Seriously? Am I really that picky?

Winchester

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We went for a few groceries tonight, mainly cat food and litter, stuff like that, but a few other things as well.

 Most of the time I bag my own groceries, simply because the baggers make me crazy. And tonight was no exception. For example, we bought 30 cans of cat food......now, why would anybody in his right mind put 30 cans of cat food in one grocery bag? And not double-bag it? Not to mention the fact that the bag was very heavy; how would somebody who's older even be able to handle such a bag? So I asked the bagger to please split the cans up into two bags. He was not amused. Oh well.

And then he turned around and put the box of cat litter deodorizer in the same bag as a carton of eggs. Really? I'm not supposed to get frustrated? He put a gallon of milk in a bag and then turned around and put 12 containers of yogurt into the same bag. One of those flimsy little plastic bags. I'm telling you it's an accident waiting to happen.  So I just looked at him and said, "Why don't you just go someplace else and let me do your job?" He didn't like it, but he walked away. (Actually he probably did like it because it was that much less work he had to do)

And I did my own bagging. The woman behind us was watching the whole thing. She told Rick she does it that way, too. It's just gotten easier to do it herself than let some teenage bagger ruin her food.

Rick said that he thinks I'm rather picky when it comes to bagging groceries. But here's the thing. Food is expensive. Doesn't matter what it is anymore; it's really expensive. I spend a lot of time picking out the food (produce, meats, etc.) that I want. Going for groceries with me isn't a quick process by any stretch. I check my produce, I check my meat, I check my eggs, I look at ingredients, I check expiration dates. So when I get to the check-out, I don't want my gallon of milk sitting on top of a carton of eggs. I don't want my grapes beneath a 5-pound bag of potatoes. Why is that so hard to understand? 

Honestly, sometimes I think I'd love to be a manager in that store, just so I can watch the
 baggers do their jobs. And fire every last one of them.

/Down off my soapbox....thank you for your attention. We now return you to your regular threads.
 
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thelifeofzeus

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That was amusing to read, fn baggers alright. Looking forward to more soapboxes!

To answer the initial question, no.. your not picky. People with no common sense can make it seem that way.

The thing about common sense is.. it ain't so common.
 
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andrya

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Teehee! l had to chuckle. l don't mean to be sexist, but l do think it's a guy thing. 

When my son was a mid-teen, he got a grocery store job, and l literally taught him at home how shoppers like to have their groceries bagged, so that he wouldn't raise any ire. He's not lazy, and he's not careless, but he sees it only as stuff that needs to go into a bag. lt's not 3D Tetris, lol. He had to learn not to pack the perfumeds with the cheeses, or the grapes with the laundry jugs, etc. l wonder if the packing staff ever get training.
 

fhicat

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Teehee! l had to chuckle. l don't mean to be sexist, but l do think it's a guy thing. 
Agreed. When I started doing my own grocery shopping (which is when I moved to the US alone), I made a friend exasperated because I would do stuffs just like you mentioned. Well, not putting a gallon of milk on top of eggs, that's just silly.

She asked me, and I'll never forget what she said, "Have you done grocery shopping before today?" It's quite embarrassing, but she was nice about it (probably thought it was a "foreigner thing"), so I made her "teach" me the nuances. Now it seems like common sense - heavy foodstuffs in one bag, frozen foodstuffs together, non-food containers together, etc. But back then I would put a warm bakery item in the same bag as a cold yogurt.
 
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blueyedgirl5946

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I would call the store, ask for the manager and then tell him which bagger did my groceries.
 

natalie_ca

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You aren't picky!  There is an art to bagging groceries!

I get equally frustrated with the baggers at Safeway.  They no longer train people to do grocery bagging. All they do is watch a video and away they go.  Most that I encounter throw things in any which way, without a care.  There are a few that do an excellent job, and I will stand in a long line at their check stand.

And I've been known to bag my own groceries at Safeway too, or even rebag my groceries.

I use canvas totes because I don't like the flimsy plastic that they use at Safeway. They are too small and too fragile.  They hole about 5 cans before they are filled to the top and bursting at the seams.

