See post here . Told ya! Details to follow after the holidays as I don't want to give away who might be getting these items.
Merry Christmas to All!!
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
Grocery Store Pet Peeves
Is it just me or is it something about the holiday season that just makes grocery shopping almost unbearable? Normally, I love shopping in all shapes or forms. It is in my genes - come from a long line of shoppers. It is part of my DNA profile. During the holiday season, I actually enjoy the gift shopping; don’t mind crowded malls. I take it as a challenge, a sport, competition. Getting the best deal gets my adrenaline pumping. If shopping were a sport, I am sure I could go pro or at least be in the elite category of amateur, like triple A or bowling or Nascar.
I think it is because at the holidays there are so many amateurs in the store, those who don’t know the in and outs, the etiquette. And maybe it is because I consider myself an expert in the field; I am annoyed by those that don’t follow the rules of grocery shopping. Oh and don’t kid yourself, there are rules. Let me give you a few. (And these are in no particular order because quite frankly they are all important).
1. Don’t park your cart on one side of the aisle and yourself on the other side. For example, if you are in the canned soup and vegetable aisle don’t park your cart on the soup side and then wander across to look at the canned veggies. What you have done, effectively, is block both sides of the aisle. People and carts can’t get around you. Cart management is very important in grocery shopping. Have a little self awareness, know where your fellow cart managers are, anticipate their movements, and get out of their way if you want to check the sodium content of every single can of chicken noodle in Safeway. Another tip, if your store has pillars in the most inconvenient places like mine, be aware of where you stop your cart. If you stop your cart right next to the pillar, guess what? No one can get around you. This also applies to the stores that display items in the aisles. Don't park your cart next to the display. It won't kill you to move ahead a few feet and go back to the item you want to look at or retrieve. Trust me.
2. If you bring your kids to the store with you and I recognize that there are situations where that needs to happen, keep them under control. Like automobiles, no one under 16 should be allowed to drive a cart. It is not adorable to have your 5 year old push your cart. In addition to the inevitable cart-run-into-your-heel-confrontation, I saw a 6 year old almost take out an entire display of Christmas M&Ms the other day at the store. I used to tell my kids on the very few grocery store trips they went on, that they couldn't be wider than the cart. So they had to either walk way in front of me and the cart or, preferably, behind me and the cart.
3. Express lanes are for those who can complete their transactions quickly. Repeat that out loud to yourself. If you haven’t used your debit card in the last 7 months and you just can’t remember your pin, you shouldn’t be in the express lane. If you want to discuss why (Insert Your Store’s Name Here) doesn’t carry your cat’s favorite brand of kitty litter, you shouldn't be in the express lane. If you are buying some exotic type of produce (yes I am talking to you radicchio buyers!) that the clerk just can’t remember the code for or can’t find the code for, you shouldn’t be in the express lane. And another thing express lane users, start your debit card or store card swiping as soon as the clerk has rung up the first item. There are few things in life more annoying than watching someone ring up an order in the express lane, THEN the customer searches her purse or goes through 27 cards in his wallet to find their store card or their credit card. Remember it is for those who can complete their transactions quickly. If you see yourself in any of those examples, the express lane is not for you. If you aren’t sure, message me your circumstances and I will be happy to let you know.
4. Regular lane users you have some rules too. (Please read express lane section about when to swipe your credit card or store card. It applies to you as well.) If you have brought your own bags to the store, don’t wait until the order has been bagged to present your reusable bags and ask that the order be re-bagged because you are a friend to the environment. If you can’t remember to present your bags before the bagger has started bagging, then you aren’t really very “green” to begin with and now the environment will just have to pay for your transgression. Think about that next time. If you really were concerned, you would make an effort to present your bags earlier in the process. Moving on. People that only have 1 or 2 or 3 items that stand behind big full carts in the regular lanes should not expect to skip ahead in line. 1 or 2 or 3 item people have whole lanes dedicated to them, the express lanes. My store has at least 5 and usually 3 of them are manned most of the time. If the express line is a little too long, you think you will move over to a regular line and someone will let you go head of them “because I only have one thing”. NOT IN MY LANE. I will wait you out. You can shift your weight from one ankle to another, try to make eye contact or sigh so deeply you begin to hyperventilate, I will not let you move head of me in line. It is the fairness of it all. Let’s face it, you are probably the same people who count items in the express lane and call out to the checker, “she has 13 items, only supposed to have 12”. We have our own lanes, let’s use them people.
5. Frozen food aisle. If you are looking at items in the frozen food case, don't hold the door open and peruse at your leisure. The glass doors get all fogged up and the next person can't see through them. Look through the glass, make your choice, THEN open the door to obtain your item or items. It goes without saying that you shouldn't leave the door open while you review the nutrition facts on the side. Close the door, review facts, put item in cart or back in case. Not rocket science.
