Does anyone else think this is rude?

[Skillz168]

The thing I like the least about shopping or waiting in line at the checkout counter is when the person in front of you decides to shop from their cart while checking out. I had a lady at wal-mart a while back pull in front of me in the check out line with two carts filled to the top. She then proceeded to unload some from the first cart, and some from the second cart, figure out what her total was and then slowly pick out the few essential things that she still needed, leaving what amounted to about a full carts worth of goods left when she finally finished. It took her atleast 15 minutes to complete her shopping while in line. The only redeeming factor in this whole experiance was to stand in line and critique her choices while she was shopping. I never understood how she could rationalize not buying the diapers!

 

This type of thing has happened to me at least three or four times at wal-mart, and infiriates me to no end. It is one thing if you end up not buying one thing or two things, everyone has done that, but when you pull up with the whole store in your cart and take 15 minutes to decide on what you actually want to buy while at the check out counter, it has gone way to far.

[Schlitz001]

I will cut you off no problem, but I only shop with a basket and I pay with cash, so I'm out of your way in no time.

 

When choosing a checkout line try to get in a line with a young to middle aged male cashiers, they talk the least and scan the fastest. Middle aged women also scan quickly, but often like to chit chat about the weather. Never get in line behind older women, keeping an eye out for coupons in hand and a checkbook. Get in line behind pathetic looking single men. They are likely to pay with cash and not talk at all. This can however backfire when they don't have their rewards savings card with them. Watch out for young people buying alcohol, especially combined with elderly women cashiers who can't read Idaho driver's licenses. Also avoid blue collar workers on their lunch break, since they are going to want to have the cashier walk all the way across the store to get a pack of Camel non-filters for them from the customer service desk. And children always slows things down. Remember to look for the bag boy, if he's at the end of your line, things tend to move faster. I got a lot of this from the Simpsons and American Splendor. Hope it helps.

[TooLiveBrew]

This one seems more like a 'fair game' kind of thing to me -- not any sort of right/wrong issue. I don't bug out when I see a new cashier open up, but if no one's walking over there, I sure will.

[Patrick425]

Again, I still would like someone to explain why they would choose to carry a check book around over a check card. I can't think of any good reason why someone would do this. And sorry, no matter how efficient you are with writing a check, it's not faster than a check card. In many cases (and at the Sentry where we do almost all our grocery shopping) you can scan the card while they are scanning your items. You don't have to wait for the amount and write it on a check, don't have to show ID, don't have to sign anything.

 

FTJ hit it pretty much on the head. Even though you may not be in a hurry, the other people in line may be, and you should be aware of that. When I'm driving home, I realize that if I drive 10mph faster that it's not going to save me that much time. However, when I'm in the fast lane and I'm driving behind someone who has no one in front of them and a line of cars behind them it drives me nuts. Not so much because they are slowing me (and everyone else) down, but because they are so self absorbed and oblivious to their surroundings. Same thing goes with people that walk slowly 3 across down the sidewalk, completely unaware of anyone behind them. Same thing goes with people in line in a grocery store. Just because your a happy go lucky, unaware of your surroundings, never in a hurry type of person, please don't expect the rest of the world to be that way.

[Jimbo]

First of all, if you are referring to me as a "youngster", thank you!

 

Secondly, Can I just ask "Why"? That's all I want to know. I have to every thing I can to hold myself back from asking that question every time I see someone writing a check. Why would you choose to carry around a checkbook over a simple piece of plastic that will save you time? I think I'm more annoyed by the fact that the person has chosen to use a checkbook over a check card than I am that it's causing me to wait longer.

You're welcome!

 

I use to pay my groceries via check. With the carbon copies, I would have my records bundled together nicely. I'd have it filled out beforehand, so completing it just took a moment. If the person behind me in line has such poor time management skills that my actions bugged him, well that's not my problem. Now that I'm married, we decide to put everything on the credit card and make one payment a month.

 

I've used my check card once in the last five years. If I used it more often, I would need to carry my register with me anyhow so that wouldn't change.

[Patrick425]

If the person behind me in line has such poor time management skills that my actions bugged him, well that's not my problem.

 

It may not be that people have poor time management. It may be that they spend 40 to 60 hours a week at work and in traffic and running errands and they don't like shopping and they rather get home and relax, enjoy time with the family, etc. than wait in line any longer than is necessary. I'm not just in a hurry for myself, but also to show courtesy for others who may be waiting for me.

 

I've used my check card once in the last five years. If I used it more often, I would need to carry my register with me anyhow so that wouldn't change.

 

Couldn't you just take the receipt and record it when you get home?

[Diskono]

I only think its rude when the cashier at the new line says "I can help whoevers next" and then the person last in line goes over, because they're obviously not next. If the new cashier just turns on the light and doesn't say anything, its fair game.

[1992casey]

If I used it more often, I would need to carry my register with me anyhow so that wouldn't change.

 

Exactly. I refuse to get a check card. I absolutely know it would be counterproductive to keeping my checkbook balanced.

 

It's not like I write a lot of checks, though. I wrote one last month, and I wrote one in early December. Both went in the mail, and in each case, a check in the mail was the only option for paying.

 

In person, I'll write a check at the bank for cash... if I haven't kept enough cash since my last deposit. If I need cash when the bank is closed, the tavern down the road from my house will take care of that.

 

That leaves the general store near my house. I used to write checks over there pretty often, but they started taking credit/debit cards about a year ago. To write a check there now, I'd have to be both short cash and making a purchase below the $15 minimum to use a card. I can't recall the last time that happened.

