Grocery shopping is easy. Walking up and down the aisles looking for anything enticing to the eyes. Having a list helps too, just in case you forget anything. Once you’re in the checkout, there’s no going back. Once in line, there’s a commitment. The groceries are on the conveyor belt, the grocery clerk is scanning and bagging the groceries and the person behind you is patiently waiting to be rung up. Just be sure you have everything you came for because in the checkout; the most dreaded thing to say is, “”I forgot something, I’ll be right back.” Shopping in line is annoying to the customer but what’s annoying to the grocery clerk is, we have to tell everyone what’s going on who’s coming into the line.
Customers eager to go into the checkout are puzzled with the groceries on the conveyor belt and no one in front of it…
Checking out Checkstands #1: Hey, are you open?
Me: I am but she went to go get a few more items.
Checking out Checkstands #2: Someone supposed to be here?
Me: She went to go get a few more items. She’ll be right back.
I can see the customers deciding if it’s safe to unload their items. Many are optimistic and do.
Not Ready Betty: Sorry guys, I’m back!
Me: Oh, its okay.
Checking out Checkstands #1: No problem.
Checking out Checkstands #2: Ah, don’t say sorry. We’ve all done it before.
Not Ready Betty: Oh no! I forgot one more thing. I’ll be right back.
Me: …
Checking out Checkstands #1: …
Checking out Checkstands #2: …
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
LOL, I may have done that once or twice before!!
This is probably one of my biggest pet peeves. And what really gets me is that, after waiting on them for 5 minutes, you see them just leisurely strolling back up to the checkstand. It’s like, “Oh no, go ahead and take your time, I don’t mind. I really love dealing with all the impatient and irritated customers I have to ring up after you. Oh wait, we didn’t scan your preferred card. Let’s all wait for you to go through every corner of your wallet trying to find it, and then through 10 different phone numbers that don’t work. Because that’s normal for a person to even have 10 possible phone number options. Oh AND you’re writing a check? Great. Go for it. I get paid by the hour… I’ll just stand here and watch the line back up down the frozen food aisle until you’re ready.”
But my favorite is the customer that walks up with a full basket, leaves the basket completely blocking the checkstand and goes back to do more shopping without saying anything. So when you finally notice, you don’t know whose it is, if they’re coming back or if you should start ringing up other people ahead of them (and when you do the owner of said full basket returns only to be upset that it wasn’t OBVIOUS that their full basket of groceries were holding their place in line… This isn’t Disneyland, and your basket isn’t your fastpass.)
Sorry, got a little carried away there. I feel much better getting it all out. haha.
I actually prevented a dumb woman from running back to get stuff after she finished getting her large order rung up, people in the line behind me cheered me for that.
Secretia
I will only shop on line if I have my kids or my husband with me and they can run back and get that one thing. If they are not back by the time my total is rung I forget it and go ahead and check out.
I refuse to hold other shoppers up. Bananas just aren’t that important.
There should be a little countdown feature for checkers to use, like a light flashing at the top of the lane number light. This will let other patrons know this lane is paused, and if the shopping-in-line person doesn’t make it back in time before the countdown is finished, the order is voided and you can start helping the next person.
Yes, I find that very annoying. And I am invariably the person who picks the WRONG line. Shortest but with slowest people.
I hate it when people do that!
Oh wow, that brings back one really bad memory. It happened some time last year. I was behind a woman and her father. It was about noon or so, a weekday, so the grocery outing should have been quick. Not with these two. She was buying ingredients for dinner and she had to go back 2 times for crap she forgot. Plus she had issues paying with her card. And that was the only line open in the store!
LOL…So annoying…
I will sometimes think of something I forgot while I am waiting in line, but I will only go get it if I am sure I can be back before I get to the front of the line. Sometimes I hurry back and then think of something else to get, but I limit myself to something (like the bananas) that is located close to the checkout line so I can be quick.
Not Ready Betty. That cracked me up.
I’ve never had this happen at the big store I go to, but the little one, where you bag your own stuff, people try to do it all the time. You just want to knock all their groceries off the conveyor.
Pretty hilarious and real blog you’ve got here, Paul.
What are your thoughts on the customers who eat food that has not yet been purchased while walking around the store or standing in line?
I have forgotten items, and realized it when in line, and AFTER I checked out, gone and gotten them. Really, it’s that hard to go get something you forgot after you’ve gone through the line? No, no it isn’t.
I have also realized that I forgot something just as I was getting in line, and turned the cart around and forfeited my place in line to go get it. I just don’t see the need to inconvenience everyone else in the free world just because I had a forgetful moment.