Attention All Shoppers

I love to shop. I enjoy the thrill of the hunt. I love sales and take pride in my ability to find a terrific bargain in my shopping travels. That is why I resent shoppers who park their cart in the middle of the aisle and are oblivious to anyone else in the store. I also don’t care for shoppers who bring their entire family along and proceed to walk side by side down the aisles. Don’t get me wrong — I, too brought my children along while I shopped. Unlike some, however, we walked in single file and my son and daughter were considerate and courteous to fellow shoppers. Perhaps a few adults should take note.

I don’t like people who cut in line. I especially don’t like people who are in line (or even in the process of being checked out by the cashier) and send someone to pick up a ‘few more items’. If you weren’t done shopping then you shouldn’t have been in a checkout lane. If you use coupons (hey, I’m not knocking them, I use them too!) Please check the expiration dates before you hand them to the cashier. And remember to write on the coupon the cost of the ‘free’ item you’re receiving — it’s easier for the clerk to scan the receipt looking for that figure.

  If you are writing a check for your purchases, do yourself and me a huge favor and begin writing it out while waiting in line. Don’t wait for the cashier to inform you of the grand total before you start filling out anything. Hmm… You know the date, the store’s name, and your own name — that’s a start! Exact change is great if it doesn’t hold up the line for an additional ten minutes!

I don’t understand why store employees don’t know the layout of their place of employment. Don’t they shop there themselves? What better way to ensure job security? I am just an average consumer and I have a general idea of where an item is located. That is until a store manager has the harebrained idea to move items to new locations throughout the store. I understand the reasoning behind their marketing strategy – to make shoppers meander through the aisles, hopefully placing into their carts several impulse items. The downside is that you need to wander aimlessly down the aisles looking for a much-needed item, which is never placed in the department it should normally be found in. I also dislike cashiers or baggers that place cleaning products with food.