"What are you doing?!"

[ShinyGreenApple]

J = Jerkface
BI=Blazing Idiot

Me: the cash register wench

J comes up to the register, but he and BI are so close, that I assume that they are together, and there is a heap of stuff being piled and piled onto my belt. I ring up a few of the first items, and J says "This is going to be debit please. Ok, now it says 'waiting for cashier'." I notice his English is a bit broken. Alrighty then, I think, thanks for letting me know that. I keep scanning. He stares at me, "Hey what are you doing?!"

Me: *blank stare*

J: That's not mine!

Me: I'm sorry about that, which of these items isn't yours?

J: This, and this, all of this! Just the first five things are mine. The rest of this stuff not mine! It was done when I said this will be debit and waiting for cashier!

At this point, I feel like an idiot, as I've scanned close to a dozen things that are not his, but belong to BI who was in line behind him; they are not together in any way, shape or form. Oh geez. I call for a void transaction, since at that point it would be easier to start from the top rather than take all BI lady's crap off.

BI: Oh, well I thought there was a gap between my stuff and his!

J: There was. A BIG one! *glares at the stupid cash register wench*

I can personally attest that there was no gap by the time the stuff reached me, but our conveyor belts have a will of their own and stuff tends to get jammed together like that. Never mind the fact that BI didn't make use of the separating stick that was right in front of her stupid face. Then J says that he had better not get his account charged twice, since "I already did my card". I can tell he thought little of my intelligence by the time he left, and I think BI felt a bit dumb since she didn't talk much during her entire huge ass transaction, and rightly so.

Is it really that hard to watch your damn groceries, not jam them into the groceries of the person in front of you, and then kindly NOT start insulting my intelligence because of YOUR stupidity?



My entire day was like this; it was as if every other person who came through my line was the type that felt I was obviously not worthy of smelling their farts.

[Koliedrus]

I feel your pain.

Take comfort in that fact.

[Kogarashi]

Been there, done that, got the T-shirt. I usually managed to defuse such situations by giving the angry customer my brightest, friendliest grin and politely explaining that there was no gap between the two orders and I was sorry for not realizing that. Then I would do my best to rectify the situation (by getting a void) before the customer realized I just shunted all the blame of the lack of gap on the next customer in line.

Of course, most of the time the customer in your Jerkface's position was nice about it, and it was the Blazing Idiot stand-in who got all prissy. At which point I would use the above defusing method to shunt the blame right back onto the prissy one.

[Ill_Used_Heroine]

You know, I've always felt that it was common courtesy to place the separation stick (or whatever it's officially called) after my pile of groceries, and it always irritates me when the person in front of me doesn't put it there after they've finished unloading their cart ... especially if I've already been standing behind them as they unloaded and they've seen that there's someone else in line.

[White_Knight1989]

You know, I've always felt that it was common courtesy to place the separation stick (or whatever it's officially called) after my pile of groceries, and it always irritates me when the person in front of me doesn't put it there after they've finished unloading their cart ... especially if I've already been standing behind them as they unloaded and they've seen that there's someone else in line.

I was just about to mention that. If they're too lazy to reach over and put down the stick, they deserved the extra wait in getting the items voided off. I know I always put the stick down, even if I only have two or three things.

Just keep doing what you're doing. The next time you realize a gap between items, and you ask the customer if the remaining items are theirs, they're likely to reply back with something along the lines of "No shit sherlock...do you see a stick there?"

You just can't win with people.

[Koliedrus]

You just can't win with people.

Dammit! And here I went and made some new ones.

[Sunsetsky]

Using the bar to separate items is a very complicated task for some people.

[XCashier]

Using the bar to separate items is a very complicated task for some people.

Using common sense and common courtesy is a very complicated task for some people!

Seriously, see those sticks behind the belt? You pick one up and put it between your order and the next guy's order. It's not rocket science.

But of course, they yell at the cashier for being the stupid one...

[Broomjockey]

You know, I've always felt that it was common courtesy to place the separation stick (or whatever it's officially called) after my pile of groceries.

Funny, the only time I'll put the stick there for someone else is if there is a reason they can't do it their own selves. Their order, their responsiblity. Of course, this tactic does give me the occassional opportunity to (with great relish and abandon) shove their groceries back with the stick if they put them too close to mine.

[Max]

I don't mind if the person in front of me puts the stick-thingee after their groceries or not...UNLESS it's so far up the belt that I can't reach it. Common sense, people! I can't reach it, you can...do the math! Soooo many times people just put their own stuff down and totally ignore anyone behind them. I'll usually give them a few minutes (not putting any of my groceries down) to clue in. But if they wait too long, I'll theatrically throw myself on the belt to reach it and say sweetly "Oh, don't worry. I'll get that. Really, I don't mind! No trouble at all! Gotta keep those limbs limber! Hahaha..." If they don't snap to it and apologize, I'll keep on going and going and going and going....

[MrSunshineState]

Using the bar to separate items is a very complicated task for some people.

They are the ones that can never locate the cart return either.

[ShinyGreenApple]

Well, Jerkface thought that I ought to have known his stuff was finished because he did the whole spiel of reading my debit terminal to me, never mind the fact that lots and lots of people do that way before the transaction is finished just to let me know how they're paying.

And seriously, it's just a few extra minutes in line at the grocery store to correct a mistake. It's not like your whole day is ruined.

Oh wait, that would be what a rational person would make of the situation . . .



Thanks for the cyber hugs though

[Andara Bledin]

I never put the stick in after my set of groceries unless the person behind me is so addle-pated that they can't manage it. When that happens, I put it down and give them a nicely withering look that I make certain they catch.

I tend to slide the dividers back when there's only one or two, and if I'm not doing the shopping alone, I've been known to grab dividers from other aisled to bolster the stock of them at the one I'm on when it's got too few.

^-.-^

[Jadedcarguy]

Out of habit, I just drop a divider down when I finish unloading my cart. Saves me time and prevents the cashier from having to discern what's mine and what's not, especially if some asshat puts their stuff too close to mine.

[Salesmonkey]

Well now you've piqued my interest. What exactly is the proper nomenclature for the little stick that segregates one customer's order from another? I know that one of you valkyries that works at Wal-Halla can tell me because they have manuals and procedures for everything!