I have always found people shopping at the supermarket to be helpful and
cooperative. If the aisle is jammed up, a smile, a polite request, I always get
quick cooperation, and I try to give it in return. I noted that the majority,
if not all, of the complaints came from men. Assuming that most of these were
single men, I suggest that they understand that the women shopping in the
aisles have a lot to think of: Is that price too much for my family budget?
Where is the best brand? The other ingredients in my recipe are? Will my
family like this? While you only want to pick up an item and go.
While you may be just picking up one or two items, they are providing for a
weeks worth of family meals, and have a lot of people to please. And remember,
they are Tired. They have to load these into a cart, then onto the counter,
then into the car, then out of the car and into the house, then the real work
begins. Unpacking the groceries, freezer items into freezer, vegetables washed
and put away, various items wrapped or stored. And then the work is just
started. She STILL has to prepare dinner, the children are home from school
and full of questions, the babies need attention, the table needs to be set,
the dishes washed, and the children tucked in. Her workday is far from over at
the supermarket.
As for '"sniveling" children, I'm sure you sniveled yourself at one
time--didn't we all? I can't imagine why this even has to be explained to you.

I wish you more generosity of heart, and less anger.

On Tue 18 Jan 2005 08:51:32p, Nancree tittered and giggled, and giggled
and tittered, and finally blurted out...

> I have always found people shopping at the supermarket to be helpful and
> cooperative. If the aisle is jammed up, a smile, a polite request, I
> always get quick cooperation, and I try to give it in return. I noted
> that the majority, if not all, of the complaints came from men.
> Assuming that most of these were single men, I suggest that they
> understand that the women shopping in the aisles have a lot to think of:
> Is that price too much for my family budget? Where is the best brand?
> The other ingredients in my recipe are? Will my family like this? While
> you only want to pick up an item and go.
> While you may be just picking up one or two items, they are
> providing for a
> weeks worth of family meals, and have a lot of people to please. And
> remember, they are Tired. They have to load these into a cart, then onto
> the counter, then into the car, then out of the car and into the house,
> then the real work begins. Unpacking the groceries, freezer items into
> freezer, vegetables washed and put away, various items wrapped or
> stored. And then the work is just started. She STILL has to prepare
> dinner, the children are home from school and full of questions, the
> babies need attention, the table needs to be set, the dishes washed, and
> the children tucked in. Her workday is far from over at the
> supermarket.
> As for '"sniveling" children, I'm sure you sniveled yourself at one
> time--didn't we all? I can't imagine why this even has to be explained
> to you.
>
> I wish you more generosity of heart, and less anger.
>

I haven't posted in the thread you referenced because I would have been
echoing almost every complaint that other posters have voiced.

If I had to shop during prime hours amidst the working mothers, sniveling
children, and those old enough to need a keeper, I would surely run out of
the store screaming. I don't "blame" these people, but I refuse to endure
it.

I shop for two adults on a weekly basis, not just an item here and there.
I like to enjoy shopping, and I clearly could not do so under these
conditions.

My solution? I shop at the most uncommon times imaginable; at 5 or 6
o'clock in the morning or 11 or 12 o'clock in the evening. The stores are
sparsely populated and I can enjoy the process.

Creative avoidance is sometimes the best solution!

Wayne

"My solution? I shop at the most uncommon times imaginable; at 5 or 6
o'clock in the morning or 11 or 12 o'clock in the evening. The stores
are
sparsely populated and I can enjoy the process.


Creative avoidance is sometimes the best solution!


Wayne"

Good idea, Wayne. I try to pick my hours, too. When I was raising a
family I didn't have a lot of choice as to hours, but now I do. I
always enjoy your food comments. Your menus make my mouth water.
Nancree

On Tue 18 Jan 2005 09:51:38p, nancree tittered and giggled, and giggled and
tittered, and finally blurted out...

