Saturday, December 25, 2010

And...God Bless us, Everyone!

Scrooge was better than his word.  He did it all, and infinitely more; and to Tiny Tim, who did not die, he was a second father.  He became as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man, as the good old city knew, or any other good old city, town, or borough, in the good old world.  Some people laughed to see the alteration in him, but he let them laugh, and little heeded them; for he was wise enough to know that nothing ever happened on this globe, for good, at which some people did not have their fill of laughter at the outset; and knowing that such as these would be blind anyway, he thought it was quite as well that they should wrinkle up their eyes in grins, as have the malady in less attractive forms.  His own heart laughed: and that was quite enough for him.

He had no further intercourse with spirits, but lived upon the Total Abstinence Principle, ever afterwords; and it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge.  May that truly be said of us, and all of us!  And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God Bless Us, Every One!"

From A Christmas Carol
By:
Charles Dickens

Friday, December 24, 2010

Still a Christmas Favorite


Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small.  Was singing!  Without any presents at all!  He hadn't stopped Christmas from coming!  It came!  Somehow or other, it came just the same!

And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?  It came without ribbons!  It came without tags!  It came without packages, boxes or bags!"  And he puzzled three hours, till hos puzzler was sore.  Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!  "Maybe Christmas,"  he thought, "doesn't come from a store."  "Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!"

And what happened then?  Well, in Who-ville they say That the Grinch small heart grew three sizes that day!

From How the Grinch Stole Christmas
By: Dr. Suess

Monday, December 13, 2010

The early bird catches the worm

For the past few weekends I have been working from 6:00 am until 12:00 in the afternoon on Saturday and/or Sunday. I like this and I hate this. Having to be at work at 6:00 in the morning isn't that bad until you consider that is the time you actually have to be there! There is still the time it takes to get up, get ready, get dressed and drive to work. So when my alarm goes off around 4:30 in the morning (and it's still pitch black outside) I hit the snooze repeatedly with a lot of hostility. But that is pretty much the worse part of it. There are actually a lot of things I like about working those hours. When I leave in the morning there's absolutely no traffic and there's a certain tranquility and stillness driving to work at 5:30(ish) in the morning before almost anyone else is up and around and all the houses are still dark. I get to work and look out the window and see the sunrise and the sky turning beautiful shades of pinks and purples and blues with wispy white clouds as the sun comes up over the horizon. And finally the weekends are normally pretty busy so the shift goes fast and is relatively painless (well as painless as it can be). Before I know it, it's 12:00 and I'm out of there and have the rest of the day to do whatever I want or do any of my errands that I have been putting off all week. The biggest downside of working that early is that to get a full nights sleep you would probably have to go to bed around 8:00 or 9:00 (which is crazy early)and that never happens for me. In fact around 1:00 in the morning I'm often still awake and staring at the clock thinking to myself, "Damn it! I only have 3 1/2 more hours until I have to get up for work." And the more I think about that the harder it is for me to fall asleep. And since I haven't gotten a good night sleep the night before I usually take a (looonngg) nap to recharge my batteries when I get home from work-so I feel like I waste a good chunk of time in the afternoon. Also in the winter I have to get out of a nice warm bed and leave the house around 5:30 in the morning, it's dark and really cold and I often have to scrap ice (or sometime snow) off the car. Overall, I think the positives outweigh the negatives and it's nice to get an early start to the day and have work out the way.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

I'm never shopping here again!

We all say things we don't mean out of frustration. And how many times have we made idle threats that we know we don't mean. Like a parent saying to their kids in the backseat, "If you two don't behave I will turn this car around and we will go back home right now!" There is a customer who comes into the store--all the time--and every time he comes in if someone does something that upsets him, he says, "I'm never shopping here again." Oh, how I wish he meant that...and at first I believed him, but now it's just an empty threat and I know I will see him again next week. I have actually talked about this customer before. Steve is the guy who complained to me that the deli case was out of cheese and he said that he was never coming back into this store again because he was sick of us always being out of the things he was looking for. He came into the store last night. He came through my line, I asked how he was. He grunted at me in his typical caveman way, I rang up his order, he paid, he left--nothing extraordinary (except I did notice that he had cheese from the deli). Carrie, one of the people who works at the customer service counter came up to me and said, "Last week that guy said we were out of and he was never coming back in here again." "I know, he's said that to me before, too." I said laughing. As Carrie put it, and I was thinking it, too. "It just makes him look like an asshole. Especially when it's a small store and you know when you say that to someone they will recognize you when you come back in here again." The other thing is that our store is in the shopping center where Steve's gym is so I imagine it's just really convenient for him to run over to the store after he leaves the gym. So convenience wins out over frustration. Although in Steve's defense we do seem to be out of stuff alot. Anyway, I guess the point is when your shopping or dealing with someone in customer service try not to say things out of frustration or make empty threats because you may have to eat your words later on. Take care and happy shopping!

Saturday, December 4, 2010

A holiday tradition clarified...


"Mistletoe is not an excuse for sexual assault."

                                    Andy Bernard from The Office

Thursday, December 2, 2010

The bad and the ugly...

Here is my list of the places with the worst customer service (at least in my opinion):

1. Planet Fitness-I pay $10 a month for my gym membership at Planet Fitness and let me tell you--I am getting ripped off! I belonged to a small, local gym for years. It was a nice gym. It was the perfect size with basic exercise equipment, never too busy and they offered great fitness classes--but right around the time my nice little local gym raised their membership rates I saw a commercial for Planet Fitness advertising that you could sign up for $10 a month. I had been paying $20 a month at my old gym and it was about to go up to $29.95 so $10 sounded like a pretty sweet deal to me. I went in to get some information and check out the gym and right away I noticed a problem with the customer service. I stood at the desk waiting for someone to help me for what felt like forever (it was actually probably closer to a minute or two but when your standing there waiting for someone it feels like a lot longer then it actually is and for god sake why am I standing there waiting to hand you my money?) and the guy who ended up helping me was rude. I was in the middle of asking him a question when the phone rang and as I was speaking he cut me off and walked off to answer the phone. Now, in his defense he was the only one behind the counter at the time and I'm sure he wasn't trying to be rude, he was just multitasking--but as a new customer the whole experience just created a bad impression. He told me he was the only one behind the desk so he couldn't leave to give me a tour but I was welcome to walk around. I mostly just checked out the treadmills (because that's pretty much all I use). My old gym offered great fitness classes like spin classes, zumba and yoga and I noticed right away that Planet Fitness didn't offer anything like that. Compared to my other gym where there were windows and nice lighting, Planet Fitness was dimly lit. I checked out the locker rooms--they were dark and the lockers were tall but very, very narrow. So I definitely had some initial hesitations but I ended up signing up anyway. I have been going there ever since and I have to say I don't have a problem with the actual gym equipment because it seems modern and well-maintained. But the trash cans throughout the gym and in the locker room are always overflowing. The locker room and the showers always seem dirty. The staff always seems impatient and grumpy (but I guess I would be too if I had to be there all day). I guess I am (slowly) getting used to Planet Fitness but I like my old gym and the people there a lot better! I tell myself I am only paying $10 a month so I guess you get what you pay for.

2. My grandmother's eye doctor--Recently my grandmother had to have eye surgery and she (obviously) couldn't drive home afterward so I went with her, brought a book and hung out in the lobby until her surgery was over. She went up to the reception desk, said she had an appointment and they gave her all of the necessary paperwork to fill out. I have to say, everyone there was very friendly and helpful when she asked questions about the forms she was filling out. So we're waiting for just a few minutes and a nurse came out and called my grandmother back to the doctor's office. She went with the nurse and I was waiting in the waiting room (it's not just a clever name). While I was there someone (I'm assuming she was a nurse or some sort of assistant because she was in scrubs) came up and started talking to the receptionist. It was a Monday and they were talking about what they had done over the weekend. The receptionist was making small talk and then the nurse/assistant started talking about her weekend. Apparently she has a son but her son wasn't with her that weekend so she went out to a party. I don't remember all the specific details (but she did tell specific details) but the overall point was that she had been partying all weekend, drank way too much and had been hungover. I was just sitting there thinking, "You do know I can hear you, right?" I will just say the nurse/medical assistant coming in hungover after partying all weekend is not generally the sort of image you want to put out there while you have patients being operated on in the office and their family members are waiting for them out in the waiting room. I'm just left there in the waiting room hearing about all of her partying over the weekend and hoping she is not going anywhere near my grandmother! And as I said I don't know what this person does in the office and I'm certainly not implying that she was operating on anyone or that she was in anyway not able to do her job on Monday morning after a weekend of partying. I guess I use this example more as a word of caution to those in customer service in general. So just remember--You can never tell when a customer can hear you when you are talking and sometimes you are talking louder then you think you are. Of course, if you're friendly with your coworkers talk to them about your wild weekend or the fight with your boyfriend--but maybe just wait until your lunch break or on your way out to the car.

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

The Good...

It seems to me that really good and really bad customer service have one thing in common--listening! When customer service is good it is generally because someone has listened to the customer. So here (just in time for holiday shopping) is my list of the top 5 places for the best customer service (in no particular order)

1) Payless. As I was thinking of this list I have to say this one suprised me. I didn't realize how impressed I was with their customer service until recently. I love, love, love shoes and when shoes are cheap I love them even more. So I am in Payless kind of often (probably way more then I should be). There are 3 Payless stores that are in my area and at each of these three stores the people who work there are friendly, helpful and hard working. They personally greet each customer as they come into the store and ask if they can help you find anything. I was in one the other day looking at a really cute pair of shoes but I couldn't find them in my size (the story of my life). The store was pretty busy but the lady working there was climbing up ladders to see if they had my size and when she couldn't find them she offered to call around to other stores in the area to see if they were there.

