 Yesterday, we kvetched about restaurant flaws. Felt good, right? Let's stock up on a few other food-centric places that induce minor freak-outs. Today: grocery stores. |
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It has to be when ppl block the aisle. They will leave their cart directly in the middle and not care as you approach. The other one is to park it on the opposite side of where they are working and will stand there. I have become so disgusted by this behavior that I have started going against whatever appears to be the grain (most stores are set up to encourage right to left; not sure why). With this approach, it is only at the end that I really have to deal with going against the grain. Interestingly, I have not had to deal with
continued:
I have not had to deal with ppl going against the grain and blocking the aisle. Apparently, they have the same thoughts.
In addition, when I was single, I would shop in the middle of the night (after 10 and before 6) to avoid these ppl. Great time to shop. Now that I have wife/kids, I do not do that, but it is a good option for others.
i hate it when someone is holding up the line and i go to a different line, and then the first line i was in starts moving quickly.
Oooh, my pet peeve is a tie between people who pay with checks who don't bother to fill out the everything but the amount while waiting in line or while at home and people who block the aisle and are completely inconsiderate to those in front and behind them. DRIVES ME UP THE WALL! MOVE, B!TCH! People who go through the self-checkout and they have no idea how things work and get frustrated because their hand basket is full of produce. But it also bugs me when the grocery stores put slow cashiers at the express lane. OH! And people who have multiple W.I.C. vouchers and go through the express lane. They think because each order is under 10, that separating 30 items between 3 vouchers is okay. IT IS NOT! Even using just one voucher with a handful of items still can take several minutes and very often the people using the vouchers choose the wrong item and they have to go back and get something different.
I am suprised that they did mention folks who don't return shopping carts in the parking lot. That is my all time worst pet peeve. You are trying to find a space on sunday and someone decides to leave their shopping cart in the parking space, sometimes you can angle your car to miss the cart but other times the cart is in the middle of space and you either have to get out of the car and move it or find another space. I wish I could mail these people a bill for all of the burnt and waste gas because of their laziness.
I have the best "Worst Grocery Shopping Experience Ever" story. When I shop I also return bottles for the bottle return. There were multiple stations for glass, plastic, and cans so I thought I was being efficient by returning glass and cans at the same time. After being the only patron in the bottle return area for a few minutes an older (55+) woman walks in to return her bottles. Despite the multiple stations available she heads directly to the glass and can returns I am using, tells me I am done, and pushes me out of the way. The first words out of my mouth are, "A person as old as you should have more manners than that." She proceeds to scratch me forcing me to get the manager who threatens to call the cops if the woman doesn't leave. The woman than claims she was at the bottle returns first and I attacked her! The manager asks the woman if she really wants to stick to her story because they have video surveillance of the bottle return area. The woman leaves at this point. All of this happened because the other glass return wasn't working and she didn't have the decency to say that and ask if she could use the one that I was using. People are infinitely rude.
Holy scratchin' Cat Woman! Are you for real?? I mean, just when you think you have seen and heard it all.
Definitely for real, I refused to return bottles at that store ever again.
Here you are turning in bottles, recycling, trying to do something good and another human being turns it into a hateful experience. Shame on her.
Why would you refuse to use that store, it wasnt their fault.
My local Kroger (Woodstock, GA) has a RedBox right outside the entrance to the store. People are so lazy, they will not park in the parking lot to go rent their movie. No these people park in the Fire Lane at the entrance. So traffic has to maneuver around them, look for on coming traffic, customers going in and out of the store, these RedBox customers opening their car doors in front of you.
I complained to the Mgr. He said others had complained, but nothing he could do about it. So I sent a comment to the Kroger web site. I received a response from Kroger saying that customer safety is top priority and the Mgr has full say where that RedBox is positioned. 2 weeks later, the RedBox is still there, people are still parking in the Fire Lane and the Mgr gave me an I don't care response of Nope, when I said, I noticed the RedBox has not been moved yet. He then completely ignored me and walked off when I asked if it was going to be moved. I guess Kroger really does not care that much about the safety of their customers, or this box would have been moved by now . . . . .
Lastly, Kroger either makes a ton of money off the RedBox or they have deep pockets. I just wonder how much it will cost Kroger when the first lawsuit is filed, because a customer was hit and the driver of the car was trying to drive around those RedBox customers.
When I'm paying the cashier and the person in line behind me butts right up on me while I'm paying, it irks me. GET BACK! I'm putting my pin # in the debit card machine and they're standing so close I can hear them breathing. Happens to me all the time. It's called PERSONAL SPACE. Crowding won't make the transaction go any faster.
That drives me crazy! Some people have no concept of personal space. There's nothing worse than having some onion-breathed knuckle-dragger mouth breathing in your ear!
What gets under my skin is the customer who holds the line up while arguing that the item purchased should have been $0.25 less than what was rang up. Here I'll give you a quarter to get out of the way.
people who make their kid 'put back' a piece of fruit they've already taken a bite out of...
Keep trying,That She-Male may take a bite from your Bin!
put a piece of fruit their kid has taken a bite out of back in the display bin
How do I pick up females at a grocery store? Wedding ring aside, how do I know if a female is interested? A smile and a 'longer' smile back?
one thing that really gets me, and i dont know if you guys get this alot up north but, we have really cheap people who have alot of items, and when there is a lone behind them, they pull out TONS of coupons not only for the store their at but competitor and expired coupons, and they will argue with the cashier to accept the coupons, and/or argue about an items price, and say well it was marked wrong i want it for the cheaper price
People who open the door of the freezer section, and then stand there for several minutes holding the door open trying to decide which item to get.
