Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.

As I’ve mentioned before, the amazing shrink ray has been getting quite the workout in the supermarkets. This article discusses it but what jumps out about it is that they pointedly mention Breyers, my favorite ice cream, jumping from 2 quarts ( half gallon) to 1.75 qt. to 1.5 qt. And it wouldnt surprise me if they whipped a little more air into it to make it look like a full container. I love Breyers but , man, was I pissed when I saw that.

This is why, when shopping, I always go by the weight (or quantity) divided by price. Coke is $6 for a 20-pack (What happened to the 24-pack? Oh, thats right, take out four cans but keep it looking like a case of 24) but 12-packs are on sale 3-for-$11…what to do, what to do. The answer, obviously, is do the math and see that one comes out to thirty cents a can and the other comes out to .305 per can. These are the details youve gotta keep in mind. Thats what I love about smartphones…I can keep track of pricing at various stores and have a calculator handy to do the math. Are two 12-oz. bottles of Tabasco a better deal than one 20-oz. bottle? That sort of thing. Of course, things like price arent always the only thing to consider….a #10 can of corn is cheaper than a handful of 15 oz cans but I’ll waste more than half the can before I can finish it off…so thats a false economy right there.

The point, though, is that it isnt just me…things really are subtly (and sometimes not so subtly) changing with regard to the economy. I know companies do this to keep sales high and prevent customers from walking away in disgust, thats business….the interesting side effect is that people who are less observant will say “Inflation? What inflation?”..after all, their $5 still gets them a ‘half gallon’ of ice cream just like it did five years ago.

Check the fine print, man…you may learn more about the economy from reading the label on a box of cake mix than you will from reading .gov inflation reports.