Ted, Ted, Ted

We have cut our total co-op memberships down to one (the biodiesel coop) from a high of three last year (that one plus the food co-op and the preschool co-op). I’ve been in co-ops forever, and the one thing they have all had in common is the net expensiveness of the product they offer, both in raw dollar terms and in the wads of time they require. I went into all those memberships consciously, and got all I wanted from them and more, but I have to say it’s going to be nice saving some money and having some free time during this period of low co-op involvement, however long it lasts. Adam Kotsko was writing about it this morning:

I confess that the other day I went to Europa Books and saw that they were selling Sein und Zeit for over $50. Telling Ted about this, I mentioned, “I think it’s cheaper at the Co-op,” then realized that that may well have been the first time I — and perhaps anyone in history — had ever used the phrase “cheaper at the Co-op.”