Seriously, how is pay with a check not #1? It slows everything down and just proves you're behind the times.
I've been working in the grocery business for about 5 years, and I hate them all. For everything they do. Very simply.
all of the above!
Apparently all you kid-haters out there have no children of your own...or you've forgotten that you once were children yourselves. Some of these children are autistic and/or have other behavioral disorders. Try having children of your own, then try taking them to the grocery store without disrupting the shopping experiences of self-centered asses like yourselves. BOO-HOO.
sorry to disagree, but as someone who raised three kids, I can say that I had enough sense not to take them into a store when they were tired, hungry or stressed out..it might have been inconvenient to make other arrangements for the while I shopped, but it was better for them, better for me, and certainly better for other shoppers...we also had "rules"...if they wanted to come shopping with me, they had to abide by the rules (no running in the store, no shouting, no fighting, no arguing, no whining,...when the rules were broken, I left my cart in an unobtrusive place, notified staff I would be back , and took the kids home...as a single mom, I made arrangements with other single moms to look after each other's kids in these circumstances....once the kids were old enough, they then shopped with me as a learning exercise ie, which is the best priced item? Is this brand better than the no name version? Where does this food come from? I raised my kids to be considerate members of society, and I did not allow my own stress to become acted out by them in public...
Personally, I am much more annoyed now at my fellow senior citizens whose only social experience is Seniors Day at the grocery store!! Consequently, they totally forget that it is a place of business in which other people are trying to shop, and they are old enough to know better! I don't care if you have not seen Wilmer and Sadie since last Wednesday's shopping trip!! Go get a coffee someplace and catch up on your news. Please do not stand in the middle of the aisle and ignore everyone else who is trying to get their shopping done!
It drives me absolutely batty when it comes time for me to pay and I can't swipe my debit card because the person before me still hasn't gotten out of the way and will not despite the fact that the cashier, the people standing behind me, and I am waiting on them.
I also can't stand it when two people are blocking the entire aisle because they believe their conversation is more important than anyone else. I especially hate it when they have the nerve to get irritated when you politely say, "Excuse me." How rude of me to interrupt their conversation!
Kids throwing tantrums because Mom/Dad FINALLY noticed that not only are they running around like crazy, but they are eating out of the candy bins, or eating cherries/grapes in the produce section–hey, that produce needs washing, but I'm not gonna stop them! They are sugar crazed!
Anyone that pays with a check at a store in today's world should be put in prison.
Uh yeah, that's a stupid idea. Thanks
Kids.
Throwing.
Tantrums.
I hate all of the things listed, but one that's not listed that really bothers me at the store I go to is cashiers not acknowledging you. I always say hello, and usually get zero response. No response to my thank you either.
My number one grocery store issue is employees at the customers service counter who do not know where items are located. I recently had to explain what chai is... seriously?!?! I think they even have chai at Dunkin Donuts these days; it is not exactly an exotic product.
Perhaps not exotic, but in the 3 years I've worked as a cashier, no one has ever bought, much less asked for chai. We can't be expected to know where every single item, out of thousands, is located in one store.
I had to google chai as soon as I read your post. I learned something new today-thanks!
Try not to be a chai snob. The cashier keeps that job to make ends meet not to become Iron Chef America.
My answer to that. Hm, Having one line open when its busy. Get one of the floor men to another cashier please. This has happened to me SEVRAL times at walmart. I'd go at night, cause its a lot less drama there and they'd have one line open with 20 people standing in line. All with one or two items, but they'd also have the oldest slowest person checking us out.
Actually I read somewhere that Wal-Mart purposely keeps too few registers opened. It's one of the many reasons I strongly dislike that company.
I think we should do another poll.....this time, let's title it 'what's the most annoying thing that grocery stores do?'
I was kicked out of walmart before because a WHOLE family must have bumped into each other at walmart in the ONE isle I needed, like ran in for ONE thing and i waited patiently for 5 minutes and NOTHING, not a budge. So I patiently and kindly asked them to move...they looked at me like they didn't speak english. I might have said something with a curse word and then all of a sudden they want to start yelling at me for cussing in front of their kids, and got me kicked out. It was rediculous. :/ I freaking hate people blocking the isle. Really.
Unfortunately, going to WalMart is a social event for WAY too many people. That's why I don't go.
We were lucky enough to have Target LOOOONG before we ever even heard of WallyWorld. I got hooked on "Tarjay" in the late 80's and never looked back. When Walmart came to town in the mid-90's, I went several times, and at this point, have had enough negative experiences that I need never go back. And the prices on the items we get aren't that different.
The negative incidents at Walmart, 9 times out of 10 usually involve rude customers blocking aisles, etc. Although ...... there WAS one incident with a WartMart employee and shopping carts. That incident will forever keep me out that specific Walmart forever.
I understand alot of small towns don't have a choice BUT to shop at WallyWorld. They have my sympathies. I DO have a choice ..... and I choose Target. The stores are clean, well laid out; employees are helpful without being bothersome and I feel good being there. Wallmart is the antihesis of Target.
I found rotten ground pork that someone had taken from a freezer and actually hid underneath the halloween candy. It had been there for days and I kept smelling something awful when I would walk down that aisle, but no one else said they could smell it. Finally a customer asked about the odor and I knew I wasn't crazy so I pulled the display apart until I found it. Sure, it could have been a grown adult, but I'm guessing that folks need to keep a better eye on their kids or leave them at home. same for the ones that have to poke holes in the fresh meat packages. God only knows where there fingers have been. Oh yeah, don't buy from bulk bins. Snotty noses, snotty hands, and they reach into the bins. It's so gross. Even saw a grown woman lick her fingers and stick them into the bins of baking mixes at Winco. Then she'd taste the mix. Then she'd dip into another. NO, I'm NOT kidding. Never buy from those containers.