> "My solution? I shop at the most uncommon times imaginable; at 5 or 6
> o'clock in the morning or 11 or 12 o'clock in the evening. The stores
> are
> sparsely populated and I can enjoy the process.
>
>
> Creative avoidance is sometimes the best solution!
>
>
> Wayne"
>
> Good idea, Wayne. I try to pick my hours, too. When I was raising a
> family I didn't have a lot of choice as to hours, but now I do. I
> always enjoy your food comments. Your menus make my mouth water.
> Nancree

Thank you, Nancree. That's very kind. <blush>

Wayne

In article >,
Wayne Boatwright > wrote:

snip
> My solution? I shop at the most uncommon times imaginable; at 5 or 6
> o'clock in the morning or 11 or 12 o'clock in the evening. The stores are
> sparsely populated and I can enjoy the process.
>
> Creative avoidance is sometimes the best solution!
>
> Wayne

I used to do that when I lived in Dallas 20 years ago. It was more
crowd avoidance than whiner avoidance. One morning a cop car pulled
into the Tom Thumb parking lot right behind me at 6:15 am. I wasn't
speeding; rather, the store's surveillance camera caught a guy filling
his sweats with packages of ribeye steaks. He wound up eating SOS at
the Dallas jail that day, no doubt.

Cindy

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

Cindy Fuller wrote:
> In article >,
> Wayne Boatwright > wrote:
>
> snip
>> My solution? I shop at the most uncommon times imaginable; at 5 or 6
>> o'clock in the morning or 11 or 12 o'clock in the evening. The
>> stores are sparsely populated and I can enjoy the process.
>>
>> Creative avoidance is sometimes the best solution!
>>
>> Wayne
>
> I used to do that when I lived in Dallas 20 years ago. It was more
> crowd avoidance than whiner avoidance. One morning a cop car pulled
> into the Tom Thumb parking lot right behind me at 6:15 am. I wasn't
> speeding; rather, the store's surveillance camera caught a guy filling
> his sweats with packages of ribeye steaks. He wound up eating SOS at
> the Dallas jail that day, no doubt.
>
> Cindy

If they served him SOS in jail he was probably a happy camper. More likely
pimiento cheese on white bread with a cup of cherry Kool-Aid (cyanide not
included).

Jill

In article >,
Wayne Boatwright > wrote:

snip
> My solution? I shop at the most uncommon times imaginable; at 5 or 6
> o'clock in the morning or 11 or 12 o'clock in the evening. The stores are
> sparsely populated and I can enjoy the process.
>
> Creative avoidance is sometimes the best solution!
>
> Wayne

I used to do that when I lived in Dallas 20 years ago. It was more
crowd avoidance than whiner avoidance. One morning a cop car pulled
into the Tom Thumb parking lot right behind me at 6:15 am. I wasn't
speeding; rather, the store's surveillance camera caught a guy filling
his sweats with packages of ribeye steaks. He wound up eating SOS at
the Dallas jail that day, no doubt.

Cindy

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

"Wayne Boatwright" > wrote in message
...
> On Tue 18 Jan 2005 08:51:32p, Nancree tittered and giggled, and giggled
> and tittered, and finally blurted out...
> >
>
> I haven't posted in the thread you referenced because I would have been
> echoing almost every complaint that other posters have voiced.
>
> If I had to shop during prime hours amidst the working mothers, sniveling
> children, and those old enough to need a keeper, I would surely run out of
> the store screaming. I don't "blame" these people, but I refuse to endure
> it.
>
> I shop for two adults on a weekly basis, not just an item here and there.
> I like to enjoy shopping, and I clearly could not do so under these
> conditions.
>
> My solution? I shop at the most uncommon times imaginable; at 5 or 6
> o'clock in the morning or 11 or 12 o'clock in the evening. The stores are
> sparsely populated and I can enjoy the process.
>
> Creative avoidance is sometimes the best solution!


My thoughts exactly. I would add that it isn't only children who pose a
problem I find as many issues with older people who seem to exist in blind
spot. They come in twos and threes, block the isles, read all the fine
print on the packaging, sift through mountains of coupons while standing
against the shelving, use the supermarket to socialize with other groups of
seniors, and examine every green bean or head of lettuce like they were
about to bid on a package of diamonds at a DeBeers auction. Then there are
the retired men who are dragged to the supermarket by their wives. The men
are in charge of the coupons and wonder aimlessly behind their wives only to
stop exactly in front of the item you need. Periodically a disagreement
erupts over which brand of cereal is cheaper or if they really need to buy a
particular item. There must be some age-dependant gene that activates,
inducing older people to stop short just inside, or outside, of doors and
other narrow passages. I have learned to stay back 50 feet while following
older folks because they always seem to need to search their purse after
passing through a threshold or turning a corner.

