Dear Martin’s: It’s not me, it’s you.

If I can help it, I will never shop in a Martin’s supermarket again.

I wrote a long time ago that I do not fear the coming Ukropalypse.

I knew it was a business decision on the part of the Ukrop family. And I was fairly comfortable with the new management coming in.

Until they got here.

While in the grand scheme of things the stores don’t look that much different, well except for wine and beer and Sundays, there are many more problems.

The staff is rude and uniformed. The only reason we’ve had to keep going there was the continuance of Ukrop’s prepared foods.

Tonight, while I was at the pool, my wife went to pick up a few groceries. So she picked up a Ukrop’s chicken dinner. My wife often boasts that she hasn’t fried chicken since we moved to Richmond. And really, with Urkops chicken, why bother?

Thanks to KFC and Popeyes, she may still not need to get out the deep fryer, but I see little reason to go back to Martins.

Sure, the chicken was great.

But she told me there was no coleslaw with the meal because they no longer offer that as a side. That’s okay, I’m really the only one in the family who ever ate it.

Then I tried what was supposed to be succotash. The recipe has changed.

I realize taken by themselves these things might be trivial. But they’re just the latest in a long line of disappointments.

Oh, did I mention that they also forgot the bread? That, by the way, was an improvement from the last time when they smushed the bread down to pancake depth in a box under the sides.

Because of the convenience, my wife may choose to go back to Martin’s.

I’m done.

When the Shark Bites

I’m glad that the little girl attacked by the shark off of Ocracoke is going to be okay.

But one thing stuck out to me in the story.

Time of attack: 5:00 p.m.

Please pay attention. I posted this list 10 years (and for or five blog versions) ago after the last attack off the Outer Banks and Virginia Beach occurred.

Swimmers entering the ocean should keep in mind the following to reduce the possibility of shark attack:

Stay in groups – sharks are more likely to attack a solitary individual.
Avoid being in the water during darkness or twilight hours when sharks are most active and have a competitive sensory advantage. – The recent attack occurred around 5:00 p.m. (when I wrote this in 2001 both attacks had occurred around 6:00 p.m.)
Do not enter the water if bleeding from an open wound or if menstruating.
Don’t wear shiny jewelry. The shark mistakes the reflected light for the sheen of fish scales.
Don’t swim where there is a lot of fishing activity. The use of bait fish will draw the sharks.
Diving seabirds are good indications of the presence of fish.
The presence of porpoises does not mean there are no sharks.
Sandbars and areas with steep dropoffs are favorite hangouts for sharks.

While this list isn’t failsafe, statistically you’re more likely to be struck by lightning or die in a car crash than you are to be attacked by a shark.

And speaking of using common sense, this story is just sad.

Yosemite Waterfall Deaths: 3 Hikers Ignored Warnings Before the Plung
IBTimes
Tuesday at Yosemite National Park, warning signs, a barricade, and people’s urging voices were all ignored before all three hikers playing in Vernal Fall were swept over the 317-foot falls.
Read more.

It’s tragic. But rules are made for a reason. They ignored them.

We live in beautiful world. But beauty can be dangerous.