One of the most curious things that happens when snow is predicted in the Charlotte region…people stock up on milk and bread.
A few years ago, I decided to have some fun with the tradition and fill my Harris Teeter cart with the southern staples – the picture received over 700 likes, 400 shares, and 140 comments:
So why do southerners love milk sandwiches during snow storms?
Bread makes sense…the CDC even recommends having it on hand for storms, but why milk? Why buy something that will spoil if the storm knocks out power to your fridge?
The Atlantic investigated this phenomenon and discovered that, “buying things that might spoil is an assertion of optimism: It’s “like saying, ‘The storm will be over soon and I won’t be stuck in this situation for long,’” buying perishables may be a simple matter of psychology.
Duke University behavioral economist Dan Ariely believes that it’s a matter of seeing others doing something and feeling the need to join in. “If we go somewhere and we see other people buying those particular things, all of a sudden (we’re) even more interested in those (things),” he noted.
At the end of the day, it seems that many people would rather be too prepared than not enough.
This anxious weather moment brought to you
by the MILK & BREAD CONSORTIUM.
Enjoy a milk sandwich next time it snows.™ pic.twitter.com/Gdq1AumBmZ— Charlotte TrafficGuy (@Clt_TrafficGuy) December 5, 2018
Let us know how much milk and bread you have in the comments below!