In the Checkout Line
 

I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
beans. There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
on sale, so I picked that bag. Now I'm in the checkout line and the
woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
they?" "I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
they were the cheapest on offer. "What?! You don't know?!" and she's
off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
buy anything without knowing the price. And that she couldn't
remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
more. She was still mumbling about it when I left.

I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
beans was gonna break my bank. -aem

In the Checkout Line
 

"aem" > wrote in message
...
> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank. -aem
>
>

give it a week.

--
C.D

In the Checkout Line
 

On Mar 25, 7:57 pm, aem > wrote:
> I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
> beans. There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> on sale, so I picked that bag. Now I'm in the checkout line and the
> woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
> they?" "I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
> they were the cheapest on offer. "What?! You don't know?!" and she's
> off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
> buy anything without knowing the price. And that she couldn't
> remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
> None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> more. She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>
> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank. -aem

Yep. Some people do focus too much on details.

B

In the Checkout Line
 

On Mar 25, 7:57*pm, aem > wrote:
> I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
> beans. *There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> on sale, so I picked that bag. *Now I'm in the checkout line and the
> woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
> they?" *"I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
> they were the cheapest on offer. *"What?! *You don't know?!" and she's
> off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
> buy anything without knowing the price. *And that she couldn't
> remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
> None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> more. *She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>
> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? *It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank. * *-aem


Some people are really good at keeping all that stuff in their heads.
My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
less than three time a week to me.

In the Checkout Line
 

On Mar 25, 9:28*pm, Mark Thorson > wrote:
> Christopher Helms wrote:
>
> > My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
> > crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
> > talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
> > Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
> > change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
> > over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
> > freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
> > less than three time a week to me.
>
> That's what happens when you go shopping at 2 AM.


2AM, 7:25PM, midmorning, lunch, whatever. It doesn't seem to matter.
It's almost like they're there waiting for me.

In the Checkout Line
 

aem wrote:
> I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
> beans. There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> on sale, so I picked that bag. Now I'm in the checkout line and the
> woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
> they?" "I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
> they were the cheapest on offer. "What?! You don't know?!" and she's
> off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
> buy anything without knowing the price. And that she couldn't
> remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
> None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> more. She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>
> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank.

You noticed they were on sale. Presumably you would have
noticed if they were some outrageous price you wouldn't pay.
That's enough for me.

She probably thinks to herself, what a good little shopper I am,
especially compared to that one, but my money's on you. Just
because you couldn't say 99 cents or whatever, doesn't mean
you didn't have a very good idea what you'd pay at checkout.

nancy

In the Checkout Line
 

aem wrote:

> I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
> beans. There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> on sale, so I picked that bag. Now I'm in the checkout line and the
> woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
> they?" "I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
> they were the cheapest on offer. "What?! You don't know?!" and she's
> off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
> buy anything without knowing the price. And that she couldn't
> remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
> None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> more. She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>
> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank. -aem

You should have told her the beans were fifty dollars. Then add, "But
they're MAGICAL beans, and I'm going to grow a beanstalk."

Bob

In the Checkout Line
 

aem said...

> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank. -aem


aem,

Some people will make a mountain out of a mole hill for no obviously good
reason! Should've tried striking up a conversation about cinema, asking her
which movie she wants to see, then tell her your made-up version of how it
ends. Payback. Saw it on last night's talk show TV. Too funny!

At the checkout, I pick through the paperback novels and read out loud the
last paragraph of all the novels I can while waiting. I apply a little
emotional theatrics. Keeps me occupied. <VBG>.

Always leaves 'em laughing. After all, who's gonna challenge a 6'3" crying
giant???

Best,

Andy

In the Checkout Line
 

"aem" > wrote in message
...
>I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
> beans. There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> on sale, so I picked that bag. Now I'm in the checkout line and the
> woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
> they?" "I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
> they were the cheapest on offer. "What?! You don't know?!" and she's
> off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
> buy anything without knowing the price. And that she couldn't
> remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
> None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> more. She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>
> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank. -aem
>
>
It's a bag of pinto beans fer cripesake, can't get a more basic staple...
regardless which brand the most difference is gonna be like ten cents a
pound. Dried legumes is something I don't bother remembering the price
because if I need em I'm not gonna not buy if a few pennies more. And
anyway I usually choose Goya beans regardless of sales, I've found them to
be a better product, more uniform cleaner product with fewer broken
misshapen beans. In a bean dish the beans is the least expensive
ingredient, the smoked ham hocks cost a lot more. And even if adding
nothing but plain old water, the time spent is worth more than the entire
dish.