When I worked in a grocery store, this was a problem too. There's nothing worse than finding molded steak under the shelving bright and early in the morning. Bleh! People are so disgusting.
I hate when people either don't return carts to the designated area or don't push them all the way in. It really isn't all that difficult, and it makes it easier for others to return their carts not to mention avoiding damage to vehicles.
Biggest peeve: Shoppers too lazy to return the item to the cooler or freezer they got it from when they change their mind. When you decide you don't want the fresh broccoli and you are in the freezer section, it is NOT OKAY to just drop it in with the ice cream. Same for fresh meats. And it's not okay to leave your ice cream sitting on the magazine rack. If you change your mind, put it back properly. I was in Costco when a woman took a $15 box of cheesecake from the freezer, read the box, then decided she didn't want it. she put in on the display of soda. She hadn't even moved her basket. Since this wasn't my store, and I was a customer, I let her have it. People have no idea how little markup grocery items have, overall, and how much this type of behavior costs stores. She put it back, but it took shaming her in public. Put it back where you got it. It's not all that difficult. And no, it really isn't my job to follow the lazy people around and do this for them.
I wrote a song about that once and called it "Lazy". It was a number 1 Hit.
100% agreed. I found a pack of chicken sitting in the bread aisle and it just burned me up! It's so irresponsible. It's one thing to leave a box spaghetti or rice in the wrong aisle, because that's not going to spoil, but something like chicken or ice cream that can and will go bad? I detest wastefulness so things like that particularly bother me. I also hate when customers treat people employed in the store anyway they want, but that's a general hatred of rude behavior. We all have to work an no one deserves to be treated like crap.
I really get annoyed with those shoppers who are oblivious to everyone else in the store, the ones who don't seem to notice that you are looking at the products on the shelf, trying to find the one you want and they walk right in front of you (and sometimes stop) without excusing themselves. It's about as annoying as the ones who just block the whole aisle with their cart and don't move until you say something to them.
All of the above! I could not choose.
(1) The morbidly obese people who use the powered scooters because they are too out of shape to walk behind a shopping cart. (I understand if you have severe arthritis in your knees or something, but honestly, if you have a mobility issue that merits using one of those carts to grocery shop, you should have shown up to the store with a scooter of your own.
(2) Couples or groups of people going through the express lane with a bunch more items than they should because if they divide them between the people it comes out to 10 a person.
(3)people who leave their carts loose in the parking lot
(4)being in a store with literally 2 dozen employees present, 20+ people standing in line, and one register open, especially when the manager is present but not running a register
(5) People who pull up right in front of the entrance to the store to load the stuff from their cart into their car, rather than pushing the cart to where their car was parked
Your first one drives me up the wall, too! I think it makes me double angry, because I am obese myself, but I know exercise (and proper diet) is the best remedy for that. If you have a legitimate problem, fine, but if you're just too fat to push a cart around, maybe you should consider doing something about that.
Guess what I am one of those morbidly obese people who can out walk your but or anybody. I have seen plenty of skinnyassed people who never give a thought to how they dress or act in public, grocery store or not. I was raised in the south by a mother who would have given me trouble plenty if I acted like 75% of the people out there. by the way beofer you just assume that an obese person can"t walk try asking if there are other problems.
Obesity might not be the reason for the cart use. It might be something like heart disease or knee problems. I used to be able to walk miles at this same weight. Now I have heart disease. While obesity was one of my risk factors, the biggest factor was family history. Otherwise I'm a non-smoking vegetarian who exercised all my life. In any event, congestive heart failure will limit the distance one can walk.
I go to the 10 items or less lane, only to find a lady with a CART FULL of crap. I made a comment concerning her counting ability, to which she replied to the cashier "It's ok, I'm used to smart talk, I'm a teacher". I belly laughed and asked how a teacher could fail counting to 10??? :)
The totaly lack of "give a crap" is what get's me. Everyone is SO selfish, and the rules are only for those of us willing to follow them. The employees are NEVER allowed to mention the rules, so they're useless anyway, unless you're a polite lemming, that's been taught to follow rules to begin with.
TO ALL GROCERY MANAGERS. If you'd enforce just a little, you'd get a much easier clientele to deal with and probably more business in the end. Just a thought.
The absolute worst at any story is when someone fills up a cart, gets to the front, realizes that they can't pay and starts arguing with the cashier and/or removing things one by one from their purchase to get to a cart they can afford. Do the math and get a budget!
People who block the aisles and won't move when you say "excuse me," often because they've stopped dead in the aisle to text or talk on their cell phones. This is a particular nuisance in NYC, where the supermarkets are smaller and the aisles are often less wide than in their non-urban counterparts. (When I first saw one of those jumbo supermarkets in upstate NY, I thought it looked like an airplane hangar!) Also, various checkout offenses: not pushing items up, not corralling screaming kids who are blocking me from getting my groceries on the belt, etc.
I told my daughters that it was the law that they had to sit in the cart until I couldn't lift them anymore. Kept them contained and out of everyone's way until they were about 6. At that age, they knew how to behave.
All of those are annoying but here's another: Using the self checkout when you have tons of groceries and you obviously don't know how to use it and you're doing it in slow motion
Sorry Kate,I was practicing my dance moves for DWTS. Was I holding up the line?