2) Starbucks--Now of course Starbucks is so ubiquitous and every one is different but overall I like going into Starbucks. I have to admit I may be a bit biased because I have been writing there lately so I pay for a small drink and then sip on it for the rest of the afternoon and use their free wireless internet--they have to be losing money on me as a customer. Anyway, the barristas are well-trained, energetic and have a lot of personality. Most of them are very outgoing and they genuinely seem to enjoy talking to customers. They almost always recognize "regular" customers and make suggestions about what other types of drinks they might like based on what they have ordered before. All the barristas don't seem to just be serving coffee--they all actually seem pretty knowledgeable about the types of coffee they have (the flavors and how strong each is) and the other products they sell as well. I am also impressed by how efficiently it is run. They have a steady stream of people going in and out throughout the day but they never seem to have really long lines or a long wait. They sort of operate as an assembly line and each person works quickly and efficiently.

3. State Farm--I think I included this one because I know most people hate dealing with their insurance company because of all the red tape and because the only time you really need to talk to your insurance company is when something has gone wrong but my State Farm rep. has always tried to make things as painless as possible. I have had State Farm as my car insurance carrier since I first started driving. I have to admit I don't exactly have a spotless driving record. Each time I have called my agents office I get through to a person right away--no automated system--no press 1 if you want to file a claim today--I talk to an actual person. She is always friendly and professional and answers each question I have. When I got into a small fender bender in a shopping center parking lot they were quick and efficient. She was sympathetic (it was totally my fault--how I could hit a parked car I will never understand) as she took my statement and I had to explain what happened. Then State Farm paid the claim and that was it. Years ago I got into an actual traffic accident. This was the first accident I had ever had involving another vehicle on the road and I was a little shaken up. My agent explained the process to me and answered each question I had. Both insurance companies took our statements reviewed the police report and investigated the accident. I feel I should mention they found it wasn't my fault--that's not just me saying it wasn't my fault--that was the finding of the offical investigation based on the police accident report. Even though it was found not to be my fault his insurance company wouldn't pay the claim and my agent actually called his insurance company in an attempt to get everything sorted out. It seemed my agent was in my corner and went above and beyond to help me out.  So they have a track record of promptly paying out when it is my fault and trying to help me sort things out and get payment from the other insurance company when it is not fault.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Black (and Blue) Friday



Ahhh--the holiday season is here again.  I have shopped for Christmas present and I have also worked retail at Christmas so I have been on both sides of the Christmas rush.  Generally I am more of a last minute shopper but there have been a few years when I found my self out at the stores on Black Friday, being pushed and shoved through crowds and being herded through the lines at the cash register.  I guess the chaos of Black Friday and the rest of the holiday season is part of the deal when you work in retail over the holidays and I get it.

But I have noticed that more and more retail stores have started opening on Thursday night--Thanksgiving--to get a jump on Black Friday.  Just as a few examples...Walmart opens at 8:00 p.m. and Toys 'R' Us opens at 9:00 p.m. on Thanksgiving night.  So that means that a group of unfortunate employees have to pull themselves away from Thanksgiving festivities and go to work.  I know that these business are there to make money and that employees in retail should expect some inconvenient or late hours over the holiday season but I really think that people in retail deserve at least one FULL day off to enjoy with their friends and families--especially since they are gonna be running around like crazy for the 5 or 6 weeks after Thanksgiving.  I think it is more then reasonable for stores to open crazy early on Friday morning (even at like 4:00 or 5:00 a.m.) so they are open for those customers who are really itching for those Black Friday deals.  That way the store is still open but their employees have had the chance to enjoy a day off.

And maybe there are some people who don't mind working on Thanksgiving night but I think generally it's good for employee morale for a company to give all of their employees a full day off--not to worry about work and just to enjoy spending the day with friends, family, pets or however else they would most enjoy it.

Monday, November 29, 2010

Bizarro Black Friday

What is the opposite of Black Friday? Teal Tuesday? Somehow that sounded funnier in my head but I'm gonna go with it...Anyway, have you ever wondered to yourself, "Well, where can I go on Black Friday that will be practically deserted? If you are looking to avoid the mad dash to the stores and people elbowing each other and knocking each other over to get the perfect gift (because shoving the little old lady in front of you to get the last 'Piss my Pants Polly doll' is totally in the spirit of the Christmas season) I have the answer for you. If you are looking for 'Bizarro' Black Friday spend it at the grocery store. While retailers all across the country are gearing up for the annual mad frenzy of shopping and spending the grocery store is practically empty. It's like getting tickets to a Miley Cyrus concert (no one listens to her anymore, right?) when there is a Lady Gaga concert going on right down the street. No lines, no waiting at the Miley concert because everyone is at the Gaga show.  I think this happens for a few reasons 1) everyone is out shopping at Black Friday sales and 2) It's the day after Thanksgiving--no one is thinking about food or grocery shopping! They have too much food at their house as it is. So I got stuck at work on Black Friday. There were 5 cashiers, 1 bagger and no customers. And I couldn't stop yawning (I think I still had a bit of a turkey hang over).  The customers we did have were really just running into the store to pick up a few things.  No one was really doing any serious grocery shopping.  The store manager didn't feel like being there either and there wasn't much work to do so overall it was a quiet, low key night without a lot of work to do.  I figured it wasn't too bad being there and being paid for doing nothing.  "Just enjoy it while it lasts!" I thought to myself, "Because in a few weeks it will be a zoo in here--everyone shopping for holiday dinner, holiday parties, Christmas cookies.  The mad rush generally starts at the beginning of December.  Then through the first week of January everyone makes that new years resolution to lose weight and eat healthier so they stock up on Slim Fast shakes, health food and rice cakes

Friday, November 26, 2010

Let them eat cake...

Cranberry Upside-down Cake



  • 1/2 cup Earth Balance margarine, softened, divided

  • 3/4 cup brown sugar

  • 12-ounce bag cranberries

  • 1 1/2 cups flour

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 1 tablespoon baking powder

  • 1 tablespoon soy flour (recipe says soy flour but I imagine you could use regular flour--but I don't guarantee the results)

  • 1 cup soy milk

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • 1/4 teaspoon lemon oil or 1 tablespoon lemon zest, chopped very fine

Preheat oven to 350 degree. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt together 1/4 cup of the Earth Balance and all the brown sugar. Pour into oiled cake pan and arrange cranberries evenly on top.

In a large bowl, mix flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and flour. In a medium bowl mix milk, vanilla, lemon oil or zest and the remaining 1/4 cup of Earth Balance. Using a mixer, blend the wet ingredients into the dry indregients and mix well.

Spoon the cake batter over the cranberry mixture and bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove cake and run a knife along the circumference of the pan to seperate the pan from the pan's edge.

Allow cake to cook for at least 15 minutes--ideally 30 minutes. Place plate on top of the cake and quickly invert it and remove the pan.

Bon Appetite!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

I'm stuffed!

Vegans and I guess some vegetarians don't eat stuffing that has been cooked in the turkey so here's a stuffing that cooks separately. This sounds delicious to me!

Walnut-Apple Stuffing:


  • 6 cups firmly packed diced whole grain bread

  • 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

  • 1 1/2 cups chopped red onion

  • 2 crisp apples, peeled and diced

  • 3 scallions, thinly sliced

  • 1/4 cup chopped parsley

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

  • Several leaves fresh sage, thinly sliced to taste (or 1/2 to 1 teaspoon dried sage)

  • 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

  • Salt and freshly gound pepper to taste

  • 1 1/2 cups apple juice

    Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

    Place the diced bread on a baking sheet. Bake 10-12 minuted or until dry and lightly brown.

    Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the red onion and sautee' over medium heat until golden. Add the apples and sautee for another 5 minutes.

    In a mixing bowl, combine the bread crumbs with the onion and apple mixture. Add the remaining ingredients except the apple juice and toss together. Pour the apple juice in slowly, stirring at the same time to moisten the ingredients evenly.

    Transfer the mixture to an oiled shallow 1 1/2-quart baking pan. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until browned and still slightly moist. Stir once during the baking time.

This recipe serves 8 to 12.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Hot Potatoes

I think potatoes are a central part of the Thanksgiving meal. Here are some tasty ways to use sweet potatoes.

Sweet Potato Soup:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil


  • 2 medium onions. chopped

  • 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced


  • 1 large celery stalk, diced


  • Handful of celery leaves

  • 6 cups peeled diced (about 1/2 inch) sweet potatoes

  • 2 bay leaves

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

  • 1 cup rice milk or coconut

  • salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add the onion, carrots and celery and saute' over low heat until the onions are golden.

Add the celery leaves and diced sweet potatoes. Add just enough water to cover all but about an inch of the vegetables. Bring to a simmer, then stir in the bay leaves. Simmer covered, until the sweet potatoes and vegetables are tender (this should take about 20 to 25 minutes). Remove the bay leaves.

With a slotted spoon, remove about half of the solid ingredients and transfer to a food processor along with about 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid. Process until smoothly pureed, then stir back into the soup pot. Or, simply insert an immersion blender into the pot and process until smoothly pureed.

Add the rice milk to give the soup a slightly thick consistency. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer over very low heat for another 10 to 15 minutes.

This recipe serves 6.

