More than 20,000 employees co-own the WinCo Foods where many Oregonians shop every week, according to the National Center for Employee Ownership’s national rankings. These are the things WinCo’s employee ownership changes for Oregonians. 1. Owned by Workers, Not Wall Street WinCo Foods is 100% employee owned through an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). The…
H-E-B didn’t win a single grocery trust award in the 2026 rankings from Newsweek and BrandSpark International. Walmart, meanwhile, picked up twelve trust categories. These are the trust awards Texas-born H-E-B didn’t win in 2026. How the Trust Rankings Are Built H-E-B’s missing trophy case traces back to a study Newsweek and BrandSpark International run…
Order a “cabinet” at an ice cream counter outside New England, and the kid behind the register just stares. So does the line behind you. These are the signs someone was raised in Rhode Island, no matter where they live now. 1. Coffee Milk Devotion Rhode Island named coffee milk its official state drink in…
Could you explain to a first-time visitor why blaze-orange vests take over gas stations and diners across South Dakota the third Saturday of October? It’s pheasant season. South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks traces the tradition back to 1919. These are the everyday habits that only make sense to South Dakotans. Note: This is general…
Florida has a vocabulary, and nobody warns newcomers before they land. These are the words Floridians say that stop Northerners mid-sentence. 1. Cracker “Cracker” is a word many families with generations of roots in the state call themselves, and they mean it as a badge. One theory in the state archives ties the word to…
Washington’s vehicle code requires headlights the moment rain or fog keeps other cars from being seen a thousand feet down the road, under Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 46.37.020. Longtime residents flip the switch without a thought. These are the rain habits that give away a lifelong Washingtonian. 1. Skipping the Umbrella Lifelong natives walk…
An Oklahoma onion burger looks simple enough to copy at home. That’s where you can get yourself into trouble. A few small decisions separate a burger that tastes right from one that merely has the right ingredients. The cooks behind Oklahoma’s griddles take those details seriously. These are the Oklahoma onion burger rules cooks won’t…
Columbus Day weekend lands on October 12 this year. Many visitors assume every shoreline clam shack in Rhode Island will still be scooping clam cakes that weekend. That’s not the case. These are the Rhode Island clam shacks that close before anyone expects. 1. Evelyn’s Drive-In Evelyn’s Drive-In is a seasonal clam shack on Nanaquaket…
NPR reported this fall that a member of the Backstreet Boys sued a Walton County beachgoer for trespassing, twice, over a folding chair on wet sand. The catch? She had stayed on the public sand. These are the Florida beach rules locals follow that are never posted. Note: This is general information, not legal advice….
Downtown Cadiz will fill up on October 9 and 10 for the Trigg County Country Ham Festival, marking 50 years built around one cured cut of pork. A whole country ham just hangs there in a smokehouse, looking simple. It never is. These are the Kentucky country ham rules nobody writes down. Note: This is…