Nancree wrote:
> I have always found people shopping at the supermarket to be helpful
and
> cooperative. If the aisle is jammed up, a smile, a polite request, I
always get
> quick cooperation, and I try to give it in return. I noted that the
majority,
> if not all, of the complaints came from men. Assuming that most of
these were
> single men, I suggest that they understand that the women shopping in
the
> aisles have a lot to think of: Is that price too much for my family
budget?
> Where is the best brand? The other ingredients in my recipe are?
Will my
> family like this? While you only want to pick up an item and go.
> While you may be just picking up one or two items, they are
providing for a
> weeks worth of family meals, and have a lot of people to please. And
remember,
> they are Tired. They have to load these into a cart, then onto the
counter,
> then into the car, then out of the car and into the house, then the
real work
> begins. Unpacking the groceries, freezer items into freezer,
vegetables washed
> and put away, various items wrapped or stored. And then the work is
just
> started. She STILL has to prepare dinner, the children are home from
school
> and full of questions, the babies need attention, the table needs to
be set,
> the dishes washed, and the children tucked in. Her workday is far
from over at
> the supermarket.
> As for '"sniveling" children, I'm sure you sniveled yourself at
one
> time--didn't we all? I can't imagine why this even has to be
explained to you.
>
> I wish you more generosity of heart, and less anger.


That's all great and well and true, but I still expect people to be
aware of their surroundings and to keep their children from interfering
with my shopping. I have a 1 year old who always shops with me, often
with a cart piled high with a few week's worth of groceries. I keep
his hands in the cart, keep him out of the way of others and keep him
quiet. He's quiet because I make sure he is fed and napped before I
take him in the store. A little planning ahead makes all the
difference in the world. Nothing irritates me more than kids running
around the store, unattended, screaming, spitting and/or wailing like
monkeys on crack. There's absolutely no excuse for it.

-L.

> That's all great and well and true, but I still expect people to be
> aware of their surroundings and to keep their children from interfering
> with my shopping. I have a 1 year old who always shops with me, often
> with a cart piled high with a few week's worth of groceries. I keep
> his hands in the cart, keep him out of the way of others and keep him
> quiet. He's quiet because I make sure he is fed and napped before I
> take him in the store. A little planning ahead makes all the
> difference in the world. Nothing irritates me more than kids running
> around the store, unattended, screaming, spitting and/or wailing like
> monkeys on crack. There's absolutely no excuse for it.
>
> -L.
>

LOL.

I'm very happy that my "monkey" is typically entertainment for everbody
during my shopping experiences with him. Just today I got a compliment
from an older lady about how cute he was & how much she was enjoying
him. Whats even funnier, is he gets more silly & giddy when he hasn't
had a nap & he didn't today until the drive home at 4:30pm.
I would go nuts if I had children like the ones I have seen in other
families at stores & bless my lucky stars that as of yet, at 2.5 years
of age he hasn't had a tantrum in a public place. (knock on wood)

On Wed 19 Jan 2005 02:11:07a, Denise~* tittered and giggled, and giggled
and tittered, and finally blurted out...

>
>> That's all great and well and true, but I still expect people to be
>> aware of their surroundings and to keep their children from interfering
>> with my shopping. I have a 1 year old who always shops with me, often
>> with a cart piled high with a few week's worth of groceries. I keep
>> his hands in the cart, keep him out of the way of others and keep him
>> quiet. He's quiet because I make sure he is fed and napped before I
>> take him in the store. A little planning ahead makes all the
>> difference in the world. Nothing irritates me more than kids running
>> around the store, unattended, screaming, spitting and/or wailing like
>> monkeys on crack. There's absolutely no excuse for it.
>>
>> -L.
>>
>
> LOL.
>
> I'm very happy that my "monkey" is typically entertainment for everbody
> during my shopping experiences with him. Just today I got a compliment
> from an older lady about how cute he was & how much she was enjoying
> him. Whats even funnier, is he gets more silly & giddy when he hasn't
> had a nap & he didn't today until the drive home at 4:30pm.
> I would go nuts if I had children like the ones I have seen in other
> families at stores & bless my lucky stars that as of yet, at 2.5 years
> of age he hasn't had a tantrum in a public place. (knock on wood)
>

I feel the same way about may cats, but I wouldn't inflict them on the
general public in a store.

Wayne

Wayne Boatwright wrote:

>>I'm very happy that my "monkey" is typically entertainment for everbody
>>during my shopping experiences with him. Just today I got a compliment
>>from an older lady about how cute he was & how much she was enjoying
>>him. Whats even funnier, is he gets more silly & giddy when he hasn't
>>had a nap & he didn't today until the drive home at 4:30pm.
>>I would go nuts if I had children like the ones I have seen in other
>>families at stores & bless my lucky stars that as of yet, at 2.5 years
>>of age he hasn't had a tantrum in a public place. (knock on wood)
>
> I feel the same way about may cats, but I wouldn't inflict them on the
> general public in a store.
>
> Wayne

Well... that's just a silly statement.