Maple and Tarragon Sweet Potatoes:


  • 4 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick

  • 1/2 cup maple syrup

  • 1/4 cup margarine or butter substitute, melted

  • 1/4 cup orange juice

  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 2 teaspoons dried tarragon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Arrange the sweet potato slices in overlapping rows in an oiled shallow 2-quart casserole dish. In a small bowl, combine the syrup, margarine, juice, cinnamon and salt. Pour even over the potatoes. Spinkle the tarragon over the top.

Cover with lid or foil and bake, covered for 25 to 30 minutes, or until readily pierced with a fork but still firm. Bake for another 20-25 minutes, uncovered or until glazed and golden around the edges.

This recipe serves 8 or more.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Starter

All of the recipes I found for this Thanksgiving meal were on www.vegkitchen.com. This web site had tons and tons of ideas. Of course, the internet is a great source for recipes (duh). This salad sounds refreshing and fresh and sort of fall-like. A lighter way to start what is normally a really heavy meal.

Pear and Toasted Walnut Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup water
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 teaspoon guar gum (or you can substitute 2 teaspoons of olive oil)
3 tablespoons walnut halves or pieces, toasted
2 large ripe pears, each cut into 8 to 12 slices
4 to 6 cups greens or spring mix, including some bitter one like arugula or cress
Freshly ground pepper, to taste.

Combine the water, orange juice, balsamic vinegar, mustard and 2 tablespoons of the cranberries in a food processor (or you can use your blender if you don't have a food processor). Process. Then add the guar gum. Process. Set aside.

Put washed and dried greens in a large bowl. Pour half the dressing over the greens and toss. Arrange pears over the greens and sprinkle walnuts and cranberries over the pears.

Add the remaining dressing if you like. Top with fresh ground pepper. Serve quickly and watch everyone enjoy!

This recipe serves 4-6

Monday, November 22, 2010

A very vegan Thanksgiving...

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday for a few reasons. It "kicks off" the holiday season but without all the pressure and holiday stress of shopping that comes at Christmas. You get to spend to time with your family. It's close to my birthday--yay! But I especially love it because it's all of my favorite comfort food all in one meal. Turkey. Stuffing. Mashed potatoes. Gravy. Warm rolls out of the oven. Pumpkin pie. What more could you ask for? I still love Thanksgiving but over the past few years a few things have changed in my family. A few years ago my stepmom developed allergies to all dairy. Well, the most important part of creamy, delicious mashed potatoes is the milk and butter. And, my sister became a vegan. Not just a vegetarian--a vegan. So (obviously) turkey was out and mashed potatoes were out and pie crust with butter was out. We still do the traditional Thanksgiving dinner but with some modifications. Last year my sister made vegan mashed potatoes and used soy milk and put roasted garlic hummus in them--I have to admit at first I was very skeptical but they were actually really good and the hummus made them creamy.

This Thanksgiving we went to my Aunt and Uncle's house for dinner. I was about to start getting ready to go when I remembered to send a quick text to my friend, Mindy and her husband, Kevin to wish them a happy Thanksgiving. Mindy is my oldest "friend". I put friend in quotes because I have known her since kindergarden. I met her when I was 5. That is unbelievable to me. I met her at the bus stop on the way to school. She was the first friend I made there. I moved when I was in 5th grade and of course life goes on. We grew apart as people do but e-mail and text messaging has helped us stay in touch. So we don't have a "day-to-day friendship" but we keep each other updated about the big stuff that is going in our lives. She invited me to her bridal shower and her wedding and invites me to her New Years eve party. So as I was deciding what to wear to Thanksgiving dinner Mindy sent me a text back wishing me a happy Thanksgiving but also saying that she got some upsetting news a few days ago. She found out she had diabetes. She had to take insulin shots and she found out 2 days before Thanksgiving that she had to completely change her diet. She said that it makes for a frustrating holiday that is all about food. So besides the obvious tie in Thanksgiving has with food and the grocery store--this week in honor of Mindy and my stepmom and my sister I wanted to put together a few recipes for people who might not be able to eat all the "traditional" Thanksgiving feast. These recipes sound delicious! So if for whatever reason you can't eat what everyone else is eating this Thanskgiving here are some other options for people who are eating meat-free or dairy-free. Enjoy!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Words of Wisdom

"We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid." -Benjamin Franklin

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

It's not me, It's you

I would like to start by saying that I really like 98% of the people I work with...but there always seems to be that 2% that I really don't get along with. This leaves me wondering, 'Are these people really assholes or am I the asshole because I don't get along with them?' Well, since I have started working there I can think of 6 people who have quit--(I'm sure there have been more then that but these are the people I can think of just off the top of my head) and Rose has been involved (in one way or another or flat out the direct cause of) 3 out of these 6 people leaving. Now if you have been involved in some way with 3 out of 6 people quitting (that means 50% of the time you had something to do with these people leaving their job) do you think maybe it's time to start to reevaluate your management style and start to think about how you interact with your coworkers? Nope! Well, at least not if you're Rose. I think that is part of the problem with Rose--she will never take responsibility for her actions or think about the way she treats other people because she always has an excuse for her behavior and she always feel totally justified for acting the way she does. I actually almost quit once after a nasty encounter with her. I even had a short note all written out giving my two weeks notice but I calmed down and thought I wasn't going to cut off my nose to spite my face. To be fair I'm sure Rose has her own side of the story and I'm sure I have done things that frustrate her too, because I am far from a perfect grocery store employee. But it makes me feel (at least a little) better to know that it isn't just me who has a problem with Rose. It's not me (at least not totally), It's Rose.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Every Rose has its thorn

I was always sort of raised to follow the old adage, if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all. I also sort of hesitate to say anything negative about the people I work with when they aren't here to defend themselves but there are a few people (two specifically) who I really can't stand! If I pull into the parking lot and see their cars parked there my stomach sinks and I roll my eyes because I know when I work with them I'm going to be in for a looonnnggg night. Whenever I hear the sound of their voice it's like fingernails on a chalkboard. For some reason it seems to be that way in every job I've had. I get along with most of the people I work with but there's always two co-workers who just drive me crazy and make my skin crawl!

One of these co-workers is Rose. I was going to tell you what incident in particular started my problem with Rose but to perfectly honest I don't even remember how it all started--I do know it started a while back. I also know that it if had been just one argument or one disagreement I could have let it go but it has really been a series of incidents that led me to the conclusion that I really don't like working with Rose.

The other person I can't stand working with is Barbara--even the sound of her name makes me wince. In fact, I dislike her so much that the other week when I checked my schedule and saw I would be working with her I called Shirley and asked if she would switch shifts with me. I know that sounds petty and childish but I couldn't stand the thought of having to work with Barbara all night.

In the real world if you don't get along with someone you can avoid them or just politely walk away but at work if you don't like someone you're kind of trapped together until the work day is over. And I guess we all have people at work who we don't get along with.

Monday, November 15, 2010

The top of the food chain

Here is a brief overview of the heirarchy or

At the top of the food chain (ha ha) is the store manager. He (or she-- because I don't want to be sexist) oversees the store. This seems sort of obvious given his title. A grocery store is divided into different departments and the manager of each department reports to the store manager. Then there is the department manager. The department manager is in charge of their department. They do the scheduling for the employees who work in their department. The meat manager and produce manager place the orders for the products for their department. The one I am most familiar with is the customer service manager. He does the schedule for the customer service employees. He also Then there an assistant manger who runs things when the manager isn't there. The smaller departments don't have assistant managers. The assistant customer service manager is mostly there at night after the day managers have left for the day. Each manager has a rotating schedule so that they work a few nights a week. Then there are the people who work at the customer service desk.


I decided to write this blog for a few reasons. First, I am writing this because I thought it might be helpful to customers. Second, I was watching t.v a show on t.v the other night

Saturday, November 13, 2010

The Obligatory blonde joke

Here's the obligatory blonde joke...

There were two blondes and they had just come out from shopping in a store. They got out to the car and realized that the blonde that owned the mustang had locked her keys in the car. She was trying to pick the lock when she stopped to rest for a second. When she sat down, her friend said anxiously, "Hurry up--it's starting to rain and the top is down!"

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

If it ain't broke, don't fix it

My perception is that the grocery store where I work is falling apart. Now, maybe I'm wrong. Maybe there are repairs being made and maintenance being done that I don't notice--but I can tell you that there are leaks in the roof. And at a more fundamental level some of the basic equipment necessary for grocery store isn't even working properly. Some of the cash drawers are literally taped together. Some of the printer machines that print out receipts are falling apart. And this got me to thinking, 'how can any worker do their job (regardless of where they work) well or take any sort of pride in their work if the don't have the things necessary to do their job right?' I'm not even talking specifically about the grocery store. I remember one of the law firms where I used to work had a postage meter. Once the postage meter ran out of funds. This meant that all correspondence to our clients, court documents that needed to be mailed to the court, appeals that needed to be mailed sat on our desks until the postage meter was fixed. Nothing got mailed for a few days and everything was at a stand still. This may seem like a small thing but it was something that made it difficult to get work done. I'm not saying that every checkout lane has to have a brand new cash register but I believe it's important to maintain what is there and replace equipment as it becomes necessary.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Awww...that was nice of you.

