Oh, I think this is only the start. Or is this a conspiracy to kickstart the economy again? I have no idea!! And I have limited bandwidth of my brain right now... I'd rather not delve too deep. Thank you for all your replies and musings! So interesting to see that it is a global thing.

That is awful Irina! How will you stay warm?

This week I had a big expense, I bought a food saver (vacuum sealer). I have been thinking about getting one for the deep freezer for a while. Since inflation is on the horizon, I figured now is as good a time as any..

I am also periodically browsing Zara. But I'm like.. what's the point?

We received an *interim* auto recall notice a few weeks ago because apparently our fuel pump may go out at highway speeds. But they don't have a fix and don't know when they will have one. So I imagine if they ever do figure it out we won't be able to get the part(s) anyway.

And at the beginning of the pandemic our oven went out (just after the warranty expired) on our $$$ range. The part was from China. It took months and months to arrive, but then didn't fix the problem. Next part took something like seven months. $4,000 later and we still don't have a working oven so have been using my parents' old portable oven from the '70s or '80s. No electronic parts to go bad.

I guess I should be happy that DD wants cash for her birthday (in November) and for Christmas. I guess her dad and I are the supply, and we are chained to her?

Synne, it’s been +17 inside the house most of the week since it is not cold outside yet but we expect temps to go down a bit next week, so if we don’t get a furnace by then, we will try to use our wood burning fireplace more. I really hope to get it by Tuesday.

Irina, I’m glad to hear you’re able to get a new furnace, and that fast! The situation you describe at IKEA is bizarre.

Synne, my BiL got one of those food sealing machines a few Christmasses ago. He says it cuts down waste. I think they also use it for venison, quail, etc that he hunts.

Donna, lol about you being the supply, chained to your kid.

speaking of IKEA -- just got an email from IKEA CEO tonight talking about supply chain.

CarolS, posts I’ve seen about IKEA’s new lines say they emphasize “a lot more sustainable materials such as wood, rattan, recycled cotton and linen”. That sounds good to me! Bitd, I remember pine shelves & tv stand for my living room, plus other pieces, of pine wood. Their materials were getting really disappointing over the last few years. I wonder how much they were pushed in this new old direction by supply chain issues.