How do you expect children to learn how to learn & act in social situations?
I'll admit that my child may **** somebody off someday, but I would
certainly do something about it when it happens, like an apology from me
and also hopefully my child will apologise when asked to (if he has
gotten to that level of understanding & verbal ability)

Going out in public and having a parent who is a good mentor is the only
way a child can learn what is socially acceptable norms of behavior.

Of course, you have always been perfect?

On Thu 20 Jan 2005 01:16:13a, Denise~* tittered and giggled, and giggled
and tittered, and finally blurted out...

> Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>
>>>I'm very happy that my "monkey" is typically entertainment for everbody
>>>during my shopping experiences with him. Just today I got a
>>>compliment from an older lady about how cute he was & how much she was
>>>enjoying him. Whats even funnier, is he gets more silly & giddy when
>>>he hasn't had a nap & he didn't today until the drive home at 4:30pm.
>>>I would go nuts if I had children like the ones I have seen in other
>>>families at stores & bless my lucky stars that as of yet, at 2.5 years
>>>of age he hasn't had a tantrum in a public place. (knock on wood)
>>
>> I feel the same way about may cats, but I wouldn't inflict them on the
>> general public in a store.
>>
>> Wayne
>
> Well... that's just a silly statement.

No sillier than your assuming your child is "entertainment" for everybody
in public. Not everyone wants to be entertained by someone elses kids.
I'd rather pay for my entertainment and choose its venue. Silly and giddy,
possibly loud and boisterous, underfoot and in the way, are not
characteristics that I find appealing when I'm trying to shop or eat in a
rewtaurant. AFAIC, it's an unpleasant distraction.

> How do you expect children to learn how to learn & act in social
> situations? I'll admit that my child may **** somebody off someday, but
> I would certainly do something about it when it happens, like an apology
> from me and also hopefully my child will apologise when asked to (if he
> has gotten to that level of understanding & verbal ability)
>
> Going out in public and having a parent who is a good mentor is the only
> way a child can learn what is socially acceptable norms of behavior.

You are absolutely correct. When a parent IS a good mentor, then a child
should certainly be with them in public. All too often, however, parents
act as though their child isn't even there and exert absolutely no
authority over them in controlling their behaviour. What really ****es me
off are the parents that think their child's misbehavior is "cute". It
clearly is not. Just last week I encountered a couple in the supermarket
with three children who were probably under the age of five. They were
near the end of an aisle I was trying to exit, noisily running back and
forth, rolling around on the floor, and blocking the aisle. I had to turn
around and traverse the entire aisle to get away from them. There is no
excuse for such behavior.

When I see well-behaved children, I make it a point to comment on this to
the parent. Unfortunately, this is all too seldom.

> Of course, you have always been perfect?

Yes. <G>

Wayne

In article >,
Denise~* > wrote:


> Well... that's just a silly statement.
>
> How do you expect children to learn how to learn & act in social situations?
> I'll admit that my child may **** somebody off someday, but I would
> certainly do something about it when it happens, like an apology from me
> and also hopefully my child will apologise when asked to (if he has
> gotten to that level of understanding & verbal ability)
>
> Going out in public and having a parent who is a good mentor is the only
> way a child can learn what is socially acceptable norms of behavior.
>
Amen, Denise! Although I am of the childless persuasion, I firmly
believe the best way for kids to learn proper behavior and etiquette is
to be out in public and (gasp!) go to good restaurants. Social graces
are not learned by eating fast food in the back of Mom's minivan.

Our neighborhood group has several children in it, and they go to dinner
with us. They are polite, well-behaved, and joys to be with.

Cindy

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

"Denise~*" > wrote in message
...
> Wayne Boatwright wrote:
>
> >>I'm very happy that my "monkey" is typically entertainment for everbody
> >>during my shopping experiences with him. Just today I got a compliment
> >>from an older lady about how cute he was & how much she was enjoying
> >>him. Whats even funnier, is he gets more silly & giddy when he hasn't
> >>had a nap & he didn't today until the drive home at 4:30pm.
> >>I would go nuts if I had children like the ones I have seen in other
> >>families at stores & bless my lucky stars that as of yet, at 2.5 years
> >>of age he hasn't had a tantrum in a public place. (knock on wood)
> >
> > I feel the same way about may cats, but I wouldn't inflict them on the
> > general public in a store.
> >
> > Wayne
>
> Well... that's just a silly statement.
>
> How do you expect children to learn how to learn & act in social
situations?