The worst experience I ever had in a grocery store is still burned into my mind. A woman opened a yoghurt cup and gave it to her baby, who could not have been more than 2. Predictably, a few moments later, he dropped the cup and spilled it all over the floor. The mother immediately gets into the baby's face and starts screaming, and CUSSING at him, calling him a worthless piece of sh–, yelling that she f-ing knew he was going to do that, and he was such a useless thing. Yelling loudly with no regard to who else was around.
I went to find a manager to tell them about it and so someone would clean up the mess. The woman was gone by the time we got back. Several other people around commented on the incident, but there was nothing anyone could do about it.
People in general who are abusive in public to anyone they are with make me angry. It's the worst to see them berate their husband, wife, or child right in public and not care who sees.
I had a part-time job at a pet store a few years ago. One day, there was this lady with her dog and kid (probably between 8-10 years old). The dog was acting a fool and the boy was trying to calm it down. He wasn't doing anything wrong. The woman then grabbed the child and YELLED at him for touching the dog. I thought she was going to beat him in the store. I couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor kid. The kid probably couldn't do anything right while that little annoying $&%# of a dog could do no wrong.
I usually only get annoyed in the parking lot. People who can't be bothered to walk the 6 extra steps to take their cart to one of the cart parking bays. People who pull in close behind you to wait for your spot but won't move enough to let you pull out. Pedestrians who walk oh-so-slowly in the driving lanes.
In the store itself, I am at peace. My kids hate grocery shopping, so I can usually get away with going by myself. I agree with whoever said those mondo "car" shopping carts are a pet peeve. I wish stores would remove them entirely, preferably replacing them with easily maneuverable carts where up to four kids under the age of 12 can be strapped down. Because, as annoying as you find it when my kids are acting like wild animals, I am just as annoyed, but sometimes there isn't any option that won't get me reported for child maltreatment.
Try this experiment. Next time you go to the store, make a conscious effort to notice all the parents with kids who are NOT acting insane. Also, if a particular kid-parent group is bothering you, try to really see whether the parent is trying to keep them in control but just not getting any cooperation, or if they genuinely are oblivious or uncaring to how their kids' behavior is affecting everyone else. If it's the latter, feel free to instruct the kid yourself, and if the parent gets offended, too bad. You're not going to get in trouble for telling a bratty little wildebeast to quit climbing on shelves or dragging merchandise out into everyone else's way. If the parent is frazzled, you might try to help by interjecting a little humor or fear into the situation. Sometimes having a stranger walk up (make sure the parents are there, otherwise you look creepy), look imposing, and say, "Young man, are you giving your mother trouble?" is enough to defuse an out-of-control situation. Or point to the nearest person in a store uniform and say, "You're breaking the rules of this store. If you don't start listening to your dad, I'm going to report you to that lady over there." You'll be surprised, first, at how grateful the parents are likely to be for the show of support, and, second, how effective it can be in terms of getting the kids under control.
I think the misuse of the self scan registers is my biggest pet peeve. They are usually pretty easy to use but there are so many people out there that freak out when they see new technology. I used to work at store running the self scan registers (there is usually one employee assigned to 4-6 self scan registers) and I could not get over the stupidity of some people. The register says out loud the instructions and if you listen, read the screen, and follow the prompts, you should not have a problem completing your order in a timely fashion. Screaming at the screen, screaming at the employees, and/or throwing your items down the belt will not help you, in fact these things just make your order take longer and could potentially break the machine (the self scans with conveyer belts run by weight and sensors to check that you are actually taking home what you scan and pay for).
I still don't understand why the people that loudly complain about these registers while using them even bother, there's a normal register with a human cashier just down the line.
people need to chill, and be nice to each other ha,
I would say theft. These people who come in and then graze unashamedly down the produce aisle, eating grapes and whatever else they can stuff in their fat faces. That is THEFT. They ought to be escorted from the premises and charged with shoplifting. Unless it's a display that says 'please help yourself without paying' or someone there handing out free samples, taking and eating the food without paying for it is dishonest.
I don't like it when people say "i'm going to the grocery"....its a grocery store!!
Only in modern vernacular. Grocery is a term that refers to the business itself, and therefore the storefront. Groceries came about later to refer to any item you would buy at a grocery. At some point in some areas people began to add the word store to the end of grocery. Possibly because you could have an outdoor grocery, or go to a store. Alternately it could just be because of our peculiar need to state the obvious, even when it's not needed.
So saying, "I'm going to the grocery," is technically correct. However, it's rather outdated now, and most people naturally say grocery store instead. As always, there are pockets where they still use the old way.
i hate people who put things back in the wrong place
As a disabled person with an also disabled wife, I really enjoy all the !@#$holes that park in the disabled parking designated areas without a sticker. then we must park in the (south 40) and hump to the door, then all the power carts are taken and we amble as best we can through the store while observing kids playing with the disabled carts. Aint life grand.
Start calling the 5-0. Easiest $ they'll ever make. I'm not disabled, but I can't stand it when people do that.
What about that person that stands so close on your back that they are almost breathing on you? Ugh I hate you back the F up!
Spot on. I HATE those people, and usually they're unkempt older men, impatient to get their cigarettes. I don't need you in my space, ever.
Absolutely! Especially when there is no one standing behind that person. I feel like they're going to step on my heels. It almost makes you wanna fart on them so they'll get off your butt! If only it wouldn't be embarrassing.