It was a pretty typical day. I came into work, signed onto a register and was taking customers. When I first got there it was pretty slow but it was starting to pick up. I was working with 4 other cashiers--Maria, Nick, Chuck, and Andrew. They were standing in a group, at the end of one of the registers, talking and joking around. Now, I have no problem with people talking or having fun while they're at work but I think you also have to know when to step up and actually do your job. So while they were standing around (doing absolutely nothing work-related) my line started to get backed up with customers. Nick noticed this and (thankfully) he called some customers over to his registers. Valerie (still standing there doing nothing) said to Nick, "Awww, that was nice of you." Now, please don't get me wrong I definitely appreciate that he helped me out by taking some customers--but it's also his job. Nick gets paid to be there, right? I mean, it's not like he's volunteering to be at the grocery store out of the goodness of his heart. So why would Maria say it was nice of him to do what he gets paid to do?

Maybe this will sort of sound like sour grapes, since I happened to be the cashier taking the customers and not one of the cashiers standing there talking and laughing, but I think a group of cashiers shouldn't be standing around doing nothing if there is another cashier who has a line of three or four other customers. Just to state the obvious here--cashiers work in the customer service department and it isn't very good customer service to leave customers waiting (unnecessarily) in line. So while I definitely believe in rewarding good work and giving recognition to those who do an exceptional job I think in this particular case what Valerie failed to realize was the Nick was doing his job-nothing exceptional, nothing extraordinary. He was just taking customers which is what he is paid to do in the first place

Take care and happy shopping!

Monday, November 8, 2010

Hurray for High Tech!

The store recently began the process of installing a new time clock machine where you have your fingerprint taken and then you punch in for work using your fingerprint. The rumor going around was that one of the reasons for switching to the new time clock system was to prevent one employee from clocking in for another employee. I believe this is something called "time theft." The idea is that if someone is running late for work or is unable to punch in on time for some reason they could have a friend who is already at work punch in for them--but using fingerprints would prevent this. This new system may not seem like a big deal but something was bothering me and at first I couldn't figure out what it was that bothering me so much. After I thought about it for a while I think what bothers me is the underlying message it sends to all the employees. I think it says very clearly, "We don't trust you." It's like there's a presumption that all employees are out to steal from the company--whether it's "time theft" by having another employee punch in for you or another type of theft. Well--if the headlines in the news are any indication it's the heads of corporations who are the ones stealing or taking home millions of dollars in bonuses after receiving a large financial bailout from the federal government (but that's a story for a different blog). Needless to say, it all just felt a little "Big Brother" to me.

The whole thing reminded me of another "job" I had in the retail industry. I put job in quotation marks because I worked at this job for about a week--I was miserable the whole time and left immediately when I got a job at the book store. This job was at Bath & Body Works and when you came in at the beginning of your shift you had to leave your purse with the manager and the manager locked it up somewhere in the backroom or the manager's office. Then when your shift was over you had to open your purse and show the manager the inside of your bag to make sure you hadn't taken anything--never mind, by the way, that for most of the day the purse wasn't even in your possession--it was locked up by the manager. (By the way I always thought that if I was going to steal something from the place where I worked--which I wouldn't-- I certainly wouldn't be stupid enough to stick it in my purse...but whatever). So the presumption was that you were probably going to steal from the company at some point, so you had to prove to them that you hadn't taken anything from them. It was guilty until proven innocent! You weren't even permitted to have a place where you could put your personal possessions, like your purse, during your shift. You just had to blindly hand your personal stuff over to the manager--trusting, by the way, that the manager wasn't going to steal anything from you or go through your purse...but I guess Bath & Body Works wasn't so concerned with that, huh? And I don't mean to single out Bath & Body Works--it's a pretty standard practice in the retail industry to have your bags checked at the end of your shift before you leave--the bookstore did it too. To be fair and to play devil's advocate these procedures are in place because there are employees who do steal from their employers and companies face great financial loss every year from employee theft. But overall, I really believe most workers are honest people who are entitled to be treated with dignity and fairness. I do recognize that some of these policies are in place for a reason but I think when we follow them blindly without any question we give up some of our rights and some of our dignity as indivduals.

Anyway, it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth and to me having a company take your fingerprint so you can clock in for your shift has a similar vibe. Of course, it could just be that I am being old-school, anti-technology and anti-authority. What do you guys think?

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Food for Thought

Food for Thought...

  • Why do hot dogs come in packages of 10 and hot dog buns come in packages of 8?
  • Why do people order a double cheeseburger, large fries, and a diet coke?
  • Why do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and fill our garage with worthless junk?

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Sick and tired

Looking at the calendar and seeing that we are rapidly approaching cold and flu season got me thinking about sick days and how it affects other workers and the customers when a cashier or a bagger calls out sick. Now based on what I have seen there are two types of sick. There is (1) actually, physically ill or not feeling good, and then there is (2) what I call "Saturday Sick". I started working at the grocery store in the beginning of the spring. I noticed that as the weather started getting warmer, it would be a beautiful, sunny weekend and almost every Saturday I would get a call asking if I could come in to work because at least one person had called out sick. Now, of course, it is possible to actually be sick on a Saturday but for some people calling out sick is just a substitute for poor planning. There is one bagger--who has to be one of the laziest kids I have ever met--who calls out sick almost every time he is scheduled to work on a Saturday. When he does actually show up he never does any work. Finally, someone said to him, 'If you don't want to work on Saturday, why don't you just request off?' He just shrugged and said, 'I forgot.' When someone calls out sick the people working at the service desk call people and try to fill the shift but if they can't find someone else to come in we are just short staffed.

At the other end of the spectrum are the people who come into work no matter how sick they are--and while this is sort of admirable it isn't necessarily the best thing when you are handling other people's food. I was working with my friend, Ken, last week and I went up to his register to say hello. He gave me a small wave and weak little smile. His face was a palish green. "Oh my god, Ken, you look terrible! You should go home." I told him. Ken did go home early. He was scheduled to work until 10:00 but he ended up leaving a little before 9:00 instead. The only problem with that was that Ken and I were the only ones scheduled between 10:00 and 12:00. So when Ken left around 9:00 that meant I was the only cashier up front for 3 hours! All night there was a looooonnnngggg line of customers starting at me and wondering why there was only one cashier.

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Yes, please

Yesterday I wrote about a few of the stupidest things I have done as a cashier. Today I wanted to write about a few of the funny things customers have done when they aren't paying attention.

There was a customer who came through my line with a medium sized order and everything went fine. We got to the end of the order and there were no problems and she paid using her debit card. She slide her card through and put in her pin number. At the end of the transaction the machine where you slide your card asks the customer to select yes to verify that the transaction is for the correct amount and that also authorizes that amount to be withdrawn from their bank account. So I said to her, "Could you hit yes, please?" She looked at the screen in front of her for a second, then looked back up at me with a slightly confused look on her face. She was quiet for a second and then she said, ''There isn't a 'yes please' button on the screen." "No," I told her, "I said please--you just have to press 'yes' on the screen." She laughed and said, "I'm sorry its been a long day." We've all had days like that! Hee hee!

Take care and happy shopping!

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

What are you deaf or something?

I was a political science major in college and I have always had an interest in politics and the way government works. With that being said I just wanted to remind everyone that today is November 2nd--election day--so get out there and vote! I'm excited because I'm going to be volunteering at the polls later this afternoon. And if you think voting is a waste of time, maybe just take a minute a think about the groups of people throughout our history who have fought and struggled for a right so many of us take for granted.

Now that we have taken care of the serious business I wanted to talk about some of the stupidest things I have done as a cashier.

There was a customer who came up to my register. He had his hands full and was looking down as he set his groceries down on the belt. I smiled and said, "Hi. How are you?" and he didn't look up or even nod in recognition. Now, I thought this was sort of rude but I have gotten sort of used to the strong silent type so I started scanning his groceries and I asked, "Are plastic bags ok?" And he still didn't answer me--well, now I'm starting to get sort of annoyed and I'm thinking to myself, "God, this guy is really rude. I mean how difficult is it to at least acknowledge that I asked him a question--what is he deaf or something?" I was about to say something else to him when an adorable little girl with blonde, curly hair ran up to him and tugged at his jacket sleeve. He looked down at her and she started signing to him and asked if she could get some candy. He shook his head and signed back something else (which I obviously didn't understand because I don't know sign language). He finally looked up at me and smiled and pointed to the screen asking for the total. I pointed to the total and he nodded. And wow, did I feel like an asshole after that. I think I learned that sometimes it can be easy to impatient with someone but if you take a minute and put yourself in their shoes or ask yourself why they are acting a certain way maybe something that seemed rude at first will make sense.

That is just one of the many stupid things I have done as a cashier--there are many stupid things I have done and, unfortunately, I'm sure there are many more stupid things I will do in the future.

Monday, November 1, 2010

Let's start at the very beginning

Many of you have asked me how did all of this start and what sort of training is involved in becoming a cashier? Ok, I'll be honest--no one has really asked me that but I thought I would talk about it anyway. I have sort of touched on this before but here is the full story. As many decisions having to do with a second job it all started with money (or lack thereof). I had taken a look at my check book and my most recent bank statement (complete with a few overdraft charges)...I was also facing the realization that I probably wasn't going to be getting a raise from boss at the law firm anytime soon (especially considering some people in our office had been layed off recently). I thought, "Time to get a second job." It was harsh. One of the reasons I had gone to law school was so that I could make a living and support myself and a second job was just never really part of that equation but that's what I was faced with. I sucked it up and spent a Saturday afternoon in early February applying for various jobs and thought a grocery store would be a good fit because it would allow me to work nights while keeping my "real" "professional" job. Weeks passed and to be honest I had completely forgotten about applying for the cashier job. Then in the last week of February my cell phone rang and an unidentified number showed up on my caller id. I answered and it was Julie from the grocery store. She told me that the cashier who had worked nights was leaving and called because my availability was primarily nights. We set up an interview time and I have to admit I had mixed feelings going into the interview. The interview went well. When Julie asked me why I was interested in the job I told her I was looking for a second job with a flexible schedule to help pay back student loans and she said she was actually working this as a second job as a way to pay bills, too. She liked that I had previous grocery store experience and asked when I could start. And there you had it---easy as pie--that was my official reintroduction to the grocery store business. I went home feeling a strange mixture of gratitude (for a little extra income) and depression.