Well, I don't think much learning takes place when little Couten and Paige
are body surfing down the cereal isle while mom in on the cell phone
blocking the dairy case halfway across the store. Therein lies the problem.
No teaching or learning takes place. At best, the parents contribute to the
chaos by sporadically screaming "If you don't stop that I'm going to smack
the hell out of you."

Denise~* wrote:
> I'm very happy that my "monkey" is typically entertainment for
everbody
> during my shopping experiences with him. Just today I got a
compliment
> from an older lady about how cute he was & how much she was enjoying
> him. Whats even funnier, is he gets more silly & giddy when he
hasn't
> had a nap & he didn't today until the drive home at 4:30pm.
> I would go nuts if I had children like the ones I have seen in other
> families at stores & bless my lucky stars that as of yet, at 2.5
years
> of age he hasn't had a tantrum in a public place. (knock on wood)

I'm even sympathetic to the occasional 2-year-old tantrum. What I
object to are kids running wild, unattended (not a parent in sight),
playing with things, throwing things, getting in the way of adults,
blocking traffic, etc. - basically the parents treating the store as a
free-for-all. What I also don't understand are the people who think
they have to take their entire extended family on their weekly shopping
trip - you have Mom, Pop, three or four kids, Grandma, Sister Louise,
her darling three-yr-old Luchetta, cousin Chuck and a couple
neighborhood kids. Everyone except the family Pit Bull. Inevitably
they block every single aisle they go down. Why the H*LL can't one of
these people stay home with the kids? I just don't get it.

-L.

"-L." > wrote in message
oups.com...
>
)
>
> I'm even sympathetic to the occasional 2-year-old tantrum. What I
> object to are kids running wild, unattended (not a parent in sight),
> playing with things, throwing things, getting in the way of adults,
> blocking traffic, etc. - basically the parents treating the store as a
> free-for-all. What I also don't understand are the people who think
> they have to take their entire extended family on their weekly shopping
> trip - you have Mom, Pop, three or four kids, Grandma, Sister Louise,
> her darling three-yr-old Luchetta, cousin Chuck and a couple
> neighborhood kids. Everyone except the family Pit Bull. Inevitably
> they block every single aisle they go down. Why the H*LL can't one of
> these people stay home with the kids? I just don't get it.

Exactly! It would come down to either you go or I go, but we don't both go
and take the kids. What could be a 30 minutes, stress-free experience turns
into a prolonged 90 minutes of chaos. However, some people are so accustomed
to insanity that they don't seem to realized that life can be calm and
quiet. Maybe they subconsciously want to inflict their misery on others.
At one time I thought that this might be a phenomena linked to culture or
class. I have come to realize that people from all socioeconomic groups,
all ethnic groups, all cultures, all religions, all genders --- everyone
seems to subscribe to the idea that once inside a store, they have no
obligation to mind their kids.

Denise~* wrote:
>> That's all great and well and true, but I still expect people to be
>> aware of their surroundings and to keep their children from
>> interfering with my shopping. I have a 1 year old who always shops
>> with me, often with a cart piled high with a few week's worth of
>> groceries. I keep his hands in the cart, keep him out of the way of
>> others and keep him quiet. He's quiet because I make sure he is fed
>> and napped before I take him in the store.
(snippage)
>> -L.
>>
> I'm very happy that my "monkey" is typically entertainment for
> everbody during my shopping experiences with him. Just today I got
> a compliment from an older lady about how cute he was & how much she
> was enjoying him.
(snippage)

She was probably a frustrated non-grandmother. I don't generally find other
peoples kids "cute", regardless of the age or behavior. Don't block the
aisles while old ladies fawn over them like they are a dog. Find them cute
at home; I just want to buy the items on my list and get the hell out of
there.

Jill

jmcquown wrote:
>
> She was probably a frustrated non-grandmother. I don't generally
find other
> peoples kids "cute", regardless of the age or behavior.

Unfortunately many parents don't realize that *NO ONE* thinks their
kids are as cute/interesting/charming as they do.

>Don't block the
> aisles while old ladies fawn over them like they are a dog. Find
them cute
> at home; I just want to buy the items on my list and get the hell out
of
> there.
>
> Jill

As do I, and that's why I opt to leave DS at home when I can, if I am
doing major shopping.

