Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Disgrunted TJ's Shopper

Can someone please tell me on what planet is it all right to order around a stranger in a grocery store? I was in my local Trader Joe's picking up some lunch (mmm canneloni!) when I'm standing in line pretty close to the counter. I don't like to stand on top of the counter because, well, that's rude. This dear, sweet old lady is behind me and she says "Excuse me, but are you next?"

She was so polite... I figured I'd excuse her Captain Obviousness and said "Of course." She snidely remarks back, "Well then how about you try MOVING UP?" And then she smiled. How rude do you have to be to order someone around in a flipping grocery store!

If you've never been to a Trader Joe's before, their registers are fairly small... that is, they don't have much counter space so it isn't like you can load up your groceries. They take them straight from the cart. I was up as far as I was willing to go because I don't like to block those poor cashiers in. It's a little claustrophic in there. I was standing maybe MAYBE 18 inches away from the counter. Plus, TJ's just got new baskets which are too large to fit on the teeny tiny end that they have on the left side of the cash register where I put my items once the cashier is finished or close to finished with the previous order. This woman was still ringing stuff up from her previous customer.

I was so taken aback by this rude grandma that I had no idea what to say! I think I said something snide with a smile back just because she ticked me off. I wasn't quite so mad that I was spitting... I was more confused and just felt a bit insulted that this woman spoke to me the way she did.

This is why I hate the holidays... because I hate how people speak to me during the holiday season: as if they're better than me. They aren't better than me.

2 comments:

*Di said...

People definitely AREN'T better than you, but that won't stop them from behaving that way. Sal and I were walking thru Boscov's - not hand in hand or hands in eachother back pockets or anything like that. In fact, because we both were carrying bags, he was walking slightly behind me, and I was talking to him over my shoulder, in order to stay out of people's way. Walking towards us are 3 teenage girls, side by side, taking up the whole aisle, and the one had the nerve to bump into me! Like, shoulder checked me. Ugh!

becklette said...

dude... between the faux-yuppies (the middle-aged, suburban, former professionals) at the tj's by work and the elite at the tj's by home, the ONLY time it's safe to go is 8:30pm on a saturday night. for serious. i come close to murdering somebody EVERY TIME i go before 8:30 on saturday night.

mine didn't get new baskets, though! i want new baskets!!