What irks me is when the teller or other customers comment on my purchases. For example, I buy two different kinds of apples and the teller says "boy you must REALLY like apples." Or if I'm making a larger purchase (I shop for two weeks at a time usually for budgeting purposes) and the teller says "did you just move in" or "you bought everything but the kitchen sink". GAH! It's incredibly irritating and kind of an invasion of privacy. Reminds me of the target lady from SNL.
you are very right
my absolute favorite is when you are buying a movie and they stop ringing to tell you EXACTLY what they think about the movie and how its so good/bad.
i hate people that are in a rush, slow down people, write a check, move as slow as possible, its not a race
It makes your ass look big. Just sayin'.
i wear it in the front, thank you very much sonny
So when's the due date-the Bakeries on the next aisle?
unlike you, i really wear a fanny pack becuse i'm a bodybuilder and i wear tank tops and stretch pants so i have no where to put my wallet
I can't compete cuz' I got cellulite! I also like to dress up like you do when I go to the grocery store.
Ok for me if you want to go slow, but alot of the rest of us cannot have that luxury. Some of us have a lengthy work week and an even longer to do list. If you must go extremely slowly in the aisles, at least let those of us who have to get the shopping done and move on, to pass. Some of us just walk 10x faster than others, naturally. It just is. We'll recognize your speed preference if you don't block ours. We need to eat. Maybe we're on our way from our first job to our second job.
Those women who pull their cart around 90 degrees and then stand directly in front of it so they have the entire width of the aisle blocked. They will usually stand there and examine the merchandise for a very, very long time while everyone else does their best to squeeze around them.
Also, those people who feel the need to bring the entire extended family shopping with them. I see this more in urban stores.
I hate the women who think I'm trying to flirt with them when all I'm doing is asking them about their melons!
O.K. here is a tip but you didn't hear it from me. Squeeze em' first and then the last thing you remember is "Clean Up on Aisle 3"!
There are so many that piss me off, it's ridiculous. It's not like the concept of a grocery store is new. What gets me the most is when people use the UScan isles who don't know how to operate the machines. They sit there pushing the wrong buttons and not listening or reading the on screen instructions and end up blocking the whole thing. Stupid, stupid people.
Among my other annoyances: isle blockers, parents who let their obnoxious kids push the carts and then i get bumped into, taking WAY to many items into the restricted lane (a few over I don't care about), and those who wait until the last second to get out their money. Another annoyance: people on the bus, who sit there for half an hour doing nothing, get up to leave and THEN pull out their bus pas as they are standing in front of the driver holding everyone up. Please be logical people.
People who can't say "excuse me." They would rather shove past in the aisle, stare hoping you'll notice them, or squeeze between you and the product you're looking at without acknowledging your presence. What happened to basic good manners? Is being polite that painful?
How about people being a little less oblivious and attempting to stay out of the way in the first place? I try to be aware of people around me and be considerate when I sense that I might be standing in the way of someone getting something off the shelf where I'm looking for something, and I don't wait to be asked to move.
I must agree that the grievances are many. I never even thought about the folks in SCRUBS – YUCK! Can't stand screaming kids, folks on the cell phone and oblivious to those around them...and folks in the POWERCARTS! Can't believe that wasn't one of the options. There should be a specific line for folks with kids (preferrably at the other end of the checkouts) one just for people using power carts and then those only for the rest of us. Heck, have a "checks only" line, one just for food stamps, one just for debit cards, etc. Sure would speed things up!
Seriously – you think people with physical challenges who need electric carts shouldn't shop because you actually have to move your able bodied self around them? What the heck has this world come to? Slow down and respect others. The three seconds that it took you to go around or wait is nothing compared to the years all this anger is taking off your life.
i agree with the concept of those physically challenged, but what about those who are too lazy to walk in the store so they used the electric power carts?? Those people annoy me the most!
@shopping mom–people who can walk might be using electric carts because they have heart disease or emphysema or some other illness that makes walking long enough to do shopping difficult. They probably also have a handicap placard. There are times I need to use a scooter but really, I'm just to embarrassed. So I'm so exhausted that when I get home I can't even put the groceries away until I've rested. Personally, I'm also frustrated that there isn't enough space in the little baskets that go with those carts for a full shopping trip for a household of more than one.
People who "graze" in the store, basically stealing the product. This includes parents who let their children eat a weighed item while shopping, like grapes or bananas (have a snack before you shop, not while you shop!). Plus, ALOT of times they spill something on the floor and don't clean it up or let anyone know! Then someone else gets hurt. Also, not putting the shopping baskart away in the parking lot where it hits other cars – lazy A**.
Yeah... I hate shopping carts in the parking lot. Especially if you thought you found a nice spot only to find out as you're driving in that a cart is pushed up to the curb/barrier in front of the spot! Grr... is it really that hard to push the cart a few extra feet to those cart corrals? It's one thing if the supermarket doesn't have corrals, but nowadays practically every single one does! Don't even get me started on runaway carts that ding the car!
The moms that block an entire section of an aisle so that she can let her 4 year old pick out which cereal she wants. "Which one do YOU want honey? This one? Do you like this one? How about this one, this one has a pretty box". I'm just trying to pick up my box of wheaties here, either grab something for your stupid kid or get out of the way for 2 seconds so I can reach over and get it. Yes, I understand you want to teach your child the joys of consumerism, but how about teaching them the importance of being considerate to others?
a lesson you could learn as well Andy
My biggest pet peeve is the person who needs a price check on everything!! "$1.50?? I thought it was supposed to be $1.25. Can you call to find out?" Gosh!