-L.

"-L." > wrote in message
oups.com...
>
> That's all great and well and true, but I still expect people to be
> aware of their surroundings and to keep their children from interfering
> with my shopping. I have a 1 year old who always shops with me, often
> with a cart piled high with a few week's worth of groceries. I keep
> his hands in the cart, keep him out of the way of others and keep him
> quiet. He's quiet because I make sure he is fed and napped before I
> take him in the store. A little planning ahead makes all the
> difference in the world. Nothing irritates me more than kids running
> around the store, unattended, screaming, spitting and/or wailing like
> monkeys on crack. There's absolutely no excuse for it.
>

Whether or not you get irritated is up to you. You cannot control what
others do in the store, but you can control your response to it. Yes, people
do rude and inexcusable things in public, there's no denying that. But when
they do, you have a choice. You can get ****ed off and angry, raise your
blood pressure, and ruin your shopping trip. Or you can ignore it and remain
calm and relaxed. No, it's not "okay" that people act like manic baboons,
but the way I look at it is to do what's best for me. It's not always easy
to take this approach, but believe me it is the best way.


--
Peter Aitken

Remove the crap from my email address before using.

Peter Aitken wrote:
> Whether or not you get irritated is up to you. You cannot control
what
> others do in the store, but you can control your response to it. Yes,
people
> do rude and inexcusable things in public, there's no denying that.
But when
> they do, you have a choice. You can get ****ed off and angry, raise
your
> blood pressure, and ruin your shopping trip. Or you can ignore it and
remain
> calm and relaxed. No, it's not "okay" that people act like manic
baboons,
> but the way I look at it is to do what's best for me. It's not always
easy
> to take this approach, but believe me it is the best way.
>
>
> --
> Peter Aitken

Oh, I agree. I just don't understand the "I'm the only one who
matters" mentality.

-L.

L - you only have a one-year-old? If so, check back in two
years.

Not saying you're wrong; Just that one-year-olds are easy.
Greg Zywicki

Zywicki wrote:
> L - you only have a one-year-old? If so, check back in two
> years.
>
> Not saying you're wrong; Just that one-year-olds are easy.
> Greg Zywicki

LOL...well if he ends up behaving like many 2 or 3 year-olds in the
store (God forbid), he'll be staying home with Dad while I do the
shopping.

-L.

On 19 Jan 2005 13:53:45 -0800, "-L." > wrote:

>
>Zywicki wrote:
>> L - you only have a one-year-old? If so, check back in two
>> years.
>>
>> Not saying you're wrong; Just that one-year-olds are easy.
>> Greg Zywicki
>
>LOL...well if he ends up behaving like many 2 or 3 year-olds in the
>store (God forbid), he'll be staying home with Dad while I do the
>shopping.

Exactly. My mother left us home, or shopped on her way home from work while
we were still with the babysitter, or went with Dad on Saturdays and left
us with the neighbors. We very seldom went to the store with her, and if we
did, god help us if we acted up. She didn't beat us, we did get spankings
occasionally until we were around 7 or so, but for the most part, her being
angry with us if we misbehaved was enough to make us not want her to be
angry. My mother in a full blow rage was a scary sight. Mostly we just
were taught what was the right way to behave in public. We hardly ever
acted up, and people were always complimenting our parents on how well
behaved we were.

They were taking us to fancy restaurants when we were 5 and 9 years old.
And we sat quietly, ordered good meals, and behaved ourselves. Mom would
let me order lobster tails if I wanted, and that always surprised the
waitress. My love for lobster is as old as I can remember. Mmmmmmmm.
Is it time for a fix yet? *Drooooool*

Basically, if we'd acted the way I see kids acting in public, my parents
just would have refused to take us anywhere. That was the deal. We could
go, but we had to be good. Period. There was no negotiation on that.

--
Siobhan Perricone
Humans wrote the bible,
God wrote the rocks
-- Word of God by Kathy Mar

L - you only have a one-year-old? If so, check back in two
years.

Not saying you're wrong; Just that one-year-olds are easy.
Greg Zywicki

As the director of a Food Pantry, I do HUGE shoppings. Whenever I hear
grumbles coming from the folks behind me I usually turn around and
smile. That will usually be followed by them asking me why I'm buying
50 cans of Ravioli or Baked Beans or 25 dozen eggs, etc. I explain what
the food is for and it diffuses the situation immediately. Then they
ask about the food pantry and who uses it and where is it, etc. Most
people are willing to be nice if you just give them the chance.

