USVI-On-Line

In this corner, weighing in at 44lbs...




My cooler!

I loaded it, weighed it (Look! I lost 2 more lbs...I am totally bikini trim now!), smiled and brought the fridge stuff back upstairs.

"I have good news and bad news"
"What?"
"The cooler weighs 44lbs!"
"That's good"
"It's also bad"
"Because now, you know you can find 6 lbs of crap in the house to bring" (She opens the fridge) "Look! Capers! You can bring those! Jelly! Basil paste! You know we need more tahini!"

True love is hard to find

I see your also a Costco shopper you should buy a cooler on wheels that would be your extra 6 lbs

Perhaps you could bring a cow and just MAKE your own cheese on island? That's a whole lotta cheese my friend!!

As far as weight, I have one of those Balanzza thingies and I figure if I'm going to pay for another bag up to 50 lbs, I'm going to pack 49.9999999 lbs worth of stuff into that bag. And the Balanzza is "balls on accurate" to quote 'My Cousin Vinny'

And I consider it both a challenge and a moral obligation for all the flying public to do the same.

Of course at some point the bastards are going to figure this out and just start charging by the pound anyway.

But until then, 49.999999999 baby!

It warms the heart - we use laundry baskets to organize our packing too!

Peanut Butter, Cereal and crackers for all that cheese...

I love bringing a cooler with my favorite foods too. Especially for arrival day when all we want to do is veg at the villa.

I noticed something wrapped in alum foil. I thought all meat had to be unopened in it's original package with a USDA stamp. You might want to double check. Do you fly out today or tomorrow? Have a great trip!

xoxo

XOXO wrote:I thought all meat had to be unopened in it's original package with a USDA stamp.

It's probably highly dependent on which TSA agent checks your cooler, but in our carry on Polar Bear last week we had some of my home smoked pulled pork, and some chicken breasts that I had deboned and skinned, both of which were in vacu-seal bags, and they got on board with no problem.

We buy 1/2 cow at a time from our brother inlaw that raises beef and it's vacuum sealed with no USDA seal and have never had a problem.

Take that Starfish market!!!

Have a great trip PIP~~~

In case anyone cares:
Hot dogs: a metric crapload
Steaks - big ribeyes (1lb each)
Chicken breasts
Pulled pork
Banana bread
Blueberry bread
3 types of cheese: jalapeno cheddar, smoked gouda, garlic cheddar and horseradish cheddar. This is a lot, but I get the feeling we may be hosting people on Sunday or Monday night for cokttail hour.
Tortilla Wraps: handy to pack for sandwiches using said chicken
Some already-opened salami
coffee
cake mix and frosting (early birthday celebrations)
cornbread mix
elbow macaroni (for mac salad)
Misc: tea bags, sugar, Gatorade powder pack things (hangover weapons), vinegar (for the mac and potato salads), wee little bottle of hot sauce, birthday candles, fabric softener sheets, dye catcher sheets

As for "Take that Starfish"...we'll probably drop at least $300 - $400 there over the course of the week in beer, booze, wine and perishables.

Excessive? You bet your ass it is. But, it's how we like to vacation. I don't want to go out to eat. I'm 5000% happier grilling at the house.

I have to add some ham and turkey. that should bring us to 47 lbs on the bathroom scale. That's close enough for comfort.

As for me, I'll have gained all the weight I worked so hard to loose over the past 9 months by the time I get home. It will be worth it though. You can't stay this sexy all the time. Sometimes, you gots to DRANK!

Pine Peace has best prices for beer.
We just returned from a first-timer trip to St John. I never made it into Starfish but stopped in Pine Peace several times. We found it to have best prices for beer compared to St John's Market(even with a 15% Westin coupon for STJ's market)

I don't drink much beer, but I did stop at Pine Peace daily for another humongous five dollar bottle of rum (and a 6 dollar can of pineapple juice, but who's counting?!?)

Their wine prices were OK too. Starfish market has a better selection of wine, but I cried at those prices like I do when I have to buy rum stateside.

Rob, that cooler impresses me. 46 pounds, you say?

considering the owner of the Starfish had the most expensive house on the island two or three years back, I have zero concern or guilt about my cooler food taking money out of his pocket. It cost something like $20 million. Read about it in the Tradewinds I think.

We take lots of cheeses and smoked meats from home, good alcohol balancing foods for the beach.

We did not take a cooler-it this last winter trip and every morning it it was the same thing "oh crap, someone needs to run to the store for snacks...." I missed my cooler....

Pine Peace it is then. Where is that? Is it before you go up Jacob's Ladder or on the Westin side of it?

I've never been in there before...but this old dog can learn new tricks

Pine peace is my go to spot. Just after you pass the gas station it's on the left just before you go up jacobs ladder.

Minimal parking and divey looking with grocery carts from the 1950's but they are well stocked, great prices and will help you to the car with your groceries if you've got a lot of stuff.