In the Checkout Line
 

Christopher wrote:
> Some people are really good at keeping all that stuff in their heads.
> My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
> crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
> talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
> Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
> change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
> over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
> freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
> less than three time a week to me.

It's undoubtedly your karma.

peace
Lynn in Fargo

In the Checkout Line
 

On Mar 25, 6:57*pm, aem > wrote:
> I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
> beans. *There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> on sale, so I picked that bag. *Now I'm in the checkout line and the
> woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
> they?" *"I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
> they were the cheapest on offer. *"What?! *You don't know?!" and she's
> off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
> buy anything without knowing the price. *And that she couldn't
> remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
> None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> more. *She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>
> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? *It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank. * *-aem

Not that there will BE a next time; but next time why don't you look
her straight in the eye, grin maniacally and say "I DON'T GIVE A
GOOD *&T^$%^@*% I'M RICH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Lynn in Fargo ;-)

In the Checkout Line
 

"Mark Thorson" > wrote in message
...
> brooklyn1 wrote:
>>
>> because if I need em I'm not gonna not buy if a few pennies more. And
>> anyway I usually choose Goya beans regardless of sales, I've found them
>> to
>> be a better product, more uniform cleaner product with fewer broken
>> misshapen beans. In a bean dish the beans is the least expensive
>
> And yet, you don't apply the same standard to bay leaves?

I don't eat bay leaves, you kitchen imbecile... wtf are you even here in a
cooking group, you know absolutely nothing about cooking, sicko.

In the Checkout Line
 

Lynn from Fargo Ografmorffig said...

> Christopher wrote:
>> Some people are really good at keeping all that stuff in their heads.
>> My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
>> crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
>> talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
>> Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
>> change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
>> over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
>> freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
>> less than three time a week to me.
>
> It's undoubtedly your karma.
>
> peace
> Lynn in Fargo


Reminds me of a character in the Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy, I forget
who but he was a rain God and didn't know it and lived his entire life with
clouds following and raining on him constantly out of their love for him.
LOL!!!

THANK YOU DOUGLAS ADAMS!!! R.I.P.

Andy

In the Checkout Line
 

aem wrote:
>
> None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> more. She was still mumbling about it when I left.

I've issued Bluetooth headsets to all of my schizophrenia
patients. It makes their behavior much more socially
acceptable in public.

Of course, there have been problems when the headset
accidentally connects to a nearby Bluetooth-enabled
cellphone currently in use. :-)

In the Checkout Line
 

"Christopher Helms" > wrote in message
...

Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
less than three time a week to me.

=======================================

I usually end up behind someone who separates their shopping into multiple
transactions, has coupons and government paid cards and something requires a
price lookup, or doesn't match what they insist was on the sale sign and
then has to be backed out.

In the Checkout Line
 

Christopher Helms wrote:
>
> My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
> crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
> talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
> Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
> change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
> over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
> freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
> less than three time a week to me.

That's what happens when you go shopping at 2 AM.

In the Checkout Line
 

On Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:57:21 -0700 (PDT), aem >
fired up random neurons and synapses to opine:

>I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
>beans. There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
>on sale, so I picked that bag. Now I'm in the checkout line and the
>woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
>they?" "I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
>they were the cheapest on offer. "What?! You don't know?!" and she's
>off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
>buy anything without knowing the price.

<snippidy>

When I grocery shop, I'm usually shopping just for the DH and me, so
our grocery bills aren't a big factor in our monthly budget. I may be
in the minority, but I almost *never* know the price of what I'm
throwing in my basket. When buying Item X, for instance, I will look
at the prices of the 2 or 3 brands available and go for the less/least
expensive, but couldn't tell you the price of the thing thirty seconds
later. And when buying Item A, which is a product I have learned to
prefer, I don't notice the price, period.

I clip coupons, though, so go figure.

Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd

--

"If the soup had been as hot as the claret, if the claret had been as
old as the bird, and if the bird's breasts had been as full as the
waitress's, it would have been a very good dinner."

- Duncan Hines

To reply, replace "meatloaf" with "cox"

In the Checkout Line
 

On Mar 25, 8:19*pm, Christopher Helms > wrote:
> On Mar 25, 7:57*pm, aem > wrote:
>
> > I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
> > beans. *There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> > on sale, so I picked that bag. *Now I'm in the checkout line and the
> > woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
> > they?" *"I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
> > they were the cheapest on offer. *"What?! *You don't know?!" and she's
> > off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
> > buy anything without knowing the price. *And that she couldn't
> > remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
> > None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> > more. *She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>
> > I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> > the numbers in my brain, ya know? *It's not as though two pounds of
> > beans was gonna break my bank. * *-aem
>
> Some people are really good at keeping all that stuff in their heads.
> My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
> crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
> talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
> Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
> change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
> over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
> freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
> less than three time a week to me.

Which city do you live in? Ya know, so I know not to ever move
there. :)

--Bryan

In the Checkout Line
 

brooklyn1 wrote:
>
> because if I need em I'm not gonna not buy if a few pennies more. And
> anyway I usually choose Goya beans regardless of sales, I've found them to
> be a better product, more uniform cleaner product with fewer broken
> misshapen beans. In a bean dish the beans is the least expensive

And yet, you don't apply the same standard to bay leaves?

In the Checkout Line
 

>
> Reminds me of a character in the Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy, I forget
> who but he was a rain God and didn't know it and lived his entire life with
> clouds following and raining on him constantly out of their love for him.
> LOL!!!
>
> THANK YOU DOUGLAS ADAMS!!! R.I.P.
>
> Andy

Y'all have heard of the paranoid dyslexic - he was always afraid he
was following someone.

b

In the Checkout Line
 

On Mar 25, 9:52*pm, Bobo Bonobo® > wrote:
> On Mar 25, 8:19*pm, Christopher Helms > wrote:
>
>
>
> > On Mar 25, 7:57*pm, aem > wrote:
>
> > > I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
> > > beans. *There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> > > on sale, so I picked that bag. *Now I'm in the checkout line and the
> > > woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
> > > they?" *"I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
> > > they were the cheapest on offer. *"What?! *You don't know?!" and she's
> > > off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
> > > buy anything without knowing the price. *And that she couldn't
> > > remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
> > > None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
> > > more. *She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>
> > > I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> > > the numbers in my brain, ya know? *It's not as though two pounds of
> > > beans was gonna break my bank. * *-aem
>
> > Some people are really good at keeping all that stuff in their heads.
> > My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
> > crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
> > talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
> > Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
> > change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
> > over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
> > freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
> > less than three time a week to me.
>
> Which city do you live in? *Ya know, so I know not to ever move
> there. :)
>
> --Bryan


I don't think you have anything to worry about. I live in a tiny
little town you've probably never heard of, but it doesn't seem to
matter where I go. Another poster thought it might be my karma. Come
to think of it, I do seem to pay through the nose for every little
thing and I don't mean monetarily. Maybe I was an alcoholic wife
beater or some other kind of asshole in a previous life and now I have
to pay off a huge karmic debt that I ran up back in the 30s or
something. Apparently I've been sentenced to pay it off three or four
karmic cents at a time.

In the Checkout Line
 

"Nancy Young" > wrote in message
...
> aem wrote:
>> I stopped at the store to restock the larder, the list included pinto
>> beans. There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
>> on sale, so I picked that bag. Now I'm in the checkout line and the
>> woman behind me points at the bag of beans and asks, "how much were
>> they?" "I don't know," I said truthfully, not bothering to say I knew
>> they were the cheapest on offer. "What?! You don't know?!" and she's
>> off on a whole tirade about how amazing it is to her that anyone could
>> buy anything without knowing the price. And that she couldn't
>> remember the last time she bought anything without knowing the price.
>> None of it required any answer from me, so I didn't say anything
>> more. She was still mumbling about it when I left.
>>
>> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
>> the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
>> beans was gonna break my bank.

Next time tell her you'd love to stay and chat but your chauffer is waiting
in the no parking zone.