So far as heavy stuff goes. I prefer them to put all the heavy stuff into 1 or 2 bags.  I live in an apartment and when I'm not getting my groceries delivered, I take my small grocery cart with me so that I can bring my groceries up without hurting my back.  I put the heavy bags at the bottom and the lighter ones on top. If they divide it all up, it's hard to fill the cart.
 
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MoochNNoodles

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. lt's not 3D Tetris, 
I am going to use that line!!

I actually don't have problems with this at Walmart or our other local stores.  The only thing DH doesn't like is when they put chicken and beef in the same bag.  I don't see what the big deal is; but most of the baggers will put one meat in a bag, wrap it around the package and then put it in another bag with the rest of the meat.  

I actually hate when they don't combine some obvious things.  I'm usually juggling the kids so less bags is helpful sometimes.  Like when I only have a few things.  The other day I picked up a loaf of bread, a package of fig newtons and a brownie mix.  The girl was going to put them in 2 bags I told her one was fine.  And it was.  I carried it on the arm I had DS in and held DD with the other hand and got us all to the car without issue.  
 

happybird

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Nope, not picky at all. I miss the days when there were bag boys whose only job was to bag groceries and carry them out to your car. They always were trained to do it properly, unlike the checkers today. Guess they have gone the way of full service gas stations. Sigh.
Has anyone ever been to Aldi? You bag your own stuff, but the checkers scan your groceries so fast and then fling them into the cart like they are going for an Olympic record in speed checking. Love the prices, but the service is very off putting.
 

AbbysMom

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It seems like the bags they are using these days just keep getting flimsier and flimsier! What is the point in making the bags so flimsy if they need to double bag now?
 
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Winchester

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Normally I do have my own bags.....we have a bunch of really nice Trader Joe's reusable bags and I use them as often as I can. I have a couple insulated bags that I use for cold items. They're sturdy and they handle a lot of stuff. But even so, I would still put meat, milk, the deodorizer, things like that into a plastic bag first, then put them into my reusable bags. And there are some items that you just don't together....it's asking for problems. I would never put chicken in with produce, for example. It's just common sense. 

I think I've gotten the reputation of being "that woman" in the store. The clerks probably tell their trainees "Oh, no, here comes that woman!" 
 I don't care. Like I said, it's expensive to shop today. 

I had a clerk one time who was in one of happybird's Olympic races to see how fast she could get done. I was trying to bag and the stuff kept coming and coming. Everything was getting squashed together. I finally stopped and said, "You have a choice, honey; you can slow down and let me do this right OR you can do it all by yourself and I'll stand here and watch. What's it gonna be? You choose!" She gave me a dirty look, but she did stop and help me get caught up with the bagging. (Ironically, there was a woman behind us that time, too, and she said, "You tell 'em; it's about time they learn how to do their jobs!")

And I did yell at a clerk when she threw a chuck roast down the belt so hard that it smacked into some produce, got caught on a jug of detergent and the plastic wrap tore. Again she was just throwing stuff down the belt.  I was really angry and I did go to the manager. Well, actually the manager heard me and he came over to us. But to no avail. The people are young and it's just a job. They don't care what they do or how they do it. As long as it gets done.

Rick always goes for groceries with me; he says to intervene in case the cops have to be called. 
 He's kidding! HONEST!
 

blueyedgirl5946

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Nope, not picky at all. I miss the days when there were bag boys whose only job was to bag groceries and carry them out to your car. They always were trained to do it properly, unlike the checkers today. Guess they have gone the way of full service gas stations. Sigh.
Has anyone ever been to Aldi? You bag your own stuff, but the checkers scan your groceries so fast and then fling them into the cart like they are going for an Olympic record in speed checking. Love the prices, but the service is very off putting.
We don't have one near but occasionally we do go to Aldi's . I love having to put a quarter in to get a shopping cart. I do have my own bags when I go there. Also I have to remember to have real money not a card.

In the regular grocery stores and dollar stores where I shop, I ask them to double bag my cans and ;my bottles if I buy soft drinks. Also I ask for my eggs and bread to be in the same bag and I take it out of the store. I forgot to do that recently and when I got home three of my eggs were cracked. I always check the eggs before putting them in the cart.
 

whisperer

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Haha, no you're not the only one. I don't care for grocery shopping at all, so I have to make sure nothing gets destroyed or it wouldn't have been worth the time!
 