I have to shop with 2 kids, and I have to tell all of you out there who complain about kids, we are doing the best we can. Sometimes it's just faster to let them run and get through the store as quick as you can, then stop every six seconds to say, "Boys, get over here!" If I start screaming at them, everyone just complains about THAT mom. Again, we do the best we can.
The most frustrating for me is the arguer. "But that wasn't marked that price!" or "But your ad said it was on sale!" My favorite is when someone tries to substitute something similar for something else on sale in an ad or that they have a coupon for. If the coupon is only for Apple Cinnamon oatmeal, don't spend 5 minutes fighting with the cashier, then ask for a manager, just to get your Maple flavor for 10 cents off.
you may care and may be doing the best you can, but 99% are not even paying attention...their kids are running around and screaming and knocking food off the shelves, almost getting run over by other carts etc because they're out of control
It's funny that bemoan the difficulties of parenting. You should have thought about this before spreading your legs so many times without, apparently, understanding where it is those little tyrants of yours come from. I have children. They sometimes accompany me to shops. They never, even for a moment, get out of line. They know full well that they will stay with me, and have peaceful, civil tones so as to not disturb other people. It's a little something I'm thinking of calling "home training"; that is to say, that if your obnoxious little brats are so poorly parented most of the time, it's going to go a long way to explaining why you can't handle them in public.
You aren't "that" mom because you yelled at your kids in a store. You're "that" mom because you're such a shitty parent everywhere else that the only way you can even get their attention is to yell at them. Yes, we know your kind. You do all you can to lead a life where your kids are a distant memory until, well, you know, you have to interact with them. Then, they don't listen because they know when you get home there will be some yelling followed by them being to their own devices until next again you must clash wills.
This is why look at you the way you do; we just know that your kids will one day be able to vote, have sex and make important decisions. Unfortunately, they'll be unable to do any of it with much reflective thought and absolutely no decorum.
It's probably that shock collar you have on your kids that lets them "never for a moment" get out of line. They are children for goodness sakes. If you train them like dogs – it will come back to bite you.
Not to be harsh but then your best isn't good enough. No one else should have to deal with your children because you can't/won't deal with their poor behavior.
In less rude terms than Johnathan, I agree to some extent. When I was a kid, my mother took us into a store, told us to stay with her and not to touch things, and we knew not to. Not to say we were perfect kids, I'm sure we did our share of whining and tantrum throwing, but my mom was a champ. She made it clear that if we were unruly or too obnoxious, we would be punished for it, and she followed through. She always let us be kids, we could circle the cart and walk down the aisle, as long as we weren't destructive and didn't leave her sight.
It might be easier for the parent to let their kids just run around the store, but it's not easier for the other customers who have to put up with it. Plus you're teaching your kids really bad habits. You can train your children not to be wild, it just takes some time and effort.
yep, we should all have to be bumped into and annoyed by your kids to make things easier for YOU. If your kids can't behave like human beings for a half hour in the store, then don't bring them. Period.
Yes, kids can be hard to deal with - but you can take them shopping without letting them run amok. First of all, know their moods. Don't take your kids shopping when it's nap time. Of course, they'll be cranky and it's really not fair to them. Don't take your kids if they're wound up, fighting, etc. Sometimes you have to wait and inconvenience yourself. That's part of being a parent.
Second, teach your child manners at home and make them a normal part of their lives. Several of the rules of shopping are just variants of the rules at home: use inside voice, no running indoors, no fighting, wait your turn, share, etc. My kids know what type of behavior I expect and they know that they don't get a "free ride" because we're in public.
Third, use positive reinforcement. Well-behaved kids get to push the cart (depending on age and cart driving skill), walk or pick out their favorite cereal. Bad kids get to sit in the cart. Once they're old enough to not fit in the cart, they usually have all the rules down.
One of my biggest pet peeves is parents who let their kids run wild. When mine were younger, they would ask how come they couldn't act like that. It makes it hard to be a responsible parent and raise responsible members of society when they're envying the bratty kids. Fortunately, nowadays my kids are more apt to raise an eyebrow at the wild kids than to want to be one of them.
I like your advice. Good job. That sounds like something to apply should I ever have children. It would be nice if there were more parents like you.
OK, I'll admit that I've argued a few prices before. Nothing like a 5 cent difference or anything like that. But it gets really frustrating to put forth all that time and effort of clipping coupons, loading coupons to your shopping card, going through the sale flyer only to not have things ring up right. You get the impression that stores are luring you in with a promise of saving you money, only to rip you off at the checkout. I can think of at least one store in my town that NEVER rings up sales items correctly. Sometimes it's a 5 or 10 dollar difference for just one item. That's big to me.
I'm sorry if my couponing bothers you, but I'm saving half off my grocery bill. And I do try to be considerate. I put my coupons in order, read the fine print, double check the dates, write the item price on free coupons, etc. I even turn all my coupons the same way so the checker can scan them quicker. But I refused to be ripped off.
I think the complaint is more about the people that are arguing about expired coupons, or trying to get discounts on the wrong item, or things like that. I don't mind people with coupons especially these days where most coupons are just scanned, and I certainly understand if things are being rung up incorrectly.
Have you ever read Not Always Right. It shows complaints from the workers stand point. It reminds me of the one with a lady insisting that her coupon for butter should be valid, and the cashier pointing out that it's such and such brand that the coupon is for, but such and such brand doesn't have unsalted butter and I need unsalted, then you're going to have to pay full price, but I have a coupon and round and round. Yeah, if I were behind that woman I'd be ready smack her in the back of the head.