A week later my orientation was scheduled. The orientation was long...about 4 hours. We watched videos on store policies and procedures, safety procedures, sexual harassment. During our scheduled break I went to use the employee bathroom. I walked into the stall and there was a large sign posted that said, "Please remember to flush toilet after using." I didn't know whether to laugh or cry...but the urge to cry was very, very strong! Did I really have to work at a place that had to remind people to flush the toilet after they used it? Isn't that something that most people over the age of 3 already know? What the hell had I gotten myself into here? But I took a deep breath, splashed some water on my face and went out to face the music. Another 2 hours of orientation videos and some training on the register and I was out there on my own.

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Words of Wisdom

"Genius without education is like silver in the mine."

Benjamin Franklin

Friday, October 29, 2010

Thursday, October 28, 2010

But I don't like you...

Ahhh...the ying/yang quality of my blog continues. Yesterday was all about some of my favorite customers and today will be the flip side of the coin...the types of customers who drive me crazy


  1. The indecisive ones-I guess the reason that the indecisive customers at the grocery store drive me crazy is grocery shopping is not rocket science or brain surgery, right? Yet there are people who come into the store and act like they have never been shopping in a grocery store before in their whole lives and have no idea what to expect or they agonize over every decision like it will really impact there day in some significant way. Like when a customer comes through the checkout and they have a bulky or heavier item I often ask would you like this in a bag. So, here is a customer (I'll call her Clare) with a five pound bag of potatoes. I ask her, "Would you like your potatoes in a bag?" Now for most people this would be a simple question with either a "yes" or a "no" response. But Clare looks at me as if she has never considered this before. "Oh, Ummm..." Then she stares down at the bag of potatoes. "Well...ummmm." Looks down at the bag of potatoes again. "I guess they don't need to be in a bag, do they?" As if she is mentally running through all the scenarios in her head where it might be better if the potatoes were in a bag. Then, finally, she shakes her head. "No," Clare says decisively, "No, they don't need to be in a bag." Well, what a relief--we can all breath a sigh of relief knowing that the potatoes will make it safely home.  There are starving children, political strife and natural disasters all over the world but at least Clare made a decision about her bag of potatoes.  
  2. Similar to the indecisive customer are the customers who answer yes or no questions with 'maybe' or 'it doesn't matter'. There was a customer and I asked her if she would like paper or plastic. Her answer--"Sure." Now, I had asked her a question with two possible answers--either 1) paper or 2) plastic. 'Sure' was not one of choices. So I stood there for a minute and decided would just use plastic bags because I was too tired to try and decifer her code.  Or when a customer uses a bank debit card and I will ask, "Is that going to be debit or credit?" And it annoys me when their response is, "Oh, it doesn't matter." If it didn't make a difference I wouldn't be asking which one they wanted to use. Here's a quick lesson for you about why it makes a difference. A debit card is a card that is generally issued by your bank and has a credit card logo on it so that any place that accepts the credit card will also accept your bank debit card. And it is true that the funds are withdrawn directly from your account so whether you are using the bank card as a debit or a credit card the money comes from the same account. However, there are a few small differences. For example, transactions that are processed as credit cards sometimes take a day or two extra to process while debit transactions are generally taken out of your account more quickly. Also, (at least at most grocery stores I know of) you can get cash back when you use the card as a debit but can only charge for the exact amount when the transaction is processed as a credit card transaction. Finally, sometimes bank have different fees depending on whether you use the bank card as a debit or credit. That is why it annoys me when I ask a customer if it is a debit or credit and they say that it doesn't matter.
  3. College students--these are some of the most fun customers in the store but they can also be some of the most obnoxious, too. Some of the college students who are annoying come in late at night in a group (generally between 5-7 of them). They are overly loud and obnoxious and generally they are each only buying 3 or 4 things so you have to ring up each person seperately while the rest of the group stands there and watches you check out the rest of his friends.

4. Wasteful customers. I had a customer who came through my line and bought a toothbrush. Just out of habit and sort of as a courtesy I asked her if she would like a bag. She said yes. Now, maybe she had her reasons for wanting a bag but that just drives me CRAZY! There is no need to use a regular size plasic bag for one tiny little tooth brush. Maybe it would be different if we had different sized plasitc bags but we don't. I also have to say that in my opinion almost nothing (and there are exceptions here) with a handle needs to be in a bag, either! The bag is to help you carry something--but if it already has a handle you don't need the bag!  Don't be wasteful!

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

We sell that?

We sell that?

These are some of the most unusual items that I have seen customers buy. I have never even heard of some of these things and I certainly didn't have any idea that we sold them at the grocery store where I work...

  1. canned spiced octopus...really?!?
  2. pickled pigs feet...how do you even prepare pickled pigs feet? Do you fry them? Bake them? Do you have them on a sandwich? I really have no idea and to be honest I really don't even want to know...but hey, if it's your thing--go for it.
  3. 25 pound bag of sugar. Now, of course, there's nothing unusual about buying and using sugar but 25 lbs is a lot of sugar! I mean, 25 pounds--that's like a small dog. I couldn't help but wonder what that guy was gonna do with all of that...

Monday, October 25, 2010

Tic Toc, Tic Toc

I wish I had something interesting to report for today but it was a slow (painfully slow) and absolutely uneventful day. What is it that makes the weekend fly by but when you're at work (whether it's in an office or at a grocery store) time stand still in the middle of the day or the middle of a four hour shift? It's like a miracle of physics or something--when I step into the grocery store to go to work 4 fours feels so long it's like 4 days.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Quote of the Week

"Success is getting up just one more time than you fall down." This was a fortune in a fortune cookie. I think it's a nice reminder that persistence pays off.

Have a good week!

Friday, October 22, 2010

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

10 most annoying habilts of grocery store cashiers (Part I)

I have talked (repeatedly) about annoying customers and the things they do that drive me crazy... but I don't want this to be one-sided so now here are some of the things cashiers do that drive customers crazy

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Go Ahead make my day

Yesterdays blog was about a customer from hell...well I believe that most people are good, decent, kind people so here is a blog about a customer who made me laugh and made my day better.

This customer came through my line and I was bored and there wasn't anything particularly memorable about him. I might have said, 'Hi. How are you?' but I honestly don't even remember. He put his groceries on the belt and I began (mindlessly) scanning the groceries. I was standing there (mindlessly) scanning boxes of cereal and bags of frozen vegetables when he said I bet you're wondering what to scan first the chicken or the eggs. At first I just smiled politely, not really understanding what on earth he was talking about--then I glanced down at his groceries sitting on the belt and saw that there was a package of chicken right next to a carton of eggs. I started laughing out loud.  Let's be honest--it was a pretty cheesy joke.  It may have seemed like a small thing but it was clever and unexpected and when your job is as monotonous as being a cashier believe me any pleasant conversation is welcome. The fact that it just came out of the blue like that made me laugh.

I guess I chose to write about this customer because he probably walked out of the store and forgot all about me and the comment he made but I was chuckling about that for the rest of my shift. He made my night go by just a little bit faster and I'm sure I was more pleasant to my other customers that night as a result. His joke was a random act of kindness that was noticed and appreciated and hopefully I paid it forward by being a little more pleasant to others.