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I've taught more than one person how to bag groceries in the two local grocery stores here. I don't know if it carries over to other customers, but I rarely have problems any more. If there's a new bagger, the checkers actually tell them how to bag my groceries as soon as they see me coming. :lol3:
 

swampwitch

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OH MAN I agree with you, you are not picky you are in the right. The way I look at it, silence implies consent, so if we don't say anything they think they are doing a good job. 

It runs hot and cold here, either the person bagging is very good or completely clueless. We have reusable bags here (no choice) and I've had a 1-litre jug of maple syrup put on top of a loaf of bread - I'm not kidding. (A loaf of bread here runs about $5-6). I also have an insulated bag, sold by the grocery store with their name emblazoned across the front, and it amazes me how the people bagging ignore it. They put corn chips and tomatoes in it while the meat is shoved in a bag with the cereal. If I'm not bagging, I ask for the "refrigerated and frozen items" (I've learned that works better than saying "cold items") to be kept together, but evidently that's some kind of weirdo request because most of the baggers have no idea which foods are to be kept cold.

I usually volunteer to bag my own groceries and I know that gets a few eye-rolls sometimes. But most of the time the checker is happy to have the help. I know they think "PIC-KY!" but I don't care. Like you said, groceries cost a lot and they shouldn't be messed up before we ever get them home.
 
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peaches08

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With the cost of food these days, you were absolutely in the right. And what is with people these days? Take some pride in your work regardless of what job you have.
 

MoochNNoodles

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Rick always goes for groceries with me; he says to intervene in case the cops have to be called. 
 He's kidding! HONEST!
DH goes with me to do the hard part of putting it on the belt, back in the cart, into the car and then into the house! He's got it down to a science I think.  Whenever I do it (all by myself I mean) I always get backed up.  Too slow I guess!  


Now that I'm thinking about it; when I go to Walmart, most of the cashiers tend to be middle age women.  Or maybe I just pick those lanes?  There is one younger guy; who I'm pretty sure has some kind of developmental delay.  He likes to check each of my coupons thoroughly.  That drives me a tiny bit nuts. 
 
 

jcat

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You have to bag your own groceries at German supermarkets, so I only encounter that problem when I'm in the U.S.. I'm so picky I usually arrange stuff on the conveyor belt in the order in which it's to be bagged, and give directions if somebody is bagging it wrong. :lol3: It does drive me crazy that the cashiers are hard to keep up with now that everything is scanned.
 

matts mom

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I understand your frustration as I read your post, what  terrible organizational skills!

But on the other hand I want to laugh, because my husband worked as a 'courtesy clerk' at one point, and part of his job was to bag the groceries and help people get them out to the car.....he had it down to an art, and now if he's with me when we shop I'm not ALLOWED to bag my groceries-because I don't do it right LOL! I guess old habits die hard
 but at least the eggs make it home intact, right? lol
 

sk_pacer

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Believe me, it ain't no guy thing - it I don't watch and move things at some stores, I end up with some stupid woman (age makes no difference) who invariably drops bread on top of fruit then tops it with a carton of milk or several heavy cans. The real problem isn't guy or gal things, it is laziness and a complete disinterest in providing even marginal customer service that causes this mess. They come in, put in time and just want the -pay check, and don't give a rat's butt about anything else. You can also include visiting with co-workers and friends while studiously ignoring the ever lengthening line as well as sarcasm, bad attitudes and other sins of the bad clerks.

I DO try to make things easier for them and in Wally World, that has not gone unnoticed - they double bag the cat food, and never put more than a dozen large tins per bag, and some even sort by brand for me all without me making a request. How did I manage this? Simple - I stack the small cans in piles of 4-6 and sort according to flavour and brand and sort large cans by flavour and brand.- it makes checkout very simple for them as they just take the hand scanner and click as many times as required for each flavour and I am in and out of the checkout quickly. The grocery stores never seem to learn, despite me having known various clerks for years and years. They STILL pack tins and heavy cartons on bread and fruit, mux food with non-food and overload bags and not ONE of them can grasp the concept of double bagging with paper that blasted hot chicken I get from the deli; they think I am just being picky/bit**y and haven't a clue about keeping the bird hot.
 
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