"Where I come from we PAY before we eat"

[carryonnow]

A customer approaches my register with two children, probably 7-ish years old--adult unit plops down her purchases on the belt...as I begin ringing the purchase I notice that laying directly on the belt are two half eaten items, a raw carrot and a honey crisp apple...both items are weighed by the pound. I looked skeptically at the customer whose response was priceless, "they just LOVE fruits and veggies, who am I to stop them from eating such healthy snacks?" I am not well-known for hiding my emotions, so I shook my head, rolled my eyes, and muttered 'seriously..."

Apparently my disgust is visible...not only did an adult place raw unwrapped produce on a grocery belt which could be covered in God knows what , she expected me to TOUCH her children's saliva slathered food AND hand it back to them...

ME: "Ma'am how do you expect me to ring these half eaten items in?"
SC: "Just pick them up and weigh them twice."
ME: "You want me to touch your half eaten food? and give it back to the kids to eat?"
SC: "UM YA...how else do you expect me to pay for it?"
ME: "Oh....well...where I come from customers generally PAY for their items before consumption."
SC: "They are KIDS and they were HUNGRY....you want me to say NO to hungry children."

I rang the items into produce for the maximum price per pound...because I wasn't touching half eaten food...or the hungry children's saliva....

SC: "SERIOUSLY...you are going to charge me FULL PRICE!?!? I want to speak to the manager...NOW!!"

Me: "Sure let me get her" I stand in place, extend my hand and introduce myself as the Customer Service Manager AND the manager of the day.

SC: "UNREAL!"

customer pays threatening me with an email to corporate......ohya, I shivered in my boots all day long.....NOT!

[eltf177]

Good for you standing your ground!

[Monterey Jack]

Ugh...can't STAND it when I find some half-chewed food or messy wrapper left behind in a carriage. Not only inconsiderate and unsanitary, but those things attract stinging bees in the summer and turd-dropping birds year-round. And yes, I have been stung by a bee while doing carriages (this during the month of October, oddly enough).

[IT Grunt]

Got what she deserved, frankly. Yes, kids get hungry, but it's not going to kill them to wait 15 to 20 minutes while you shop and check out. Then they can enjoy a snack in the car. If her reasoning is they will whine if they don't get it RIGHT NOW, well, that's a parenting failure, so learn to discipline children and she won't have to deal with that.

The store has to balance the books at the end of the day and her kids have just eaten merchandise that isn't paid for, so hell yes, it's full price. Next time she shouldn't be so damned impatient.

[notalwaysright]

Those type of parents make me "My little angel can do no wrong! No rules apply, ever."

And who knows what was on that carrot or apple, I wash my produce before eating.

[Brojekk]

And yes, I have been stung by a bee while doing carriages (this during the month of October, oddly enough).

Sept-Oct are the months when yellowjackets are at their very nastiest.

[Amanita]

I've heard of sensible parents doing the following when their kids eat part of a produce item like this:

Grab another fruit about the same size as the partially eaten one
Take it to the cashier, and explain the situation
Have the cashier weigh the whole fruit, then set it aside
That way, the partially eaten fruit gets paid for properly, and everyone is happy.

Unfortunately this parent lacked the requisite common sense that this method requires

[earl colby pottinger]

Farming

And who knows what was on that carrot or apple, I wash my produce before eating.

A dozen times this, fruits and vegetables are sprayed with chemicals at the farm but also for shipping to reduce spoilage they are sprayed with more chemicals or kept in storage with a chemical treated atmosphere. One should always wash them before eating, especially for children who's bodies are more sensitive to chemicals affecting their development.

[Gerrinson]

Not to be a revolutionary, but maybe - just MAYBE - she could have taken those items to the express lane to pay for them mid shopping trip, then let the kids eat the paid for snacks while finishing her shopping.

Mind blowing concept, right?

[KuariKaydrith]

What I used to do when my son when he was younger is always keep a baggie of some sort of snack in my purse for him. That way if he felt hungry when we were out shopping I would just give him the snack bag. I would never have dreamed of letting him have something off the shelf or out of a veggie bin before paying for it, and certainly not before washing it!

[raudf]

Granola bars or some sort of snack baggy in the purse! No grazing off the shelves, damn it!

My two year old did get a hold of a candy bar without my oldest or I noticing. So, I picked up another of the same and handed it to the cashier to pay for the half eaten. Of course, my youngest is TWO, so he's not going to understand that he shouldn't grab things without asking.. I'm working on that now.

That aside, he did eat part of the wrapper, which freaked out the cashier, the poor girl. I just looked at her and said tiredly, "He didn't eat that much of it, so it'll come out alright in the end."

[XCashier]

SC: "They are KIDS and they were HUNGRY....you want me to say NO to hungry children."

Your children are not going to wither up and die in the few minutes it takes to pay for the food! Eating something before paying for it is stealing.

Now if, for example, a diabetic was having problems with blood sugar, I can see getting a bottle of juice and drinking it, then paying afterwards. But gobbling down price per pound items is stealing. And for all you know, they ate more than the parent showed you.

[Bright_Star]

ewwwwww!! Who eats unwashed food in a grocery store??? ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!....LOL!

[Evannah]

Good on you for not taking her shit! That would gross me out too, and I also would have a hard time hiding my disgust.

[Gilhelmi]

I can understand eating a candy bar and giving the wrapper to the cashier.......

If you are diabetic and have a sudden blood sugar crash.

Outside of emergency situations, that type of behavior is unacceptable. (Though at least the children were eating healthy food. )