Mom With Kids, did you really just say, "sometimes it's just faster to let them run and get through the store as quick as you can ..." Really? Please learn to parent. If your kiddos are little heathen in public it's because you've not done your duty to teach them otherwise. Kids don't learn this stuff themselves, they have to be taught.
BTW, last time (20 years ago) I yelled at my 6- and 8-year old kids in the store, to my horror they had knocked over an entire endcap display of those little gravy packets orror. After they cleaned up their mess, I imparted some pretty loud words in the frozen food aisle that ended in some sort of crescendo of "Do I need to march us all out of this store without our food for this week?? No? Then do I make myself COMPLETELY clear young ladies??" They nodded a quiet "yes ma'am," the surrounding shoppers clapped their approval and we finished our shopping peacefully.
Parenting can happen. We owe it to our kids to show them how it's done.
We only get to pick one thing??? That is a bummer.
Seconded!
I know in some areas of the country there are baggers who put your groceries away. In my neck of the woods (Northern NJ), however, we don't have them. What irritates me are the people who stand there while the clerk scans all their items, then stands watching while the clerk bags everything up.
I was raised to bag my own groceries. It saves me a lot of time, gets the line going faster, and is the polite thing to do.
man, this really gets me too....i used to be a bagger so i'm quick on the draw to bag up some groceries....i had one monster of a girlfriend who used to tell me to leave them alone and that it was the clerks job....what a b-word, a real snob if you ask me...we had many arguments over things like this...silver spoon in mouth is no replacement for manners in behaviour
I worked in a grocery store for a little over 3 years in high school and college. Ever since then I have become so particular about how my groceries are bagged, even if there is a bagger, I'll ask that I do them myself. The worst is when the customer stands around expecting the clerk to bag everything, then complains the whole time about how it's done. FYI – not every company trains their cashiers/baggers on how to bag properly. I The kids that used to work with me were clueless.
I too worked for a grocery store but only for like a month. I got fired for telling off some silver spoon fed old bag that "if you want me to bag then I am doing it my way." Turns out she was the owner's sister and that was why she walked around with such an entitled attitude. The biggest regret of my life was that I actually told her I was sorry.
Speaking from the viewpoint of a customer only, I don't bag my groceries unless I either have my own bags, or I have a lot of stuff AND the store has bags on the counter for me to use. Most of the time the clerks in the stores I frequent just scan the item and move it directly into a bag. It would be awkward for me to take it from them, unless I show them my canvass bags first and ask to bag them that way. Even then, they often take my bags from me and use them to bag the items.
I think it's just the way the clerks are trained.
That chaps my hide, too!
Depends on the situation. If I have a lot of stuff and can get to the bags, I'll help out too. I don't want to have to stand there like a jerk staring at them. When I go with my mom to her local Walmart, I'll usually stand by the bagging station and grab bags as they get full, since the cashier is usually tossing the groceries in as they are scanned.
I think the real problem is people feeling too entitled. Yeah, I'm not a cashier or a bagger, but that doesn't mean I'm better than them. I have a job and my own functions in that job, and I expect to be treated with respect and courtesy and I treat other people that way as well.
I hate that too. I've had customers complain about the lack of baggers (I had already explained that it was late on a sunday night, we only have one bagger left and he is pushing all of the carts back in–he can't hear me) and about how slow I was going between bagging and cashiering, but not lift a finger at all to bag some of the stuff herself.
My biggest complaint is seeing people in their medical scrubs handling things in the produce section. How many people coughed and sneezed on you at the clinic/hospital in those scrubbs? Yuck!
I know. When did scrubs become something people wear outside of the hospital. The whole put was you put them on at the hospital then changed before leaving so the germs stay the hospital.
Yeah, people in scrubs are the only one with germs on them... This is why you are supposed to wash the produce when you get it home. Strangely enough, I'm sure after working a long shift at whatever hospital, they probably just want to get their groceries and get home just like everyone else.
Unless of course, the one wearing the scrubs is actually a secretary or on the dietary staff. Everyone wears scrubs, not just nurses.
for me its, the people that come through the isle, that your in, expect you to move, then they dont even use the isle, but just use it to get through somewhere else. I agree though grocery shopping is a pain, makes me wanna go home a smoke a whole pack.
I get irritated by people who have several different orders and pay for each one with their WIC checks. I'm even more irritated when those same people talk on their iPhones in the grocery line and retrieve their wallets from their designer purses.
Good try, Dennis....but pretty lame.
Yeah, you're pretty much a racist.
Funny, because every customer I have with WIC (which is conveniently on a card now, much faster) is in obvious need of it. Young married couples trying to get their feet on the ground, unexpected pregnancies, job losses, ect. They very rarely have an entitled attitude and are often somewhat embarrassed at having to hold the line up for something that they desperately need.
While all of the things listed are annoying, the one that most drives me up the wall has to be the shopper who is taken completely by surprise that she (and it is ALWAYS a she) has to pay for her items.
And of course, she's going to pay by check.
And she's not going to even begin looking for her checkbook until AFTER the ten-second blank deer-in-the-headlights stare when the cashier asks for payment.
And then she's not going to write the check until she's examined her check register in great detail to determine exactly how much money she thinks she has.
And then she's going BACK into her purse to find her favorite special "check writing" pen.
And then the check (Finally!! Woo hoo!!) Written with extreme care and constant review and revision.
BUT THEN she's NOT budging an inch from the checkout line until she's entered this check into her check register. And subtracted it from her balance.
BUT arithmatic is HARD, so she has to try several times before she gets a number she likes. And she's Not Moving until she does.