6. People that eat from the bulk food bins. Do I really need to say this? I can almost excuse the kids, they don't know better. But it isn't usually the kids I see that stick their fingers inside and take a piece for snacking. Don't do this, no matter what!!! Unless you would like me to send Chizz or Snake over to put their grubby hands all over your food after they have been cleaning our gutters. Just saying. . . . It's gross and it's illegal. It is stealing, no ifs ands or buts. Frankly most produce departments (where these bins are usually located) will give you a taste of any item if you request it. If you take it, you are stealing. It is shop lifting except you aren't carrying the product out under your coat, you are taking it out in your stomach. And let's face it, someone always sees you do it. Be a better example. Shame, shame, shame.
So I think with these simple rules (Wendy's rules,if you insist), grocery store shopping can be a much better experience for everyone. Do you think I should print this out a few hundred times and give one to anyone I see not following the rules? Maybe not. But shape up people, or I just might!!
I think it is because at the holidays there are so many amateurs in the store, those who don’t know the in and outs, the etiquette. And maybe it is because I consider myself an expert in the field; I am annoyed by those that don’t follow the rules of grocery shopping. Oh and don’t kid yourself, there are rules. Let me give you a few. (And these are in no particular order because quite frankly they are all important).
1. Don’t park your cart on one side of the aisle and yourself on the other side. For example, if you are in the canned soup and vegetable aisle don’t park your cart on the soup side and then wander across to look at the canned veggies. What you have done, effectively, is block both sides of the aisle. People and carts can’t get around you. Cart management is very important in grocery shopping. Have a little self awareness, know where your fellow cart managers are, anticipate their movements, and get out of their way if you want to check the sodium content of every single can of chicken noodle in Safeway. Another tip, if your store has pillars in the most inconvenient places like mine, be aware of where you stop your cart. If you stop your cart right next to the pillar, guess what? No one can get around you. This also applies to the stores that display items in the aisles. Don't park your cart next to the display. It won't kill you to move ahead a few feet and go back to the item you want to look at or retrieve. Trust me.
2. If you bring your kids to the store with you and I recognize that there are situations where that needs to happen, keep them under control. Like automobiles, no one under 16 should be allowed to drive a cart. It is not adorable to have your 5 year old push your cart. In addition to the inevitable cart-run-into-your-heel-confrontation, I saw a 6 year old almost take out an entire display of Christmas M&Ms the other day at the store. I used to tell my kids on the very few grocery store trips they went on, that they couldn't be wider than the cart. So they had to either walk way in front of me and the cart or, preferably, behind me and the cart.
3. Express lanes are for those who can complete their transactions quickly. Repeat that out loud to yourself. If you haven’t used your debit card in the last 7 months and you just can’t remember your pin, you shouldn’t be in the express lane. If you want to discuss why (Insert Your Store’s Name Here) doesn’t carry your cat’s favorite brand of kitty litter, you shouldn't be in the express lane. If you are buying some exotic type of produce (yes I am talking to you radicchio buyers!) that the clerk just can’t remember the code for or can’t find the code for, you shouldn’t be in the express lane. And another thing express lane users, start your debit card or store card swiping as soon as the clerk has rung up the first item. There are few things in life more annoying than watching someone ring up an order in the express lane, THEN the customer searches her purse or goes through 27 cards in his wallet to find their store card or their credit card. Remember it is for those who can complete their transactions quickly. If you see yourself in any of those examples, the express lane is not for you. If you aren’t sure, message me your circumstances and I will be happy to let you know.
4. Regular lane users you have some rules too. (Please read express lane section about when to swipe your credit card or store card. It applies to you as well.) If you have brought your own bags to the store, don’t wait until the order has been bagged to present your reusable bags and ask that the order be re-bagged because you are a friend to the environment. If you can’t remember to present your bags before the bagger has started bagging, then you aren’t really very “green” to begin with and now the environment will just have to pay for your transgression. Think about that next time. If you really were concerned, you would make an effort to present your bags earlier in the process. Moving on. People that only have 1 or 2 or 3 items that stand behind big full carts in the regular lanes should not expect to skip ahead in line. 1 or 2 or 3 item people have whole lanes dedicated to them, the express lanes. My store has at least 5 and usually 3 of them are manned most of the time. If the express line is a little too long, you think you will move over to a regular line and someone will let you go head of them “because I only have one thing”. NOT IN MY LANE. I will wait you out. You can shift your weight from one ankle to another, try to make eye contact or sigh so deeply you begin to hyperventilate, I will not let you move head of me in line. It is the fairness of it all. Let’s face it, you are probably the same people who count items in the express lane and call out to the checker, “she has 13 items, only supposed to have 12”. We have our own lanes, let’s use them people.