Monday, October 18, 2010

A Tale of (subtle) revenge

This is a story about one my customers from hell and my subtle revenge. I admit it was not my finest hour. Ok...before I start this story there are a few things I want to say. First, I want to let you know that normally I am a fair, rational, and patient person--so this story is pretty out of character for me(at least I hope it is)--maybe there is just something about being stuck at a cash register for hours on end that makes me irrational and cranky. But if I'm going to write honestly about my experiences as a cashier I have to tell it all--the good, the bad, and the ugly. But please don't judge me too harshly after reading this. Secondly, I want to give you a brief background so that you have a context for what happened. Not that I'm trying to make any excuses--I'm just trying to explain part of the reason why I consider this particular lady the customer from hell. Under normal circumstances she might not have pissed me off so much...but it had been a looonnnggg day. My day started out (like it normally did) with my alarm going off at 5:30 in the morning. I hit the snooze bar like a million times before I finally dragged my ass out of bed. I got ready for work and left the house and ran to catch the train (which I almost missed)--riding an hour into the city to get to work. I had a bad day at the office and then took the train an hour back home. From the train station I went to work at the grocery store. After all that...Finally, it was 11:56 and I only had 4 more minutes left--Yay! Then I glanced up and saw this woman standing across from the registers, staring at a display of potatoe chips. I watched her for a minute. She would pick up a bag of chips, examine the bag very carefully, put it back and pick up another bag of potatoe chips and examine that. She did this for a while. I swear to god it was like this woman had never seen a bag of chips before in her life. So using my cashier's intuition I just knew this woman was going to take her sweet time shopping. Then I watched this woman walk over to the produce aisle and pick through the apples. By this time it was after 12:00. When the woman finally came to the checkout it was 12:10. Like many grocery stores, at our store each lane has a light so that customers generally know when the light is on the lane is open. Since it was after 12:00 I had already turned off the light but I was standing at my register. She stared at me and aid, "Which register do I go to?" I answered, ( I admit, very sarcastically), "Uh, the one where I'm standing." And she said in a nasty, sarcastic tone, "Well all the lights are off so I didn't know which register was open." "Well, all the lights are off because all the registers are supposed to be closed for the night." I told her (again, being rude and sarcastic--I know, but it was after 12:00 and this woman was already on very thin ice with me). So then she sets her hand basket down on the conveyor belt and she doesn't move and neither do I. We have a stare off because I'm waiting for her to unload her basket of groceries. It was like a game of chicken to see which one of us would move first. As I wait for her to unload her basket (she's still just standing there) she finally snaps, "What?" At this point I was so furious all I could do was shake my head at her and laugh. So I removed the groceries from her basket and start to scan them. I send them down the belt and (surprise, surprise) she just stands there staring, not bagging her groceries. At this point a light bulb went off for me--like a cartoon character with a brilliant idea. I was being paid to be there and she wasn't so I was gonna take me sweet time and she was gonna stand there and wait. I thought if I have to be here after the store closes to help this woman I was damn sure going to get my moneys worth. I would scan an item, count to 15 in my head and then scan the next item. I did this for the rest of her order (and let me tell you 15 seconds feels like a long time when you are talking about scanning groceries). She still had not moved, she was not bagging her own groceries, no apology. Then I got to the produce. I dug my nails into her cucumbers and apples. I squeezed the peaches hoping to bruise or damage them somehow. This I admit was a low point. Then I threw her groceries into a bag, as slowly as I could.

Now to be fair some grocery stores are open 24 hours and maybe this woman thought our store was open 24 hours too--but she saw all the registers were closed and she watched me getting ready to close down my register before she walked over to produce. If she wasn't sure about the store hours all she had to do was ask someone or check the hours posted on the doors at the front of the store. So what's the moral of the story here? I think it's that you get back what you give. Would things have been different if I had been nicer to her? Would she have been nicer to me if I had been nicer to her? Possibly. Would I have been nicer to her if I hadn't been up since 5:30 in the morning? Probably, but I will never know for sure. What I do know is that I wouldn't have been nearly as hostile if she had apologized at the start or if she hadn't been rude right from the start. When I perceived that she was rude and nasty from the start I was rude and nasty back. And maybe she's normally a very sweet, kind person who was just having a bad day. I'll never know. Again not my finest hour and maybe I overreacted. I do feel bad that I was so nasty to her but that is my story of the customer from hell.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

a little poem...

Spell Checker...

I halve a spelling checker,
It came with my pea sea.
It plainly marks four my revue
Mistakes I dew knot sea.

Friday, October 15, 2010

The Cost of Convenience

What is the extra price customers pay for convenience?  I got to thinking about this because a customer came through my line a little while ago and bought a bag of pre-sliced apples. I couldn't help thinking that it would probably be cheaper (and would probably taste better) just to buy a whole apple and slice it whenever you were ready to eat it. I was curious so I decided to check it out and here's what I found out:
  • Our produce department has pre-cut fruit for kids that comes in a container shaped like Disney characters. They are really cute and I think it might be a good way to get kids to eat fruit. These snack packs contain sliced apples, raisins and peanut butter or apples, cheese, and pretzels. These are $3.49 for 5 ozs and that works out to $11.17 per pound! I just think that's a lot money for a few pieces of fruit and few raisins.  Presliced apple wedges are $3.59 and come in a 12 oz. bag.  It just seems to me that I would rather just buy the apple--especially when you consider that you could buy a 3 lb. bag of apples for around $3.99 or loose apples for around $1.99 a lb.
  • Pre-sliced celery or presliced red onions in an 8 oz container is $2.99. That doesn't sound like a lot but it works out to $5.98 a lb--which is pretty expensive. So then take a walk over the package of celery and a whole package of celery is $1.50. Red onions are $1.89 per pound. That's an easy way to save some money if you have the time to cut your own vegetables. 
  • A bag of lettuce is normally ranges around $3.25 (for a bag of iceberg lettuce) for 8 oz. to $5.90 (for romaine lettuce) for 10 ozs.  Compare that to getting a head of iceberg lettuce that is $1.70 or romaine or greenleaf lettuce that is $1.99.  So, if you're on a budget, looking for an easy way to save a few bucks skipped the prebagged lettuce and just grab a whole head of lettuce.
And hey--I'm not making judgments here. For some people it may be worth it to pay a little bit more for a package of fruit that they could throw in their kids lunch or it may be worth it to buy onions or celery that is already cut. A bagged salad might be a bit more expensive but maybe it makes things a lot easier...but I just think fresh lettuce tastes better, is cheaper, and lasts longer.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

5 signs your cashier hates you. . .

ok...maybe hate is a strong word but there are definite signals that you have annoyed your cashier.

1. You can tell your cashier hates you if they shake up your soda as they send it down the conveyor belt. When I roll a bottle of soda down the conveyor belt like I would roll a bowling ball down a bowling alley it is generally because I don't like you. I am imaging the customer I don't like opening the bottle when they get home and having soda all over the place--now I know the shaken up soda has probably settled back down by the time the customer gets around to opening it but shaking up the bottle makes me feel better. And of course I don't (always) literally mean that I shake up their bottle of soda--what I'm really talking about is the way the cashier handles your groceries in general. I think as a general rule the nicer the customer is the more care I take with the groceries. When I don't like a customer as much all the groceries tend to go down the conveyor belt as I scan them and if I happen to scan a soft load of bread and then a 5 lb. bag of potatoes comes down the belt right after that and squishes the bread--well, that's just bad luck for you, isn't it?  if I like a customer I take the extra time to set their loaf of bread or carton of eggs to the side and out of the way of the heavier groceries coming down the belt.

2. Don't underestimate the importance of body language...This one is pretty simple. Is your cashier smiling? Is your cashier looking at you? Is your cashier talking to you? If the answer to any of these questions is no they might not like you that much or you have done something to piss them off. Sometimes, you can tell your cashier doesn't like you if they don't talk to you. If a customer is friendly and pleasant I will generally make pleasant small talk. If I don't like a customer I am totally silent and don't make eye contact. I am silent because I am biting my tongue to stop my self from saying something rude. I just scan there groceries fast because I want to get them out of there. If they ask questions I give one word answers. Now there are some cashiers who just don't smile or talk to any of the customers. There are some cashiers who are very nice to a customer and then will bitch about the customer the second they leave so take this with a grain of salt.

3.

Now, of course these are just general guidelines...sometimes a cashier may just be in a bad mood and it has absolutely nothing to do with the customer so the next time you're at the store and you ask your cashier a question don't think they hate you just because they give you a one word answer.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

5 (more) signs your cashier likes you...


Ok...here it is.  5 more signs that you have made friends with your cashier at the grocery store...

6. How often have you been in a store looking all over for something and you just can't find it--it can drive you crazy, right?  Then after walking around for what feels like forever you ask someone who works there where it is.  This is where being friendly to the employee can make difference because ultimately they decide how helpful they want to be.  Sometimes it has nothing to do with if they like you or not--it just depends on how much time they have or what it is your looking for.  Sometimes a customer has asked me where something is and I really have no idea where it is.  If I want to be helpful then I will go ask someone else to see if they know where it might be.  Sometimes, if you can't find an item in the store the cashier will actually walk with you to show you where the item is.  I have had customers come up to me and ask me where something is in the store.  If I know where it is I am always happy to tell them.  And most of the time I say oh cereal is aisle 4 and that is sufficient.  They say thank you and walk off toward aisle 4.  Sometimes they are looking for a specific brand or item or they say I have looked and I can't find it.  Of course, good customer service is always to walk with the customer and help them find whatever it is they are looking for.  But really at this point the cashier has a few options.  If I like the customer I will walk over with them and help them find it.  If I don't like the customer at all I will simply repeat myself.  "It's in aisle 4." and sometimes I add for good measure, "if it's not there I don't know where else it would be." and then I sort of walk away.  Sometimes it's not a matter of if I like a customer or not.  Sometimes it's just logistics--if I'm just busy or in the middle of doing something else I might not be able to walk the customer over to the item but I might try to give them more specific directions--like oh it's about halfway down aisle 4 on the right hand side..." 

Monday, October 11, 2010

5 signs that your cashier likes you. . .

How many times a week do you go to the grocery store? I'm sure for the most part you go in, pick up your groceries, go through the checkout line, pay for the groceries and don't give your cashier a second thought. Don't feel bad--most people do that. But the truth is if your cashier likes you there are (admittedly, small) things they can do to make your shopping trip easier or more pleasant. And if they don't like you it is possible you might go home with squashed bread or shaken up soda (that the cashier is hoping with explode when you open it...although chances are it won't). So here are 10 ways you can tell if your cashier likes you (part I)...

1. You can tell your cashier likes you if you buy something that's on sale and they point out to you ways to save extra money.  Often our store has buy one get one free sales and if a customer has bought only one I will mention that it's BOGO and ask them if they would like to go grab another one.  It shows that I like the customer because I am being conscientious, paying attention to their order and trying to find ways to save them money or get the best deal possible.

