covid negative….Thanks for being such a consistent blogger. you and many others are keeping us sane in this pandemic….
Our 56th wedding anniversary was Saturday, my second alone. Some days are pretty good but it’s usually music that sends me down memory lane and a few tears. That night, 11:45 pm, I just put some wonderful “bedtime music“ on Alexa, the O’Neil brothers piano. First shuffled song, “Wedding Song (There is Love)” second song: “I Can Only Imagine” (what Heaven is like) , next “It Had to be You” , and by the 4th song, I was smiling…”Only You”.
Just needed to share that.
Still praying for your health, Jeannie, love always.
Thanks for the note Lorna. Happy Anniversary. I know you are still married so happy anniversary is completely appropriate to say.
I love Walmart pickup for cat food- bags and cans! I don’t have to lift them 3 times before I get home!
Walmart doesn’t upcharge either. The other grocery in town has an upcharge on the groceries and I think another fee. Walmart for me. But I do go in and pick out my meat and produce.
Hey Jo
My sister in law and I were talking about grief once. About how sometimes grief just comes up and smacks you in the head with a two by four. All you can do is just roll with it and feel those feelings. What we discovered through talking together was that most of the time it happened when we were driving alone. Something about being in a private place watching the world go by we think. It’s kind of a safe place actually. Good luck with your covid test, and thanks for the walmart info.
Barbara…I agree.
Target pick up is super easy, too. So nice to just drive up and click on “I’m here”.
FYI: your evening post is not going through. Just another 2020 thing. I also hope the test result is negative.
There was a glitch. The post is working now.
Hoping your test result will be negative! I also use Walmart pickup and have had good luck using it. My husband’s favorite song was Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox by Joe Diffie. I listened to it a few minutes ago and had a good cry. It has been 11 years ago this month that he passed away but sometimes it seems like yesterday. He too had lung cancer.
I was using Walmart pick up before the pandemic, but it is all we use now along with sometimes a pick up at the regular grocery store. I live in a more rural area and I have to say they do a great job with my produce and usually the substitutions are for a name brand when I ordered a store brand. I love that I can send my daughter to pick it up if I am working. Plus, I just keep adding to our order until we are ready to do the pick up.
I’ve been tested multiple times for Covid and they’ve all been negative. Thankfully, none have been swabbing the nose. The first was spitting into a tube and all the others (performed at a drive thru less than 10 min from the house) is swabbing the inside of your mouth and those results come back within 24-30 hrs. I’m in a covid vaccine trial and those 2 tests were just inside the nose (not way up to your eyeballs!!). I’ve tried the grocery pickup twice but after several items needing to be subbed, I decided I didn’t like it and would rather run in the store. Glad it worked for you!
Love your comments. I lost my husband, Doug, last year also. He was going through treatments for Esophageal cancer. The cancer was at a very early stage one. He was having a hard time with the treatments, especially the radiation. After he had come home from one of his treatments he had sat to relax and took his evening meds. Something went wrong and he asperated on his meds. Long story short, we let him go the following Tuesday after his organs started to shut down and the doctors told us that there was nothing more that they could do. All 3 of our children and I made the decision together and was with him when he left this life. I, also, have thought that I am glad that it was last year and not this year because of Covid-19. I also am glad that I have my sewing that keeps my mind occupied. We were married 45 years. I miss him so.
Big hugs to you Ann!!
FYI: *You must be a new customer and spend $50 or more before taxes to receive offer. You must have a registered Walmart account to redeem promo code. (Hope your test results are negative.)
We started using grocery pickup when Covid hit and I must admit it does save money on our grocery bill. Lots of folks are doing the same and only once we decided to use Instacart which picks and delivers since we couldn’t get a pick up time for 5 days! I did love having them delivered but it was more costly. Not sure I will ever go back to shopping in the store since it wasn’t my favorite thing to do before. Loving pickup.