5. Frozen food aisle. If you are looking at items in the frozen food case, don't hold the door open and peruse at your leisure. The glass doors get all fogged up and the next person can't see through them. Look through the glass, make your choice, THEN open the door to obtain your item or items. It goes without saying that you shouldn't leave the door open while you review the nutrition facts on the side. Close the door, review facts, put item in cart or back in case. Not rocket science.
6. People that eat from the bulk food bins. Do I really need to say this? I can almost excuse the kids, they don't know better. But it isn't usually the kids I see that stick their fingers inside and take a piece for snacking. Don't do this, no matter what!!! Unless you would like me to send Chizz or Snake over to put their grubby hands all over your food after they have been cleaning our gutters. Just saying. . . . It's gross and it's illegal. It is stealing, no ifs ands or buts. Frankly most produce departments (where these bins are usually located) will give you a taste of any item if you request it. If you take it, you are stealing. It is shop lifting except you aren't carrying the product out under your coat, you are taking it out in your stomach. And let's face it, someone always sees you do it. Be a better example. Shame, shame, shame.
So I think with these simple rules (Wendy's rules,if you insist), grocery store shopping can be a much better experience for everyone. Do you think I should print this out a few hundred times and give one to anyone I see not following the rules? Maybe not. But shape up people, or I just might!!
Thursday, December 03, 2009
Parents Weekend
Chizz and I recently participated in a time-honored ritual - parents weekend. For those of you not in the know, its where parents of college students visit their children at college and get an idea of what the kid's life is like now that they aren't living with you 24/7. My mom gave me some very good advice. She told me this is what she used to do. Instead of worrying about what evil influences Kiki might be exposed to and wondering where she is late on a Saturday night, I have to convince myself that she is always at the library - studying. Hmmm. I think I can do that. Maybe. Actually, I think I like being a bit ignorant about what is going on at college in that way but those aren't the things you find out about at these Parents' Weekend events anyway, so off we went.
UCLA puts forth a good effort educating the parents on what programs are available to the kids, what it is like to live on campus, giving tours of campus (if you somehow managed to get through the application and acceptance process without going to one, I don't know how you did it. I think I have been on at least 6 campus tours of UCLA), eating in the dining hall, special lectures and parties where you can rub elbows with the chancellor and other important people. You can sign up for just about all of the events or pick and choose your way through. We signed up for a few but avoided anything that looked suspiciously like it would be a hold-up for money. I can't blame UC, all the campuses are looking for dough in this atmosphere but we already give UCLA $27,000+ a year. We don't have anymore money. They need to be talking to Snake! He has all the money in our family.
We also got to go to a football game. Auntie L & Auntie S, being alumni, are season ticket holders for football games so we were definitely interested in catching up with them at the game. Kiki is pledging a sorority. I am not going to say which one to keep her anonymous but let's just say one or more of the names includes the Greek letters, Gamma, Chi, Delta, Alpha, Phi, Rho, Kappa, Episilon, Pi, Iota, etc. So there were activities involved with that. Most of the sororities had a "Dad's day" where the dad got a t-shirt. We went on a tour of the sorority house (where Kiki may live next year) and then to the football game. It was fun. We sat with Auntie L, Uncle S and Dew. The next day there was a ceremony at the sorority house, where the new members are presented to the rest of the members and their parents. Kiki needed a white dress. I think finding a white dress in fall was harder than getting her accepted to the college to begin with!!
It was a very nice time and now when I speak with Kiki on the phone about this person or that building, I can use my imagination to picture what she is talking about. The trick is turning off your imagination so you don't see what she is NOT talking about!! Library, Library, Library, Library.
UCLA puts forth a good effort educating the parents on what programs are available to the kids, what it is like to live on campus, giving tours of campus (if you somehow managed to get through the application and acceptance process without going to one, I don't know how you did it. I think I have been on at least 6 campus tours of UCLA), eating in the dining hall, special lectures and parties where you can rub elbows with the chancellor and other important people. You can sign up for just about all of the events or pick and choose your way through. We signed up for a few but avoided anything that looked suspiciously like it would be a hold-up for money. I can't blame UC, all the campuses are looking for dough in this atmosphere but we already give UCLA $27,000+ a year. We don't have anymore money. They need to be talking to Snake! He has all the money in our family.
We also got to go to a football game. Auntie L & Auntie S, being alumni, are season ticket holders for football games so we were definitely interested in catching up with them at the game. Kiki is pledging a sorority. I am not going to say which one to keep her anonymous but let's just say one or more of the names includes the Greek letters, Gamma, Chi, Delta, Alpha, Phi, Rho, Kappa, Episilon, Pi, Iota, etc. So there were activities involved with that. Most of the sororities had a "Dad's day" where the dad got a t-shirt. We went on a tour of the sorority house (where Kiki may live next year) and then to the football game. It was fun. We sat with Auntie L, Uncle S and Dew. The next day there was a ceremony at the sorority house, where the new members are presented to the rest of the members and their parents. Kiki needed a white dress. I think finding a white dress in fall was harder than getting her accepted to the college to begin with!!