Dimitri

In the Checkout Line
 

Christopher Helms wrote:

> ...
> Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
> over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
> freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
> less than three time a week to me.

LOL, we share the same "talent" ;)
My typical in-line-before-me is a dumbass who asks the cashier the price of
something the cashier has just passed on the barcode reader and so it's
"sold", then the dumbass says "No, I don't want it" so the cashier has to
call (and wait for) the store chief who has the keycard which allows the
cashier to delete a sold item. Then there are the dumbasses who buy produces
and forget to weigh and label them, so they have to get back to the produce
section, weigh the damn veggies and get back to the line, all this while the
cashier and us other inline are waiting.
I hate lines, I think I will die in a line [C. Bucowski]
--
Vilco
Mai guardare Trailer park Boys senza
qualcosa da bere a portata di mano

In the Checkout Line
 

Gregory wrote on Thu, 26 Mar 2009 08:03:16 -0600:

> On Mar 25, 9:28 pm, Mark Thorson > wrote:
>> Christopher Helms wrote:
>>
> >> My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout
> >> line the crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always
> >> directly in front of me, talking about everything and
> >> nothing to the clerk, writing a check for Tic Tacs or
> >> paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of change.
> >> Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab
> >> for over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I
> >> have a freakish talent for getting behind these assholes.
> >> It never happens less than three time a week to me.
>>
>> That's what happens when you go shopping at 2 AM.

> 2AM, 7:25PM, midmorning, lunch, whatever. It doesn't seem to
> matter. It's almost like they're there waiting for me.
> ------------------

> GM replies:

> It's this kind of nonsense that is making me seriously
> consider doing most of my grocery shopping with Peapod, the
> online grocery delivery service. Between nutty customers,
> surly and lazy store staff, out-of-stock items, and dragging
> the stuff home, I've had just about enough. Maybe I'm getting
> old and crotchety but who needs it...I shop for most
> everything else on the internet and for the most part I am
> heartily sick and tired of the "retail experience".

They also always seem to have signatures involving about three long
words and want to write their autobiographies in the check register.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

In the Checkout Line
 

Gregory Morrow said...

> Maybe it's because until fairly recently in some of these cultures food was
> a precious commodity, you grabbed it when you could, no nonsense...


Since I don't have an Asian market anywhere nearby, I've never noticed that
angle on checkout speed like you mention.

Same as Depression times, maybe? Nobody slowed down standing in the soup
lines.

Might be along the same lines as when there is a hurricane warning, etc.,
where there is a run on food at the market. Everyone is in a hurry to stock
up and get home or get out of town.

Interesting concept/study.

Andy

In the Checkout Line
 

Christopher Helms wrote:

On Mar 25, 9:28 pm, Mark Thorson > wrote:
> Christopher Helms wrote:
>
> > My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout line the
> > crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always directly in front of me,
> > talking about everything and nothing to the clerk, writing a check for
> > Tic Tacs or paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of
> > change. Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
> > over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
> > freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
> > less than three time a week to me.
>
> That's what happens when you go shopping at 2 AM.


2AM, 7:25PM, midmorning, lunch, whatever. It doesn't seem to matter.
It's almost like they're there waiting for me.
------------------

GM replies:

It's this kind of nonsense that is making me seriously consider doing most
of my grocery shopping with Peapod, the online grocery delivery service.
Between nutty customers, surly and lazy store staff, out-of-stock items, and
dragging the stuff home, I've had just about enough. Maybe I'm getting old
and crotchety but who needs it...I shop for most everything else on the
internet and for the most part I am heartily sick and tired of the "retail
experience".


--
Best
Greg

In the Checkout Line
 

James Silverton wrote:

