Hello everyone on this cold, windy November day.  But we have had a little sunshine today and that is always a nice thing.  Just seeing the sun shining makes everything seem so much brighter and nicer.  Always enjoy those little positive things that come into our lives each day.  Even when things don’t go quite the way we expect.  Which is kind of normal for me.  Like shopping.  Sometimes I don’t know why I go shopping.  Things always happen to me.  Though it’s easy to laugh about it afterwards.

Off I go to the hardware store.  It’s not a small store, it’s rather large.  I only need to get 3 different items, though 5 in total.  As I come in the store the greeter says, “our systems are down today so you can only pay in cash”.  She was so pleasant.  No problem, I said.  I never should have said that.  It was nothing but problems.  I picked up my items quickly enough and went to the checkout.  I should have been in and out in 10 minutes.  Took half an hour.  “I have to go check on the prices”, she said.  I told her the prices.  “Sorry, she says, I have to check it myself.”

Fine.  She comes back and said she needed the size.  I told her the size.  “I have to see it myself”, she says.  Is there an echo in here?  “I can’t find the size”, she said.  That’s why I told her.  It’s not marked on the shelf.  But she was determined.  Another lady came over, she had been working there longer.  “This is the size”, she said.  That’s what I told her, I said.  Off she goes to check the prices.  The line behind me is getting longer, 7 people now. She comes back and says the prices.  That’s the prices I said.  She looked a bit annoyed by this time.  So was I.

There was 10 people in the line now.  Why don’t they open another checkout?  Apparently employees were told not to come in because their systems were down.  Seems like they could have used extra employees at a time like this.  Like some to run around and check on prices.  Would go faster.  Now she had to check the price for the 3 identical items I had.  I told her the price.  “I have to check it myself”, she says, rather grumpy now.  She wasn’t the only one.  Take one with you, I said, it will be easier.  She did, but she looked like she was ready to throw it at me.  Not my fault.

One guy said, “forget it”, left his stuff on the counter and left.  Don’t blame him, he was 10th in line.  I look at the guy behind me.  He has a cart with 20 items.  I could see him counting.  We looked at each other.  I said, should be an hour for you with all that.  Not me, he said, and left.  A lady at the end of the line also left, but only after complaining rather loudly.  Checkout lady comes back, says the price.  I wanted to say something but decided not to.  She might have thrown something at me.  I know it isn’t her fault.  Not mine either.

Really, the store should have remained closed.   Now she had to add up the total on a calculator and kept making mistakes.  She was getting frustrated.  She wasn’t the only one.  Two more people leave.  Oh look, they finally open another checkout, what an odd thing to do.  If I’m ever greeted by the greeter with that greeting again, I will do the smart thing, turn around and run out of there fast!

Thank you for reading!  I do hope you all have a wonderful day and God bless!

Steve and Muffin.

© 2019 Steve McLeod.