Spam, Shasta, and Sticker Shock: Life’s Little Costs

For Weird Wednesday this morning, we asked what things people are buying these days that give them sticker shock. The overwhelming majority of people said food.

I heard from a guy who still buys Spam, even though it's gotten more expensive. My mom sent a lot of Spam and mustard sandwiches to school with me and my sister. We also got as many potato chips as you could fit in a sandwich-sized baggie. Add a banana, and on special occasions, I'd get a can of Shasta Cola wrapped in tin foil to keep it cold. I was never a big milk drinker, but since it only cost 5 cents per carton, I drank it at lunchtime a lot.

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Mom wouldn't buy soda pop every trip to the grocery store, and when she did, it certainly wasn't Coke or Pepsi. It was a real treat for us to get it, and on the days when you did get a can, you only got one.

When I was young, we had a thing called "penny candy," and it really only cost one penny per piece. The only way we could have this was by doing chores around the house and getting paid a couple of quarters to spend. But once I had money in my hand, I'd hop on my bike and head straight to the Circle K in our neighborhood.

One of the great things about Shasta Cola was the variety of flavors they had. So when we ran out of the cola-flavored ones, the orange, root beer, and cream soda were all pretty good.

I couldn't tell you the last time I had a Shasta Cola, but I can still sing you one of their old jingles: "Shasta... the cola that hasta."