> Gregory wrote on Thu, 26 Mar 2009 08:03:16 -0600:
>
> > On Mar 25, 9:28 pm, Mark Thorson > wrote:
> >> Christopher Helms wrote:
> >>
> > >> My mom was like that. Personally, when I'm in the checkout
> > >> line the crazy, mumbling, jabbering flake is always
> > >> directly in front of me, talking about everything and
> > >> nothing to the clerk, writing a check for Tic Tacs or
> > >> paying for a case of beer with a coffee can full of change.
> > >> Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab
> > >> for over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I
> > >> have a freakish talent for getting behind these assholes.
> > >> It never happens less than three time a week to me.
> >>
> >> That's what happens when you go shopping at 2 AM.
>
> > 2AM, 7:25PM, midmorning, lunch, whatever. It doesn't seem to
> > matter. It's almost like they're there waiting for me.
> > ------------------
>
> > GM replies:
>
> > It's this kind of nonsense that is making me seriously
> > consider doing most of my grocery shopping with Peapod, the
> > online grocery delivery service. Between nutty customers,
> > surly and lazy store staff, out-of-stock items, and dragging
> > the stuff home, I've had just about enough. Maybe I'm getting
> > old and crotchety but who needs it...I shop for most
> > everything else on the internet and for the most part I am
> > heartily sick and tired of the "retail experience".
>
> They also always seem to have signatures involving about three long
> words and want to write their autobiographies in the check register.

Aint' the truth, lol...

You know, one place I really don't mind for grocery shopping are Asian
places, those stores can be jam-packed but for some reason I can be in and
out real fast, and that's with wall-to-wall people. Asian folks seem to be
*real* concentrated on getting their stuff and getting out in a timely
manner - BAM! On busy days there will be whole extended families loading
up the minivan with carts of vittles, it often takes less time at the
checkout behind some family with three full carts than it does being behind
some addle-pated yuppie who is dithering over checking out a six - pack and
a pint of Ben & Jerry's...

I don't know what it is, but in the Asian stores there is very little
lollygagging, Clueless Ones blocking the aisles, etc. And most of these
places are small, smaller than the typical Chicawgo stupormart...

Maybe it's because until fairly recently in some of these cultures food was
a precious commodity, you grabbed it when you could, no nonsense...


--
Best
Greg

In the Checkout Line
 

aem > wrote:
> beans. There were two or three brands on the shelf, one of which was
> on sale, so I picked that bag. Now I'm in the checkout line and the

Well, at least they were marked and you knew at the time you picked
them up. It bugs the crap out of me when things aren't priced. For
some reason the 2 local Krogers seem to have trouble keeping the shelf
tag on the chicken livers. I won't buy stuff that doesn't have a price.
All the local stores have that problem with bread at times. If I can
find the price tag, fine, but if it's not there I won't buy. I may
buy the more expensive item, but only if it's a conscious decsision
and I know I'm doing it.

> I think I'm as careful a shopper as most but I don't have to keep all
> the numbers in my brain, ya know? It's not as though two pounds of
> beans was gonna break my bank. -aem

I would have remembered. I remember numbers. Can't remember peoples'
names to save my life, but numbers I remember. You knew when you picked
them up and once the decision was made you really don't need to remember
the exact price. I watch the prices ring up and if something rings up
wrong I know it, but that's just me.

Bill Ranck
Blacksburg, Va.

In the Checkout Line
 

Gregory Morrow wrote:
> GM replies:
>
> It's this kind of nonsense that is making me seriously consider doing most
> of my grocery shopping with Peapod, the online grocery delivery service.
> Between nutty customers, surly and lazy store staff, out-of-stock items, and
> dragging the stuff home, I've had just about enough. Maybe I'm getting old
> and crotchety but who needs it...I shop for most everything else on the
> internet and for the most part I am heartily sick and tired of the "retail
> experience".


Same here, I do most of my shopping online. Someone else picked out my
last car ( I would rather take a beating than buy a car). The only
place I enjoy shopping is the hardware store.


Tomorrow, I am picking up a few plants to put in the garden; tomatoes,
cucumbers, zucchini, bell peppers, etc. I will try to go early and
avoid the crowds.


Becca

In the Checkout Line
 

On Thu, 26 Mar 2009 10:38:07 GMT, ViLco wrote:

> Christopher Helms wrote:
>
>> ...
>> Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
>> over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
>> freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
>> less than three time a week to me.
>
> LOL, we share the same "talent" ;)
> My typical in-line-before-me is a dumbass who asks the cashier the price of
> something the cashier has just passed on the barcode reader and so it's
> "sold", then the dumbass says "No, I don't want it" so the cashier has to
> call (and wait for) the store chief who has the keycard which allows the
> cashier to delete a sold item. Then there are the dumbasses who buy produces
> and forget to weigh and label them, so they have to get back to the produce
> section, weigh the damn veggies and get back to the line, all this while the
> cashier and us other inline are waiting.
> I hate lines, I think I will die in a line [C. Bucowski]

sounds more like a dumbass checkout system rather than a dumbass customer.
they have no scale at checkout? the checker has to get permission to fart?