It was a very nice time and now when I speak with Kiki on the phone about this person or that building, I can use my imagination to picture what she is talking about. The trick is turning off your imagination so you don't see what she is NOT talking about!! Library, Library, Library, Library.
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
I am a Subscriber, hear me ROAR!!
The WTF household is a two paper household. We receive our local newspaper and also the San Francisco paper. We like getting two papers for a number of reasons. First, they fulfill two entirely separate needs. The local paper lets us know what is going on in our county, the happenings in our more immediate part of the globe. The SF Chronicle keeps us up to date on the news on a more national scale. Our ritual in the morning has been Chizz reads the local paper at breakfast and I read the SF Chronicle. He leaves for work and takes the Chronicle with him and I read the local paper at a more convenient time during the day sometime after he leaves. It works for us.
Until about 2 weeks ago. I received our renewal bill for the Chronicle. $403 per year. Last year I paid $140. It is now almost triple. I understand the siege newspapers are under right now trying to stay afloat and relevant in this economy, but I can't single handedly bring them back. When I sat down and figured it out, it doesn't make economical sense to subscribe to the paper at this rate. You receive very, very little benefit. The newspaper stand price (what it would cost if I bought it at Safeway) for a full year of the SF Chronicle is $417.00. When we subscribed to the paper, I usually didn't read the Saturday's paper - too little content. Very often when we went on vacation, I donated the papers. Count vacation papers at 15 per year, and 52 Saturday papers, the newstand price of my paper goes down to $350. Even if Chizz bought the Chronicle at Bart every single weekday he commutes into the city, we would still save money not subscribing.
So I cancelled our subscription. And I made sure the Chronicle knew why. And apparently they don't care, at least when I called in they did nothing to try and retain me as a customer. Based on some discussions I have had with my friends and family, I think the SF Chronicle is losing lots of customers with this approach. I would not be surprised if they aren't around much longer. I worry about the state of all newspapers. I love sitting down and reading one, but I think I am in the last generation that really does that. The younger generation gets their news from the Internet or television. Nothing wrong with that, it is just a different medium. Quite frankly, the newspaper industry doesn't appear to be doing anything to lure younger readers. They certainly don't do anything to keep their current ones. It is a shame.
Don't worry, we still subscribe to 2 newspapers, our local paper and ta-da . . . . the Wall Street Journal! (And which we receive for the bargain price of $150 per year). Sorry Chronicle, but by the time you do get around to offering me a discount to come back, I most likely can't or won't be persuaded to come back. The only downside, I don't have 2 Sudokus to do every morning. Oh, well I'll survive!! (Probably more than the Chronicle can say!)
Until about 2 weeks ago. I received our renewal bill for the Chronicle. $403 per year. Last year I paid $140. It is now almost triple. I understand the siege newspapers are under right now trying to stay afloat and relevant in this economy, but I can't single handedly bring them back. When I sat down and figured it out, it doesn't make economical sense to subscribe to the paper at this rate. You receive very, very little benefit. The newspaper stand price (what it would cost if I bought it at Safeway) for a full year of the SF Chronicle is $417.00. When we subscribed to the paper, I usually didn't read the Saturday's paper - too little content. Very often when we went on vacation, I donated the papers. Count vacation papers at 15 per year, and 52 Saturday papers, the newstand price of my paper goes down to $350. Even if Chizz bought the Chronicle at Bart every single weekday he commutes into the city, we would still save money not subscribing.
So I cancelled our subscription. And I made sure the Chronicle knew why. And apparently they don't care, at least when I called in they did nothing to try and retain me as a customer. Based on some discussions I have had with my friends and family, I think the SF Chronicle is losing lots of customers with this approach. I would not be surprised if they aren't around much longer. I worry about the state of all newspapers. I love sitting down and reading one, but I think I am in the last generation that really does that. The younger generation gets their news from the Internet or television. Nothing wrong with that, it is just a different medium. Quite frankly, the newspaper industry doesn't appear to be doing anything to lure younger readers. They certainly don't do anything to keep their current ones. It is a shame.
Don't worry, we still subscribe to 2 newspapers, our local paper and ta-da . . . . the Wall Street Journal! (And which we receive for the bargain price of $150 per year). Sorry Chronicle, but by the time you do get around to offering me a discount to come back, I most likely can't or won't be persuaded to come back. The only downside, I don't have 2 Sudokus to do every morning. Oh, well I'll survive!! (Probably more than the Chronicle can say!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)