2. You can tell your cashier likes you if when they are loading your shopping cart they tell you where the bag with the eggs and the bread is (the flip side of the coin is that if they don't like you, your bag of bread will probably end up somewhere toward the bottom of the cart with heavy groceries on top of the bread. . .but we'll get to the signs that your cashier hates you later this week)

3. You can tell your cashier likes you if the cashier points out if any of the items you have bought is damaged (a tear in a bag, an open box, if something wasn't sealed properly, if the milk is leaking--you get the idea) and asks if you would like to get another one. This means your cashier likes you because it shows that the cashier is conscientious and paying attention to your grocery order.  I have to admit that there have been times when a customer has been nasty to me and I have sent them home with a bag of frozen vegetables that I noticed had a hole in it.

4. You can tell your cashier likes you if they make a mistake...and then they 'fess up to it and do everything they can to try to help you fix it. Here's a quick example--I hate to admit it but when a customer hands me coupons I set them aside and sometimes I forget to scan the coupons at the end of the order. But 99% of the time as I am handing the customer their change and their receipt I will see the coupons that I forgot sitting there on the counter. If I like the customer I will tell them I forgot to scan the coupon, apologize, and make sure they get their money. It may be a slight inconvenience to the customer but it's generally pretty quick and easy to take care of while they are still at the register. And some of the customers just say, "oh, no problem. I'll just use it next time I'm in the store." If a customer has been mean or nasty to me I will most often let them walk out the door and "forget" all about their coupons--so ha!  Take that you nasty customer. See sometimes, it pays to be a little nice.

5. You can tell your cashier likes you if you buy a candy bar or gum or and the cashier asks you if you would like to hold onto it or if you would like it in a bag. It shows I like you because generally these are items that people will be using pretty soon after they buy them so I am trying to save you the time of having to dig around in all of the grocery bags for the candy bar, gum, soda, or whatever it is later on.

You may have noticed a common theme here--I know these are all really small things but if you cashier likes you they will often go out of there way to help you or do what they can to help to make your shopping trip just a little more pleasant.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

It's Sunday. . .why are you reading this?

It's Sunday. . . why are you reading this? Don't you remember what happened when you looked for a new blog entry last Sunday? There wasn't anything new because I'm taking Sundays off! Now enjoy the rest of your weekend and go out and do something fun! Just stay away from the grocery store. Actually, wait--I take that back. Don't stay away from the grocery store or I won't have a job anymore.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Just for laughs. . .

Little Johnny attended a horse auction with his father. He watched as his father moved from horse to horse, running his hands up and down the horse's legs, rump, and chest. After a few minutes, Johnny asked, "Daddy, why are you doing that?" His father replied, "Well, because when I'm buying horses I want to make sure they are healthy and in good shape before I buy." Johnny, looking worried said, "Dad, I think the UPS man wants to buy mom!"

Hee hee! Have a good weekend everyone!

Friday, October 8, 2010

Tip of the Week

This weeks tip of the week is . . .

The tip of the week this week is actually more of a public service announcement. As you guys may already know October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Each year Yoplait Yogurt runs its Save Lids to Save Lives campaign. For every pink yogurt lid you send into Yoplait by December 31, 2010, Yoplait will donate 10 cents to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, up to $1.6 million dollars with a guaranteed minimum donation of $500,000. It's easy! Just save, rinse, and mail in the lids! So please, mail your pink lids to:

Save Lids to Save Lives
P.O. Box 420704
El Paso, TX 88542-0704

This is especially easy if you buy yogurt anyway! Other companies are making similar contributions. For example, the Gillette Corporation has a Venus Embrace Razor in pink and for every pink razor sold they will donate 50 cents to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. The special edition pink razor also includes a "breast awareness booklet". So, next time you're at the store check it out and see if some of the products you buy are making contributions. . .most often these products come in pink packaging. You can also check online to see what companies are making donations during Breast Cancer Awareness Month or any breast cancer awareness events that may be happening in your area.

Early Detection Saves Lives! So take care and be healthy!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

The Holiday Rush



It is October and the Halloween candy has been out since the last week in August. . .really.  Then I went into work today and a customer asked for stamps.  The stamps had Santa Clause riding a sleigh.  And around the corner right next to the Halloween candy were Christmas decorations.  Seriously.  There was tons of Christmas stuff--holiday wrapping paper and ribbons, Christmas tree ornaments, Santa hats.  And it was only October!

I just think it's crazy how every year the stores seem to put out holiday stuff just a little earlier.  Before you know it we'll be stuffing turkey, then people will be putting up Christmas light, watching it snow outside and bundling up in hats and scarves.  Then we'll be celebrating a brand new year, waking up on January 1 slightly hung over.

But for now, for the next few weeks, I'm just looking forward to the fall leaves changing colors, Halloween, maybe carving a jack-o-lantern and cups of warm apple cider.

Happy fall everyone!   I hope everyone has a chance to stop and take a minute to enjoy fall and Halloween before the craziness of the holiday season gets into full swing!

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

5 Types of Customers

Working in customer service every customer is different (of course) but I noticed that there seems to be five "types" of customers who come in to the store.  If you work in customer service do any of these types of people sound familiar to you?

1. the over sharer. . ."My husband left me 10 years ago and he ran off with a younger woman and now I have to take care of his dog." This may sound like the title of a bad country song, but it is not. This is what a customer (I'll call her Nina) told me once when I asked how she was. Now please don't misunderstand me. Nina seemed very nice and I am sorry for everything that she was going through because divorce is never easy (whether it happened a month ago or 10 years ago). And I told her I was sorry for all that had happened. But, overall. . . ummm, awkward. I am just a cashier checking out your groceries. . .I'm not a therapist or even a bartender. I guess overall, if it made Nina feel better to talk about her problems for a few minutes then I'm glad I was there to listen.

2. The strong, silent type. . . I don't know if it's true but I perceive these people to be nasty and I generally don't like them very much. The cashier says, "Hi. How are you?" and the strong, silent type doesn't answer. The cashier says, "Do you have any coupons" and the strong, silent type just hands the coupons to you without saying a word or if they don't have any coupons they just stare blankly into space without answering. They never look at you. They never talk or smile.

3. The talker. . .I generally like these customers. They smile at you. They are pleasant. They make nice conversation--talking about sports or the weather, or their kids activities at school.

4. The Professional. . .The professional shopper comes in with a stack of coupons and almost every item they have bought is on sale. They are polite, efficient, and almost always rush to bag their own groceries (using the reusable bags they have brought from home, of course). If there is a mistake on their receipt they notice it--and generally notice it before they even leave the store. I like the professional shopper because they are smart and aware.

5. The Regular... I have to give credit where credit is due. My sister suggested that I write about the regulars. I had actually considered this earlier but didn't know what I would say about them other then they came into the grocery store enough that I recognized them, but then I thought about it for a while and here is what I came up with. Presumably everyone knows what a "regular" is (and no, it's not what happens what you eat enough fiber...ha ha). Generally I like regulars because it's nice to see familiar faces while your a cashier. The regulars (in my opinion) tend to "get away with" a lot more, too. Here's what I mean--I have a customer (I'll call him Harry). Harry is the strong, silent type and he always throws his money on the conveyor belt. Now for those of you who have been reading my blog for the past few weeks you know these are things that normally drive me CRAZY and the combination of both of these things together would normally cause my head to explode! But I always smile and talk to Harry (even though he doesn't talk back) because he is a regular. There's another customer (Alice) who breaks my number one rule because three times a week she comes into the grocery store 1 minute before we close! She actually came through the checkout at 11:55 once with a huge stack of coupons. I smiled, said hello and rang up her order. Then I gave her the total and she said to me, "Oh my god, I forgot my debit card at home. I just live around the corner, can I run home and get it?" Again...normally this would have caused World War III. But because Alice is a regular I smiled and said, "No problem." and she ran home and got her debit card. So that is why I think being a regular tends to benefit customers, too. The cashier gets to know the regulars and how they like their groceries bagged. There are some people who like their groceries bagged in plastic and not heavy. There are some people who like paper bags in plastic bags. If you become a regular the cashier gets to know your preferences. That being said I have a small piece of advice. . . find a grocery store that you like and stick with it. Going even a small step further I would recommend that you try to go to the store at about the same time every week--now, of course, I know this might not be possible for everyone. For example, if you like grocery shopping at night there are generally a handful cashiers who are always on the evening shift...so by going at the same time you will have a few cashiers who get to know you and recognize you. If the cashier gets to recognize you and gets you know they will be more friendly (and generally more helpful).

Are you any of these types?

Well, that's it for today. . .take care and happy shopping!

