Grocery Store Sights

I shop at grocery stores at least fours times a week.  Since I often cook, I like fresh ingredients, and I don't hate grocery shopping, as I hate all other shopping tasks. And there is more to see than the broccoli and steak. I pay as much attention to the shoppers as the fare inside. It's because the grocery store is the great equalizer of us all. Everyone shops there, rich, poor, straight laced and odd. You can learn a lot about the society by observing the people who shop for food. To back up that claim I'll tell you about a few sights that I saw on my most recent shopping excursions.

There was the tattoo lady I almost ran my car into the other day. This woman was covered with tattoos, almost a sign that read "I am not a conventional person".  But when I glanced at what I saw in her basket I found every normal and trendy item one could want. Can it be possible for a person who is covered with tattoos to be so conventional and in step with what is fashionable as she? I suppose so. Otherwise the gluten free bread and low cholesterol margarine spread would not have been staring me in the face. I thought tattooed ladies only shopped for beer and cigarettes.

Another interesting reflection on society was shopper who used her cell phone to ask her "honey'" what she should buy....on almost every item she purchased. And there was the cell phone nut who screamed her most intimate stories into her phone so all the other shoppers could all be annoyed and embarrassed. Of course, most of the teens who were dragged to shop with mom ignored the shopping process the whole time and texted whatever it is they text into those phones. It was a slow day at the store last week, for I noticed only about a half dozen cell addicts blocking aisles of the store as they chattered their lives away on their phones.

Another thing that I noticed is the oblivious attitude of shoppers today. It's probably because humans can't focus their attention on any single activity for more than a few minutes at a time (thank the electronic revolution for that). I always compare items for price and content, but it seems that old time habit is the exception these days. Though I hate those COSTCO stores, I do obtain the one medication that I use (an eye drop) there because the price for that prescription happens to be lower. What I don't do is shop for groceries there.

COSTCO is very expensive when purchasing food items. Yet, the shoppers never seem to compare prices to other stores by breaking down the cost by unit. Maybe the size of the packages (one must by big volume when shopping at COSTCO) make the shoppers think they are getting a bargain. They are not. Perhaps their mathematics teachers should be found, arrested and shot for not teaching such a simple skill.

I also notice that people are not cooking food themselves as much as in previous times. The number of mixes, frozen prepared foods, and other convenience foods far out number staples such as flour, butter, and other unfinished food items. Oh, I forgot......they don't cook because they have to spend all their free time chatting on their cell phones. What's particularly discouraging about this trend is the people who are living off welfare payments like food stamps seem to cook the least. they use their food stamp assistance for very expensive convenience foods.

Yesterday, I saw a couple of young able-bodied shoppers use food stamp cards to pay for expensive deli food items that had been pre cooked. But then, the government here hands out so much free stuff to people, without any requirement that the recipient use them responsibly, that it isn't  unexpected.  The entitlement, welfare state can best be viewed in any supermarket checkout line.

Finally, the times I see in grocery stores are becoming more cost oriented and less quality based. Grades of meat are lower, dairy products are "low fat' instead of natural, and in general, both the sellers and the consumer are more interested in saving money than in eating a higher quality item. I am not sure if the bad economy can explain that or simply the lack of interest in quality in this fast food oriented world.

My advice to you is to observe others shoppers next time you shop (Hmmmm But don't stare at them. They're crazy). It sure is more entertaining than the blabber you'll over hear from them as they scream into their phones and block your shopping cart.