I used to give other "funny" excuses like,"My boys are home from college
for the weekend." or "I only get off the mountain once a year."

I like a saying that I heard just recently. "Don't frown so often,
someone may be falling in love with your smile."

Denise in NH

On Thu 20 Jan 2005 11:30:52a, Denise G. tittered and giggled, and giggled and
tittered, and finally blurted out...

> I like a saying that I heard just recently. "Don't frown so often,
> someone may be falling in love with your smile."
>
> Denise in NH
>

That is a nice thought!

Wayne

"Nancree" > wrote in message
...
>I have always found people shopping at the supermarket to be helpful and
> cooperative. If the aisle is jammed up, a smile, a polite request, I
> always get
> quick cooperation, and I try to give it in return. I noted that the
> majority,
> if not all, of the complaints came from men. Assuming that most of these
> were
> single men, I suggest that they understand that the women shopping in the
> aisles have a lot to think of: Is that price too much for my family
> budget?
> Where is the best brand? The other ingredients in my recipe are? Will my
> family like this? While you only want to pick up an item and go.
> While you may be just picking up one or two items, they are providing
> for a
> weeks worth of family meals, and have a lot of people to please. And
> remember,
> they are Tired. They have to load these into a cart, then onto the
> counter,
> then into the car, then out of the car and into the house, then the real
> work
> begins. Unpacking the groceries, freezer items into freezer, vegetables
> washed
> and put away, various items wrapped or stored. And then the work is just
> started. She STILL has to prepare dinner, the children are home from
> school
> and full of questions, the babies need attention, the table needs to be
> set,
> the dishes washed, and the children tucked in. Her workday is far from
> over at
> the supermarket.
> As for '"sniveling" children, I'm sure you sniveled yourself at one
> time--didn't we all? I can't imagine why this even has to be explained to
> you.
>
> I wish you more generosity of heart, and less anger.

I wish I'd said that! I think you generally find what you expect to find, at
a supermarket or anyplace else. And how quickly some have tried to turn this
thread into another "Why are people so rude..." session!

One time on Usenet, "Felice Friese" > said:
> "Nancree" > wrote in message
> ...

> >I have always found people shopping at the supermarket to be helpful and
> > cooperative. If the aisle is jammed up, a smile, a polite request, I
> > always get
> > quick cooperation, and I try to give it in return. I noted that the
> > majority,
> > if not all, of the complaints came from men. Assuming that most of these
> > were
> > single men, I suggest that they understand that the women shopping in the
> > aisles have a lot to think of: Is that price too much for my family
> > budget?
> > Where is the best brand? The other ingredients in my recipe are? Will my
> > family like this? While you only want to pick up an item and go.
> > While you may be just picking up one or two items, they are providing
> > for a
> > weeks worth of family meals, and have a lot of people to please. And
> > remember,
> > they are Tired. They have to load these into a cart, then onto the
> > counter,
> > then into the car, then out of the car and into the house, then the real
> > work
> > begins. Unpacking the groceries, freezer items into freezer, vegetables
> > washed
> > and put away, various items wrapped or stored. And then the work is just
> > started. She STILL has to prepare dinner, the children are home from
> > school
> > and full of questions, the babies need attention, the table needs to be
> > set,
> > the dishes washed, and the children tucked in. Her workday is far from
> > over at
> > the supermarket.
> > As for '"sniveling" children, I'm sure you sniveled yourself at one
> > time--didn't we all? I can't imagine why this even has to be explained to
> > you.
> >
> > I wish you more generosity of heart, and less anger.
>
> I wish I'd said that! I think you generally find what you expect to find, at
> a supermarket or anyplace else. And how quickly some have tried to turn this
> thread into another "Why are people so rude..." session!

Until very recently (trying to economize), I was at the local
stupidmarkets 3-5 times per week. Although there are always the
occasional irritants, for the most part, I found it a reasonably
pleasant experience. Only rarely did/do I see kids running about
unwatched. Maybe I live in a quieter area, but I think your point
about finding "what you expect to find" is well made, Felice...


