k you've been warned that this will be ranty. twice now. ;o)
Darly found a shopping bag that I'm not using so that brought on this post.
I started collecting reusable grocery bags back when we were in Korea...WOW has it REALLY been that long??? anyway, I've managed to get quite the collection. I have some that are small and pretty much just two rectangles of fabric sewn together with some handles, a few that are those square bottomed made out of some sort of plasticky recycled stuff, a few canvas bags and one really nice insulated bag.
When I first started on this adventure the grocery store used to pay me to bring my own bags. They don't do that any longer. They SAID they were gonna start charging folks for using plastic or paper...they haven't done that either. So now the only real advantage to using my own bags is that I like them and they hold more stuff than those flimsy plastic bags.
Grocery store baggers are still idiots. I KNOW that they are supposed to receive training on how to bag groceries...like don't put cans on top of the eggs and such. But they don't seem to remember how to do that. It has gotten so that I will shop for the right check out lane so I get a bagger with a brain and I don't get smushed bread. If I can't do that, I usually spend a few minutes in the parking lot rebagging my groceries.
I had to take a marker to my insulated bag and write COLD on it so that my cold items go in that bag (btw: I organize my shopping cart so that similar items reach the bagger in groups.) Yet I can't tell you how many times I get my cereal bagged in the cold items bag! It doesn't help.
The two really small bags should be for light things like bread, chips or eggs...but no. They like to load those up with canned food. I now have to retire one of my bags as it is falling apart.
And then I put all my bags into the largest bag. The idea is that they should use the bags inside that bag first and then if I go that far use the outer bag. But the baggers like to empty the big bag and use it first...then when they finish my order figure out how to contain all my extra bags. I bring my own produce bags too so this can be quite messy. sigh!
oh and I frequently have to remind the baggers that I have to carry these bags once I get them home. It seems they get some sort of sick pleasure in trying to load my entire order into one bag...that's probably why they go for my big carrying bag. Of course this will backfire with them putting very little in the bags too.
Renee, you know what your problem is, don't you. You're too logical! Everything you're doing when it comes to shopping makes sense! Those kids don't know anything about that, LOL. I reckon that's why I like the U-Scan aisles.
ReplyDeleteMy pet shopping peeve is that they use too many of those plastic bags. One item per bag? Com'on. And now that the manufacturers make them lighter weight to save money, they have to double them up so they don't break. Genius at work.
Having worked in a grocery store for the past two years, I feel your pain. Some of these people don't seem to have two clues to rub together. My suggestion is to not had them your bag of bags. Place your "cold stuff" on the belt first. Hand them the cold bag. then the smooshy stuff (bread, chip bags etc) and hand them the bags for the smooshy stuff. Etcetera, etcetera. Maybe they will be offended, maybe not, but you will have groceries bagged the way YOU want. And THAT'S what we get paid for. Giving you what you want, your way.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the self check outs but my grocery only has the 15 items or less for that.
ReplyDeleteAnd our Walmart has mostly broken self scans. But I won't buy my groceries there anyway. There are some things I'm willing to pay more for.
chuckle - we don't have baggers here in the UK. But our till ladies have had their brain removed instead. I sort my items onto the moving thingie, so that all meats are together, all cans are together etc. What does till lady do? Reach over stuff to scan the things behind it before returning to the stuff right in font of her. I end up with 4 bags on the go at any one time, just to sort it out properly. It makes unpacking so much easier if everything is together the way it should be.
ReplyDeleteSelf checkouts? The bane of my life!! Unexpected item in the bagging area....I am going to have nightmares about that one day!!