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

5 things I hate about being a cashier

1. The money. . .I know they always say money can't buy happiness but it could buy a better car while I drive around looking for happiness. And being happy is something that's really important but realistically you can't pay the bills with happiness. Anyway, the money sucks and by the time they take out taxes it sucks even worse. Let me just give one quick example. . . when I go to the gas station to fill up my car it costs between $35.00-$40.00. . .well my paycheck from the grocery store for the week is normally around $86.00. That means about half of my paycheck goes to filling up the car with gas. Some days it feels like its not even worth driving to work. . .but then I give myself a little pep talk and I remind myself that every little bit helps and I drag my sorry ass into work.
Also let me tell you a little story, I'll call it "A Tale of Two Paychecks." One paycheck is from a job where my take home pay is approximately $550.00-$600.00 a week as a paralegal, the other is the paycheck I earn working at the grocery store where I earn approximately $86.00 a week. Now many of you may say that this is an unfair comparison because one is a full time job and the other is working a few nights a week making minimum wage. And I agree with you--it's like comparing apples to oranges, but it's still discouraging. Imagine trying to pay bills and earn a decent living on minimum wage. . .it's tough. Think about some of your monthly expenses--Rent or a mortgage, bills, student loans, groceries, utilities, maybe a car payment is in there. It's more then tough it's pretty close to impossible to live on minimum wage.
2. It's BORING, BORING, BORING! This job requires absolutely no skill, no talent, no creativity, no imagination. It's mundane, mindless oh, and did I mention boring? You do the same thing for hours on end, you ask every customer the same question for hours on end. Like, "Do you have any coupons?" "Would you like paper or plastic?" Blah, blah, blah. It's like standing around watching grass grow...it's worse then watching grass grow and if you're not in great mood to start with having to stand around and cashier can be torture!
3. The uniform and that awful name tag! The uncomfortable, itchy button-up polyester shirt is gross. Definitely not cute!
4. That 2%. . . I said 98% of the customers are really nice and I definitely mean that. But then there is that 2%. . .the other customers. The other 2% can be bitter and nasty. Some of them yell. Some of them call you names. I had a customer call me a bitch once, all because I had the nerve to tell her that her coupon was expired. Overreact much lady and do you kiss your mother with mouth? Also when I was working at the bank, I once had a customer tell me I was really bad at my job. Ouch! Although, to be fair (and totally honest) I was a really, really bad bank teller. But I do realize that the customers (even the mean ones) are the reason cashiers have a job and the reason we get a paycheck every week. So yeah, customers are the best and worst part of working in customer service.
5. The money. Oh wait, I already said that. Number 5 is the awful uniform. No, I said that already too. Ok here is the number 5 thing I hate about being a cashier. . .about once a month our store raises money for charity (local children's hospital, the United Way, there was a campaign to end hunger). All of these are great causes and I really like that the store contributes to the community and does fundraisers for charity but I absolutely hate the way they do it! Cashiers are forced (practically with a gun to their head) to ask every customer that comes through their line if they would like to donate money. There are a few reasons I am so opposed to this. First of all--times are tough and money is tight (I know this--especially working two jobs just to pay the bills). So I hate asking people who have just spent $150.00 on groceries with 2 kids sitting in the shopping cart to cough up money they may not have (even when it is for a good cause). It sort of feels like entrapment at the checkout stand. Now I know that the person is always welcome to say no and not make a donation but I know how I feel when I go to a store and cashier asks me to donate to a good cause and I have to say no. I feel guilty and bad when I say I can't make a donation. Secondly, I really have no idea where this money is going or what portion of the money that is donated actually makes it way to the designated charity or how it is being used. . .so how can I in good conscience ask people to donate when I don't even know where the money is going or what is actually going to be done with the money that is donated? Also, there are some causes they seek donations for that I don't support so I don't like to ask for money.

Monday, October 4, 2010

5 Things I like about being a cashier

I had a terrible day at work on Saturday. I just kept thinking, 'I hate my job. I hate being here.' I am basically a prostitute, pimping myself out for $7.50 an hour--which makes me a very cheap prostitute, which is even worse. It's not even like I'm not even a high price call girl. But, I'm an optimist...glass half full kind of girl so I decided that today's blog would focus on the positive. Here it is. 5 things I like about being a cashier. . .

  1. Flexible hours-this is pretty self explanatory. It's nice to be able to tell my manager when I can work and when I can't. If I need to request off or if I am going out of town for a week, no problem (well, besides not getting paid). Compare this to working at a typical 9:00-5:00 office job where vacation time has to be planned out as far in advance as possible. Imagine that you are out of the office for a week on vacation. You will most likely come back to the office to find a stack of phone messages on your desk and tons of paperwork to catch up on. At a typical office job there are deadlines and e-mails and paperwork. At the grocery store when your shift is over, you punch out and your done. You don't take paperwork home with you. And at the grocery store if I am scheduled and something comes up at the last minute and it turns out I can't work there is generally someone looking to pick up some extra hours, so I just make a few phone calls and I can find someone to cover my shift. I have to say the hours have really allowed me to have a well-rounded schedule. Being at this job has given me time to write, do volunteer work, take care of things around the house and do the other things that need to get done.
  2. The people--I really enjoy working with people and being around people. Everyone I work with is really nice (well almost everyone) and it's a relaxed place to work. In my opinion there are very few places where you could work with a kid from high school for a few hours (and talk about how he just got his drivers' license) and then a few hours later you are working with a woman talking about taking her grand kids to the park and then talking to a college student about midterms. The employees at grocery stores are of all backgrounds, ages, and educational levels so it's a really interesting mix of people. The customers who come into the grocery store are young, old, rich and poor and the cashier gets to interact with all of them. And 98% of the customers are really nice, too.
  3. Reading magazines (for FREE!) at the checkout. I am addicted to entertainment magazines but they can be pretty expensive. Working nights things generally slow down at around 10:30 or 11:00 at night so I have the chance to read all the magazines at the checkout stand (which I am really not supposed to do, but I do it anyway). This is how I stay caught up on all my celebrity gossip. Now this may not seem like a big deal (and yes, I know you can go to any local library and flip through magazines there for free, too) but hey, it's something. . .
  4. I am writing about 5 things I like about being a cashier and I have to admit I got stuck at 4. But I thought about it for a while and the number 4 thing I like about being a cashier is the food. I love food so working at a grocery store is the next best thing to working in a restaurant, getting to be around people cooking and preparing the food. At the store I get to see what new products we have coming in. . .like did you know that they have pickles that come in snack-sized containers now? Yum! There's a new snack in the snack aisle called granola bites that I had never seen before that looked sooo good. I also found root beer flavored ice cream topping next to the peanut butter and jelly and for just a minute I felt like Christopher Columbus stumbling across the new world. I never would have known there are apple cider doughnuts for fall if a customer hadn't come through the checkout line with them. There are new oatmeal cookies with butterscotch chips that sounds soooo good. These are all products that I may never have seen if I wasn't in the store working. Also, I get to know what the good sales are.
  5. I like that being a cashier helps me keep things in perspective and put myself in someone else's shoes. It can be easy to get frustrated when you are a customer--I think working at a grocery store has taught me to take a deep breath and try to be a more patient, understanding customer (not that this always works). I think about when I'm working how a nice customer can make my day much more pleasant and that makes me try to be nicer when I am a customer. I think being here has taught me in some small way to be thankful for what I have.

Sunday, October 3, 2010

But it's my day off. . .

What are you doing reading this? It's Sunday. I'm taking the day off! Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Quote of the week

Hi faithful readers or those of you reading this for the first time... it's Saturday! Happy weekend! Every Saturday I will try to post a quote, a joke, or catchy little saying that I think is funny, inspiring, thought-provoking or just generally enjoyable. I know this doesn't really have anything to with cashiers or grocery stores but hopefully these little sayings will help get your upcoming week off to a good start! So here is the quote of the week:

"If at first you don't succeed. . .skydiving is not for you."
Hee hee. This one makes me laugh every time. Tune in again next week. Until then take care and happy shopping!

Friday, October 1, 2010

Tip of the Week

This weeks tip is simple...The tip is that it never hurts to ask (especially when it comes to questions about saving money). So speak up! Ask questions! Don't go home, look at your receipt and think, "Oh, I wish I had asked about that while I was still at the store." A customer came through my checkout line last week with a few dented cans and asked if there was any sort of discount taken off for dented cans. I wasn't sure but I told him I could ask. It pays to ask these types of questions. . .primarily, because (as many of us know) economic times are tough so if you don't mind a few dented cans in your cupboard it may just be an easy way to save money. And, of course, this tip doesn't just apply to dented cans at the grocery store. I mentioned before that I used to work at a book store. The book store where I used to work had a standard 10% discount for customers buying damaged merchandise. They didn't advertise this it was just store policy. I learned this one day when a customer came up to pay for a book she wanted to purchase. She handed me the book and pointed out that it was damaged. She showed me the damage and asked if there were any other copies of the book in the store. It turned out that was the only copy of the book we had in the store so she asked if she could have a discount. I asked the store manager and he came up and hit a key on the register that took 10% off the book. Voila! This customer would have paid full price if she hadn't asked for the discount. So don't be afraid to ask. . . the worst someone can say is "no" and then you are no worse off then when you started and if they say yes it was a fairly easy way to save yourself some green. I also went to another local grocery store and asked if they offered discount on dented cans. The cashier at the counter told me their grocery store generally doesn't offer a discount for dented cans and they would rather just send any damaged products (like dented cans) back because they receive store credit for them. But he told me that this grocery store does have a section of the store where they have discontinued merchandise and he told me those items are always discounted. Your grocery store may have something similar. And, of course, this tip doesn't just apply to questions about dented cans or damaged merchandise--don't hesitate to ask questions like if the store will accept competitor's coupons or the store's policy on taking expired coupons (for example, Bed, Bath & Beyond takes expired store coupons that they send out in mail). Well, I think you get the idea. And my dear, frugal, thrifty shopper, of course, I am not advocating buying damaged products that may be contaminated or could cause you to become ill (any product with a broken safety seal, for example) just for the sake of saving a few cents. . . that just wouldn't be worth it, would it? And of course each store has its own policies and procedures so I have just mentioned some of my own personal experiences here.

So, to sum it up. . . there are lots of ways to save money that the store may not advertise so think outside the box and ask lots of questions (if you have time--or just send your questions to me and I'll to come up with an answer for you). Remember and educated consumer is a better shopper.

Take care and happy shopping!