your pal,
blake

In the Checkout Line
 

On Wed, 25 Mar 2009 19:02:13 -0800, Mark Thorson wrote:

> brooklyn1 wrote:
>>
>> because if I need em I'm not gonna not buy if a few pennies more. And
>> anyway I usually choose Goya beans regardless of sales, I've found them to
>> be a better product, more uniform cleaner product with fewer broken
>> misshapen beans. In a bean dish the beans is the least expensive
>
> And yet, you don't apply the same standard to bay leaves?

see, the goya people never use them swept-up beans.

your pal,
blake

In the Checkout Line
 

blake murphy wrote:

> sounds more like a dumbass checkout system rather than a dumbass
> customer. they have no scale at checkout? the checker has to get
> permission to fart?

No scales at the chockout, one has to weigh the produces using the scales in
the produce section.
And the checkers can't cancel "sold" items without that freakin' key...
Dunno about the farts ;)
--
Vilco
Mai guardare Trailer park Boys senza
qualcosa da bere a portata di mano

In the Checkout Line
 

Gregory Morrow > wrote:

> ViLco is in Italy, it's the "European" way of getting produce weighed I
> guess...

> At the Treasure Island grocery chain here in Chicawgo you have to get yer
> produce weighed in the produce dept., I consider it a big PITA. I don't
> like having to interact with store employees any more than is absolutely
> necessary...half the time I have to run around finding someone to weigh the
> stuff, the weigher is rude, etc., etc. I mean it's 1970 already, they have
> these POS weigh systems at checkout so's ya can get produce weighed there...

The European system is self-serve. You go to the scale in the produce
section, push the button for the particular item, the scale spits out
a bar coded sticker with the weight and price. No need to look for
anyone. The buttons have pictures of the produce, so you don't even
have to speak the local language. It's probably cheaper to maintain
1 or 2 scales in the produce department than 5 or 10 at the checkout
lanes. Why your Treasure Island place doesn't make it self-serve
is the real question.

Bill Ranck
Blacksburg, Va.

In the Checkout Line
 

In the Checkout Line
 

Gregory Morrow wrote:
> > wrote:
>
>> Gregory Morrow > wrote:
>>
>>> ViLco is in Italy, it's the "European" way of getting produce weighed I
>>> guess...
>>> At the Treasure Island grocery chain here in Chicawgo you have to get
> yer
>>> produce weighed in the produce dept., I consider it a big PITA. I don't
>>> like having to interact with store employees any more than is absolutely
>>> necessary...half the time I have to run around finding someone to weigh
> the
>>> stuff, the weigher is rude, etc., etc. I mean it's 1970 already, they
> have
>>> these POS weigh systems at checkout so's ya can get produce weighed
> there...
>> The European system is self-serve. You go to the scale in the produce
>> section, push the button for the particular item, the scale spits out
>> a bar coded sticker with the weight and price. No need to look for
>> anyone. The buttons have pictures of the produce, so you don't even
>> have to speak the local language. It's probably cheaper to maintain
>> 1 or 2 scales in the produce department than 5 or 10 at the checkout
>> lanes. Why your Treasure Island place doesn't make it self-serve
>> is the real question.
>
>
> They're cheap, that's why. Actually, if a produce person is not around I
> just do it myself, very simple. I guess they think that people will cheat
> or something if it's self - weigh...
>
> This is also the same place where they keep liquor in locked cabinets, you
> have to hunt down someone to open the cabinet for you...kinda gives
> "America's Most European Supermarket" (as they advertise themselves) that
> old "ghetto" feel. They don't have modern anti-theft safeguards in
> place...I guess by "America's Most European Supermarket" they mean Poland in
> 1958 or something.
>
>
Most of the supermarkets in our town have the cigarettes and spirits
locked up and a checker, bagger, or supervisor has to go get them for
you. Beer and wine are on the shelves in the main store.

Certain toiletry items are also locked up and you have to pull a tag and
then the checker rings it up and someone goes and gets the item for you.
PITA but about the only way the store can control theft of high value
items I guess. Every time Schick or Gillette sends out a new razor as a
"free" gift the stores have to lock up the replacement blades.