--
J.J. in WA ~ mom, vid gamer, novice cook ~
"I rule you!" - Travis of the Cosmos, ATHF

"Nancree" > wrote in message
...
> I have always found people shopping at the supermarket to be helpful and
> cooperative. If the aisle is jammed up, a smile, a polite request, I
always get
> quick cooperation, and I try to give it in return. I noted that the
majority,
> if not all, of the complaints came from men. Assuming that most of these
were
> single men, I suggest that they understand that the women shopping in the
> aisles have a lot to think of: Is that price too much for my family
budget?
> Where is the best brand? The other ingredients in my recipe are? Will my
> family like this? While you only want to pick up an item and go.
> While you may be just picking up one or two items, they are providing
for a
> weeks worth of family meals, and have a lot of people to please. And
remember,
> they are Tired. They have to load these into a cart, then onto the
counter,
> then into the car, then out of the car and into the house, then the real
work
> begins. Unpacking the groceries, freezer items into freezer, vegetables
washed
> and put away, various items wrapped or stored. And then the work is just
> started. She STILL has to prepare dinner, the children are home from
school
> and full of questions, the babies need attention, the table needs to be
set,
> the dishes washed, and the children tucked in. Her workday is far from
over at
> the supermarket.
> As for '"sniveling" children, I'm sure you sniveled yourself at one
> time--didn't we all? I can't imagine why this even has to be explained to
you.
>
> I wish you more generosity of heart, and less anger.

You make a good argument for leaving the kids at home. If you are already
overwhelmed, why add to the stress knowing that you will also have to deal
with the aftermath of your kids annoying others? I don't think people
object to the existence of kids in the grocery store. They object to kids
obstructing their own mission to shop. People, singe or not, male or
female, old or young all have issues. Single men also have budgets and also
worry about buying quality products. Single people also have jobs, homes to
clean, laundry to wash, bills to pay, health problem, and a host of other
issues that married people don't face. That's why single people have
shorter life spans according to some studies. I think it is precisely this
"entitlement" mentality that people with kids exude that causes the
problems. Some people seem to think that having a kid or two in tow
entitles them to special treatment. They think that common courtesy is
suspended. I believe that supermarkets reinforce this belief when they
provide those %^&^&$### carts for kid to push while mom or dad shops.

Vox Humana wrote:
> "Nancree" > wrote in message
> ...
>> I have always found people shopping at the supermarket to be helpful
>> and cooperative.
>> As for '"sniveling" children, I'm sure you sniveled
>> yourself at one time--didn't we all? I can't imagine why this even
>> has to be explained to you.
>>
Actually, the times I was allowed to shop with my mother were few and far
between. And when I was allowed to go with her it was a treat. Not allowed
in todays climate was the fact that if I'd whined for candy at the checkout
stand I'd have been quickly taken outside and spanked. She didn't have to
do that because back in the day we simply didn't whine and throw tantrums at
the store.

> You make a good argument for leaving the kids at home. If you are
> already overwhelmed, why add to the stress knowing that you will also
> have to deal with the aftermath of your kids annoying others? I
> don't think people object to the existence of kids in the grocery
> store. They object to kids obstructing their own mission to shop.
> People, singe or not, male or female, old or young all have issues.

Yep, thanks for saying so, Vox.
(snippage)
>I think it is precisely this
> "entitlement" mentality that people with kids exude that causes the
> problems. Some people seem to think that having a kid or two in tow
> entitles them to special treatment. They think that common courtesy
> is suspended. I believe that supermarkets reinforce this belief when
> they provide those %^&^&$### carts for kid to push while mom or dad
> shops.

Or those silly carts that look like toy cars for them to ride around in and
push their younger siblings in... leads to the "zoom zoom" racetrack
mentality and what good are they as actual shopping carts?

But to add something nice to this thread, I DO believe in courtesy at the
grocery store. I've gone out of my way to help shoppers find things if I
knew where they were and they didn't and am always rewarded with a smile and
a "thank you".

And I'll never forget the woman working at the seafood counter chasing me
down when I'd bought some catfish and she overcharged me; she caught up with
me at the checkout and and slapped the correct (less expensive) sticker on
my package of fish.

Jill

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
. ..
> But to add something nice to this thread, I DO believe in courtesy at the
> grocery store. I've gone out of my way to help shoppers find things if I
> knew where they were and they didn't and am always rewarded with a smile
and
> a "thank you".

Yep. Last night at the store I saw an elderly woman eyeing a large box on a
high self. I went over and asks her I could get the item for her. It was
almost too high for me to reach. She said that she wanted the box, but
after I handed it to her, she gave me a suspicious look like I was going to
snatch her purse. She kept eyeing me even after I left the area. Maybe she
was caught off guard but I think we were both left a little uneasy. I often
find myself retrieving items for people, but this was a new outcome.