I want to live like Costco people • Hacker News Board

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#341

Post by JoshTriplett » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:13 PM UTC

fromMars wrote: post #266

snark42 wrote: post #259

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hate going there and mostly use Instacart to avoid having to, but even with a Instacart mark-up and tip it's cheaper and higher quality than most other options, happy to pay someone else to do my shopping.

Is it really higher quality? I had a membership for a year and didn't find much I was interested in purchasing food wise, at least.

> Is it really higher quality?

Yes, genuinely. At most stores, "store brand" equates to "cheap, lower quality". Kirkland Signature is sometimes higher quality than other brands, and there are items for which they're my preferred brand.

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#342

Post by JoshTriplett » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:13 PM UTC

> You shift into Costco mode somewhere at the ten-minute driving mark. They’re always in far-off places, and so the last ten or twenty minutes of the drive feel like a rush

Or you just order from Costco as one more store on Instacart or similar, and don't make it part of your identity.

I have memories of a Costco similar to the author's, but I have no desire to ever go to a store again if I can help it.

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#343

Post by blipvert » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:14 PM UTC

giwook wrote: post #82

legitster wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "What's great about this country is America started the tradition where the richest consumers buy essentially the same things as the poorest. You can be watching TV and see Coca-Cola, and you can know that the President drinks Coke, Liz Taylor drinks Coke, and just think, you can drink Coke, too. A Coke is a Coke and no amount of money can get you a better Coke than the one the bum on the corner is drinking. All th…

> where the richest consumers buy essentially the same things as the poorest To say that "the richest consumers buy essentially the same things as the poorest" by using Coke as an example is a significant oversimplification and is cherry picking examples to prove a point. The richest consumers buy plenty of consumer goods that the poorest cannot even dream of buying or even renting. If there was a truffle-infused Cok…

Hey! The president eats BigMacs dontcha know!

Admittedly that’s because he’s an overgrown child, but what the hey.

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#344

Post by bdjxkhxhskak » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:14 PM UTC

giantrobot wrote: post #246

ncrc74 wrote: post #241

You'll never live like Costco people You'll never do what ever Costco people do Never fail like Costco people You'll never watch your life slide out of view And then dance and drink and screw Because there's nothing else to do

In that case I'll have a rum and Coca-Cola.

Fine.

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#345

Post by throwway120385 » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:14 PM UTC

mc32 wrote: post #320

ethbr1 wrote: post #284

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The irony is that, in contrast to their relative positions in the 1960s, communism (in the political-economic Marxian sense) vs capitalism (in the 2026 sense) is now more true to the original communist view above. To wit, that end stage capitalism has become an ouroboros eating its own tail that profits off artificial scarcity, while communism's primary defect (an inability to execute economic planning at a pace, sca…

So you’re saying China is in the drivers’s seat to make Marxist-Communism a reality?

I bet if they wrote a 100 year plan then taking a detour through selling things to Capitalist countries is part of the plan to getting to a Marxist utopia.

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#346

Post by fragmede » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:15 PM UTC

malfist wrote: post #269

wing-_-nuts wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was sad to see it discontinued. I hope the slate truck is gonna be good when it's released, cause I dig their emphasis on customization and repairability.

Me too, it's such a fantastic truck. Built like a tank, huge battery and insanely fast charging for a 400V architecture. The only thing that sucks about it is it's a bit bouncy, and the software can be stupid. But I love it. We bought it mostly because we wanted an EV for power backup for the house. We get ice storms in the winter and it can knock out power for days, and we need to be able to keep almost 1,000 gallon…

The frunk on the F150-Lightning has not been praised enough. It's a really great truck, but having that giant storage space that locks makes it so much better than anything else out there if that's what you need.

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#347

Post by patmorgan23 » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:15 PM UTC

shaftway wrote: post #98

giwook wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fair point. What about cars or houses?

That fancy Lamborghini is going to be sitting in the same traffic as my Honda.

Unless they pay for the express lanes

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#348

Post by ghaff » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:15 PM UTC

jerlam wrote: post #215

queuebert wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A Tesla will out accelerate all but the most niche cars now. Even the cheapest cars can have giant screens and climate control. I don't think they are equal to a Rolls Royce, but extreme luxury has greater diminishing returns now than at any point in history. Where I live pretty much all new houses are being built with granite counter tops and hardwood floors. Whether that's a good thing is a whole other topic ...

> Where I live pretty much all new houses are being built with granite counter tops and hardwood floors. Whether that's a good thing is a whole other topic ... When land and labor (and fees leveraged by the city, state, etc.) are extremely expensive, the additional cost for these "luxury" items is very low by comparison. The buyers for these homes are buying everything new and it makes little sense to save $10k or so…

And when my kitchen had to get rebuilt after a fire, I got neither. There are better synthetics for countertops and good tile is generally better for the floors. Maybe new houses are being built with granite and hardwood floors but they're not necessarily the best choices. I've known lots of people who had issues with granite (and my contractor agreed) and my hardwood was pretty beaten up even before the fire though I still have plenty of very old hardwood flooring in other less-trafficked areas of the house.

Like car colors, new house design decisions tend to be driven a lot by various current fashions because they're the low risk for purchasing reasons whether by developers or perceived resale by buyers.

Personally, I didn't care. My new color schemes are muted but not neutral. And my kitchen/dining room choices were, I think, practical for the most part.

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#349

Post by FartinMowler » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:16 PM UTC

Our_Benefactors wrote: post #141

skeeter2020 wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

no - it will be getting very expensive servicing while you're enjoying 200K+ trouble-free miles

Which is of course entirely besides the point. While it’s receiving service the owner will be in their Honda accord (they drive it daily), but they will always have the top trim and will probably get a new one once it’s out of warranty and needs its first “real entropy” repair. Being rich is better than being poor. The Warhol quote has nothing to do with that fact.

I'm reminded of the Polish proverb that it's better to be rich & healthy than sick & poor.

Re: I want to live like Costco people

#350

Post by jldugger » Thu, May 07, 2026, 9:17 PM UTC

tekla wrote: post #183

jldugger wrote: post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interestingly, my local subreddit loves to describe Costco as a late stage capitalist dystopia. - fighting for space everywhere: fighting for a parking lot, avoiding people seeming to ram you with their shopping cart, waiting for the extended family of seven in front of you to pick a cereal so you can leave the aisle, waiting for traffic to clear so you can _leave_ the costco - you have to pay to get in - and then yo…

It's wild that you can look at a physical testament of the sheer abundance and affordability that capitalism has created for almost every consumer good, and people will call it a dystopia because they experience traffic or fight over the right to buy cardboard childrens toys

I guess it feels less abundant when there's a million people in the store and you're basically in line to check out the minute you step in.