Human nature never fails to amaze me, particularly the stuff people will
steal rather than pay the price marked on it. About like the people you
see letting their kids eat cookies, fruit, etc. while they're shopping
and then you see the empty container on a shelf somewhere. What are they
teaching their children? It's now wonder this country is going to hell
in a hand basket as far as personal honesty.

In the Checkout Line
 

ViLco wrote:
> wrote:
>
>> The European system is self-serve. You go to the scale in the
>> produce section, push the button for the particular item, the scale
>> spits out a bar coded sticker with the weight and price. No need to
>> look for anyone.
>
> Exactly so.

In the supermarkets around where I live, there are scales near the produce
but only to check for yourself. The items are put onto a flat scale in
front of the till at the checkout and the prices added to your bill.

In the Checkout Line
 

On Mar 26, 10:36*am, "ViLco" > wrote:
> wrote:
> > The European system is self-serve. *You go to the scale in the produce
> > section, push the button for the particular item, the scale spits out
> > a bar coded sticker with the weight and price. *No need to look for
> > anyone.
>
>
That's the way it is at my Kroger. Pick out what you want, put it in
a plastic bag, key in the product code and the price and weight is
printed on a sticker. Adhere sticker to said plastic bag and you're
on your way.

In the Checkout Line
 

Ophelia wrote:
> ViLco wrote:
>> wrote:
>>
>>> The European system is self-serve. You go to the scale in the
>>> produce section, push the button for the particular item, the scale
>>> spits out a bar coded sticker with the weight and price. No need to
>>> look for anyone.
>>
>> Exactly so.
>
> In the supermarkets around where I live, there are scales near the
> produce but only to check for yourself. The items are put onto a
> flat scale in front of the till at the checkout and the prices added
> to your bill.

That's how it is in the stores where I shop. Whole Foods is the
exception in that you weigh your own bulk items.

I'm happy with letting the cashier weigh the produce. I know 'they'
would be happy if you'd just learn everyone's job and they could
get by with one employee. By the time you weigh your own
produce, self-checkout, pump your own gas, why bother hiring
anyone. Let the customer do it.

nancy

In the Checkout Line
 

blake murphy wrote:

> On Thu, 26 Mar 2009 10:38:07 GMT, ViLco wrote:
>
> > Christopher Helms wrote:
> >
> >> ...
> >> Last night I waited for some dumb bitch to run out of gab for
> >> over five minutes as my bottle of Coke Zero got warm. I have a
> >> freakish talent for getting behind these assholes. It never happens
> >> less than three time a week to me.
> >
> > LOL, we share the same "talent" ;)
> > My typical in-line-before-me is a dumbass who asks the cashier the price
of
> > something the cashier has just passed on the barcode reader and so it's
> > "sold", then the dumbass says "No, I don't want it" so the cashier has
to
> > call (and wait for) the store chief who has the keycard which allows the
> > cashier to delete a sold item. Then there are the dumbasses who buy
produces
> > and forget to weigh and label them, so they have to get back to the
produce
> > section, weigh the damn veggies and get back to the line, all this while
the
> > cashier and us other inline are waiting.
> > I hate lines, I think I will die in a line [C. Bucowski]
>
> sounds more like a dumbass checkout system rather than a dumbass customer.
> they have no scale at checkout?

ViLco is in Italy, it's the "European" way of getting produce weighed I
guess...

At the Treasure Island grocery chain here in Chicawgo you have to get yer
produce weighed in the produce dept., I consider it a big PITA. I don't
like having to interact with store employees any more than is absolutely
necessary...half the time I have to run around finding someone to weigh the
stuff, the weigher is rude, etc., etc. I mean it's 1970 already, they have
these POS weigh systems at checkout so's ya can get produce weighed there...


--
Best
Greg

In the Checkout Line
 

Gregory Morrow wrote:

> See, you should get a little discount for all that self-serve jazz, I
> know for gas self-serve is usually cheaper (but IIRC you don't have
> self-serve gas in NJ).

Here some fuel brands offer a little discount to self-service users, others
don't.
--
Vilco
Mai guardare Trailer park Boys senza
qualcosa da bere a portata di mano