Whole Foods

Turns out this whole ban on photography is not a Whole Foods thing; it is a grocery store thing. In pursuit of fairness, I called stores in my area from all the major chains. I spoke with the managers and asked about photography and they all told me if they see anyone taking photos in the store, they “politely” ask them to stop. However, one store manager told me that if I was discreet and didn’t use a flash, no one would probably ever know I was taking them. It seems there are all kinds of legal issues involved with photography - copyright and trademark infringements, not to mention industrial espionage. (Industrial espionage - right in the middle of the toilet paper and cantaloupes?!? Hmmmm—grocery stores seem to be way too public to worry about espionage, but whatever.) About the only grocery store that doesn’t ban photography is the Hong Kong Market. I didn’t call them, but my daughter and I went through there with a digital, flashing photos all over the place and, other than curious stares, didn’t attract any attention.

So my ban on Whole Foods is over before it began. A decades-long habit is too hard to break, I guess. Besides, they are S-O-O-O-O darned convenient to my house!

You have to understand—Whole Foods and I go back a LONG way together. All the way to Austin in the ‘70s when Whole Foods was a little hippy store in a vintage building with wooden floors and I was a naive, wide-eyed college student who had been raised in middle-class USA Texas on white bread, super-refined foods, and Jello “Ambrosia Salad” as gourmet food. Organic anything was way outside my comfort zone, but I was certainly willing to learn how to get cozy with the whole health-food way of life. Back then, the only chocolate Whole Foods sold was carob, their organic produce wasn’t the rule or the exception because it was their only choice, the only mention of white sugar or bleached flour or processed foods in the whole place was in the materials they had telling you not to eat such crap, and people who shopped there looked as if they wandered in straight out of Woodstock with their long hair, Earth Shoes, and John Lennon specs. Even if they had 20/20 vision, they wore the eyeglasses with plain glass because those little wire-frames were de rigueur to the WF experience. Food there was whole food, wholly whole food, and nothing but whole food.

You might even say Whole Foods and I grew up together.

Through the years, I have seen the changes and accepted that organisms grow or die. I didn’t complain about them selling out when they went more mainstream to appeal to a larger crowd of shoppers. I have never pointed out to them how “unwhole” are some of the soups and desserts that they offer for sale. After all, this IS the USA and capitalism is alive and well here so why shouldn’t Whole Foods go along with the status quo? Besides, I have weathered a few variances and compromises myself along the way and I am not quite as wide-eyed or as naive as I used to be. Or a college student, for that matter. As a matter of fact, my wire-frames have bifocal lenses these days.

I thought I knew just about everything there was to know about Whole Foods. Until yesterday, that is, when I committed what is apparently the most egregious sin I can commit in Whole Foods world. No, I didn’t confess to them that I throw away plastic grocery bags instead of recycling or that I sometimes don’t wash fruits before consuming them and - yes - sometimes those unwashed fruits are non-organic. I didn’t sample from the bulk bins or eat produce before weighing and paying for it. I didn’t even shoplift anything or do something morally repugnant to offend the rather snooty clientele they attract sometimes.

No, I took a photo. Of tomatoes, if you want to be exact.

That’s it. That’s the big sin in Whole Foods world. One flash of my digital and decades of being a loyal customer go to the wall.

Who woulda thunk it? I did check in here today, but I think that will be my last check in.

After all, Krogers and Randalls and HEB also sell organic produce and a lot of other foods that would fit quite comfortably on Whole Foods shelves. And Randalls has been remodeled and is practically brand new.

And they haven’t lost sight of the fact that they are not the only store in town.

I’ve always thought of Whole Foods as a wholesome, healthy kind of place but I just can’t trust a place that is afraid of cameras.

Besides, the sushi is better at Kroger and Randalls, anyway.

It’s a great place to shop! They have all kinds of organic fruits, vegetables, and meats. Everyone who works there is incredibly knowledgable.

I first came to this place to find fresh edamame. I couldn’t find it in the produce section, so I asked an employee and he said they were out. I was about to walk off when he gave me this dissertation on fresh edamame being inferior to frozen edamame, and told me where I could find it in the frozen section. He even gave cooking tips.

They also carry a lot of obscure items. It’s the only place in town I know of that sells ChocoLove, one of my favorite chocolate bars. They also sell Izze fruit soda, Jones Soda, and they have a huge selection of loose leaf tea.