Tuesday, November 24, 2015

An errand to Walmart

I am not a good shopper.  I have a hard time making simple decisions, and there I stand trying to decide if the difference in price is worth a product that doesn't have TBHQ or should I get the larger quantity that's cheaper per unit, but might not be used in a timely manner or will just add up to a bigger bill right now, and on it goes. 
Then I have to notice the other customers.  I'm gratified that there seems to be a push to crackdown on shoplifters in the cosmetic sections.  I could go bananas watching people opening products to sniff the scent or even sampling them.  Speaking of sampling, people eating grapes they haven't paid for is a pet peeve of mine.
Then usually there are children who just haven't been taught to behave or are fretful for one reason or another.  I'm astounded at the number of kids who haven't been instructed not to touch the merchandise.  Today I saw a pudgy little fellow who didn't look like he was much more than 2 1/2 shaking some cake sprinkles for all he was worth.  When his mother finally called, it didn't sound to me as if she were in the habit of making him mind on the first call.  I was on to another aisle, but a few minutes later, I saw him in his grandmother's cart.  He was not a happy camper!  The little red face was in the most unhappy contortion, his mouth was wide open and in the deafening silence that comes just before that blood curdling scream.  I saw the silence lasting longer than I thought.  Maybe he wasn't going to scream after all.  Alas, just about the time our carts met, he let loose.  On and on he went.  I thought I had better wind up my trip; my nerves were way too jangled to make a decision.
I did see a couple of well behaved girls.  One showed the other a dime on the floor, but for whatever reason they chose not to pick it up.  When I came back up the aisle and the dime was still there, I picked it up and gave it to their mother with an explanation.  The mother gave it to the younger girl and thanked me. 
On the way home, I reminisced about my own little fellow (who is now a very big fellow).  My husband and I were fairly strict disciplinarians in the first place, but our little guy made some things easier on us because of his easygoing personality.  Then I thought of the time that he fussed and I just could not properly handle the situation.  We were on a vacation (a rare enough thing for us) and we had stopped at the Mayfield Dairy in Tennessee.  We were just in time for the last tour of the day.  I thought all was going well till we had to put on hairnets.  All of us.  If I had advance notice to prep darling son, he (not being especially active for a boy) could behave in all kinds of situations, but we were totally blindsided with the hairnet thing and he DID NOT want the hairnet!  I'm sure the other people on the tour were not very pleased.  I don't really remember getting any judgmental vibes; I just remember being so flummoxed because it was an unusual situation.
I happened to get home just at the same time as darling son.  Still an easygoing fellow.  He helped me unload the groceries.  As I put away the 4 cans of corn, I realized I had forgotten to use my "$1 off 4" coupon! 

4 comments:

  1. Shopping makes me crazy too. If I had misbehaved in public as a child, my mama would have whipped me with a rose bush:)

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    1. Yes, corporal punishment was socially acceptable in my day as well.

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  2. I misread errant to errant! ;-) . After a few hours ride yesterday we stopped at a MC'd's for a coffee just to relax. there were three kids running 'wild' around the place. Yelling playing. parents 'ignoring' them. I always ask, 'How do they do that? not know. Like the dog owner parked next door in an RV who tinks it is cute for his dog to bark at you when you go outside and continues until you go back in. HOW DO THEY IGNORE THAT?
    Son tells me about the kids, "Dad they are afraid to discipline them for fear of being reported for abuse?" Maybe a little truth there.

    Anyway yep, good description of a nerve rattling situation, enough to miss a coupon. ;-).

    Love from Georgia.

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    1. Well, Jack, I can't blame forgetting the coupon on my rattled nerves--I think the culprit there is my scattered brains.

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