Now it's come down to putting that special favorite "check writing" pen into its special little holder in her purse. This has an extremely high degree of difficulty, as it involves using her fingers for something other than stuffing snacks into her mouth, and so must be done slowly, carefully and with great deliberation. Can't be disturbed by extreme movements like stepping away from the cashier, or disaster could result!
And now putting the checkbook into ITS special place in her purse. This also has an extremely high degree of difficulty and so must be done slowly, carefully and with great deliberation. No dangerous manouvers now!!
And finally, the slow, slow, dignified stroll away pointedly ignoring all the pissed-off shoppers in line behind her.
Oh, Charles. It's like you follow me around in stores documenting some of my frustrations. This is accurate but slightly startling. Should I just start waving randomly until you come forward?
my solution to these problems is to shop early in the morning. I am an early riser and i find that i can shop in peace. I do this because it's easy to avoid ALL these types of problems. 10 years doing this and never had a problem!
I totally agree, early mornings at the grocery store are so peaceful. It's rare you'll find a stressed out customer at that hour.
Yes, but some stores make you scan and bag your own groceries in the wee hours. Then you feel like a complete jack@$$ with a cart full of groceries, desperately trying to scan them as quickly as possible while people start lining up behind you.
Cutting in line ticks me off more than anything. "Go ahead Miss, I was only standing here to hold a place in line for you." It only gets worse when they open a new register and the 8th person in line thinks they should go right to the front.
When I worked at a grocery store we tried to prevent this by walking the next person in line over to a new register before opening it up. Of course if someone else not in line gets there first we weren't allowed to tell them to wait their turn because, you know, customer's always right and all that jazz.
Publix does that walking you to a newly opened register thing. That's an awesome customer service! Thank you Publix!
How about the dingleberrys that have more than 10 items in the Express Lane and then fumble around trying to find their checkbooks?
Excellent use of the word "dingleberry."
Although the plural is dingleberries – http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/dingleberry
Even more annoying is what store management often does... like: moving items around so you have to hunt for their new location; having few or no employees know where things are; opening only a couple registers even though there are long lines and multiple closed registers available...
I go to the grocery store by my house which is in an urban area so fairly kid free! thank god. screaming kids is the worst
Aisle blockers annoy me. But people who leave their buggies in the middle of the aisle while they're nowhere near their buggies annoy me even more. And women who leave their purses in their unattended buggies? What are they thinking? Do they want to robbed?
People who call carts "buggies" annoy me.
People who are annoyed by that annoy me.
people who are annoyed by people being annoyed by that annoy me
People annoy me!
People who make pointless comments about what they find annoying annoy me
I also voted aisle blockers as my #1 peeve, but children who's parents allow them to scream at the top of their lungs thru the ENTIRE grocery shopping adventure is 1-1/2. I usually use the child's seat belt to lock in my "purse" when I'm shopping. It only takes a second for someone to snatch something up out of your cart. it's a great deterrent.
it only takes a second to grab the wallet outta your purse and you wouldn't notice til you got ready to pay. best not to leave your purse in your cart at all.
The huge racecar carts for kids to "drive" while shopping. The are too big, cumbersome and just plain annoying.
See, I'm the opposite. If they keep the kids occupied and out of the way, I'm all for it. As long as the parent doesn't park the cart in front of items I need to get to a refuse to move.
i can't stand kids running around, or the baby in the carriage screaming its head off...leave them at home please
and make sure you have enough money before you go up to pay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! gotta be the worst when they start picking through stuff to see what to take off of the order so they can pay
Wow, you obviously have no sense of empathy do you??
Empathy for lack of consideration for others. I hope not!
So many, hard to pick just one.
When I see a woman with a full-to-the-brim cart in line, I expect she's going to take awhile. Especially if I spot a coupon book in her hand. So, even though it's awful if that's the only lane open, I understand it. What I really don't like is getting into an x-items or less lane and having to wait a half hour because the person in front of me has coupons, price checks each thing, wants cigarettes or baby formula and wants to pay by check, but didn't bring a pen, oh and can you pass me your store card? I forgot mine. If you know you're going to take a long time, please don't get into the express lane, even if you only have 7 items.
Also annoying are parents who let their kids run up and down aisles, pull things off shelves, bump into me and get in the way. Then they want to get angry at you when you tell the child not to climb to the top of the shelf, or ask them to move so you can get your cart through.
Blocking the aisle is extremely irritating, too. There's no reason why I shouldn't be able to go around you when you are the only other person in the aisle. That goes double for someone who's blocking the aisle because they're yapping on their cell phone and can't be bothered to move.
For me, it's a tie between blocking the aisle and letting their kids run loose like wildebeests. However, blocking the aisle is worse because an adult should be able to figure out if they are in someone's way. I can understand that kids are unruly and they will run everywhere until their school shoves Ritalin down their throats. Kids will be kids, but adults should be respectful of one another. How long do you have to say "Excuse me" or clear your throat before "Get the *%$# out of my way!!!" becomes acceptable?
I give everyone 2 "excuse me"s before I tell them flat out to get the f^&$ out of my way. Works every time. :)
I get so frustrated with people at the grocery store that i head straight home for a cold beer in a giant glass full of ice
Ice in beer must be a regional thing...I have never met anyone who puts ice in beer. Doesn't that water it down?
If you drink it fast enough it doesn't. ;)
Reverse that, you'll love it! 2 beer on an empty stomach then grocery shop. You will be relaxed, not care about the blocked aisles and tip the cashier.
i'm gonna try that!!!! 2 beers over ice on empty stomach and off to grocery shop
oooooh yummmmmmm beer in ice i love it!