[Patrick425]

I don't keep a register and I don't balance my check book. I don't find it necessary any more. Having a major in Accounting, I can't believe I would ever say that. I can go online at any time to see how much cash I have in my account and scan my transactions to make sure no transactions hit my account of which I am unaware. This really eliminates the need to balance a checkbook. I guess my only risk is that the bank records a transaction incorrectly and I don't catch it when I scan my transactions online.

[burniebrewer]

What a cashier should do in that situation (before opening the lane) is go and grab the next customer/cart and walk them over to the checkout lane they'll be opening. Then the herd can follow.

[jazzytrav]

I don't really think that's rude. If i'm at the end of the line, I'll look at the others ahead of me briefly and give them a chance to respond, but if they don't respond quickly, I'm going. Wait too long and someone that just walked up will jump in that line.

Also, for those of you writing checks and not using a checkcard, please know that checks are much, much less secure. At most banks and credit unions, you're only liable for up to $50 of unauthorized purchases on your checkcard if it gets lost or stolen. If you lose your checks and don't stop them before someone else uses them, you're basically screwed.

Also, you can get a checkcard register that is a lot like a checkbook register but smaller and it can hold your checkcard.

[Diskono]

I don't keep a register and I don't balance my check book. I don't find it necessary any more. Having a major in Accounting, I can't believe I would ever say that. I can go online at any time to see how much cash I have in my account and scan my transactions to make sure no transactions hit my account of which I am unaware. This really eliminates the need to balance a checkbook. I guess my only risk is that the bank records a transaction incorrectly and I don't catch it when I scan my transactions online.

Yeah, why keep track of your purchases by hand if your bank already does it for you? It just seems like a huge waste of time to me, unless there is some other reason for it I'm missing.

[thebruce44]

It may not be that people have poor time management. It may be that they spend 40 to 60 hours a week at work and in traffic and running errands and they don't like shopping and they rather get home and relax, enjoy time with the family, etc. than wait in line any longer than is necessary. I'm not just in a hurry for myself, but also to show courtesy for others who may be waiting for me.

 

Exactly. People who take their time and pay with checks anger me to no end. I work in a large building in downtown Chicago all day, have to jog most of the time to catch the train, and have maybe 1 hr of free time at home a day, most of which is used to eat dinner. I can understand if people are willing to slow their lives down because they are stuck in their ways or afraid of new technologies, but it shouldn't slow my life down as well. That right there is extreamly inconsiderate. You might say its just 15 seconds, but its more like 30, and when it happens several times every day it really adds up.

 

And before anyone says anything about me being a typical Illinois person, I grew up in the Grafton/Port Washington area and moved down here for work, so this is my life now and believe me...in this economy there is nothing I can do about it. Please, please, please get out of my way or try to hurry up so that I can get home. Once out of eachothers way, we can all move at whatever pace we want.

 

I've used my check card once in the last five years. If I used it more often, I would need to carry my register with me anyhow so that wouldn't change.

 

If you are on this website you are more than capable of checking your balance online.

[cubfan1126]

I know some of you live in the Chicago area or travel to this area on occasion.

How about the person that does not possess a tollway I-Pass and has to wait until getting up to the exact change booth before even beginning to look for that exact change?

And just like the person that doesn't fill out the check before hand, I am irritated by the person that waits until the entire order has been wrung before going into the purse or pocket for the Check/debit/credit card that could have been swiped as soon as the order was started.

[theavrock]

I'm really curious where the sense of entitlement in some of these statements come from. Why because one works long hours or commutes far from their home make them entitled to do things the way they want as opposed to other. Using exact change isn't illegal and neither is writing checks. Until it becomes outlawed it is simply that one desires to do it in a different way than someone else. Maybe it is slower or faster or the same speed, but when it comes down to it, it really doesn't matter. Even if someone slows you down five times in a day by 15-30 seconds, thats 2.5 minutes max and that probably doesn't even occur that much. I just don't understand why people are so impatient. Waiting ones turn is a part of life. Thats just the way the world works.

[jazzytrav]

Until it becomes outlawed it is simply that one desires to do it in a different way than someone else.

 

So nothing is rude unless it's illegal? I don't recall anyone saying these people should be thrown in jail, at least not seriously.

[theavrock]

Until it becomes outlawed it is simply that one desires to do it in a different way than someone else.

 

So nothing is rude unless it's illegal? I don't recall anyone saying these people should be thrown in jail, at least not seriously.

 

You're twisting what I said. Maybe it was my fault that I used an extreme example. It is simply someone doing something differently than someone else.

[Patrick425]

jazzytrav[/b]]Until it becomes outlawed it is simply that one desires to do it in a different way than someone else.

 

So nothing is rude unless it's illegal? I don't recall anyone saying these people should be thrown in jail, at least not seriously.

Exactly. Just like the title of this thread suggests. It's not illegal to be last in one line and?"skip" to the front of a new line, but some people find it rude.? This clip is from my favorite comedian,?Brian Regan. About 3:50 into the clip he talks about people?trying to stuff things into overhead bins on an airplane and towards the end?we talks about protocol for moving sidewalks.?Very funny and very true and very much related to the type of behavior that shows how people can be completely oblivious to the world around them.

 

???

[jwill535]

I use both, but then again never balance my check book. The thing I find more rude then a person skipping line would be the teenage to mid 40's woman who insists on talking on the phone the whole time they check out and either ignore the cashier's questions or appear annoyed that they would bother to ask a question or tell them how much it costs. I tend to make my displeasure known when this happens.

 

My line jumping story came two weeks ago. I am standing in line to pay for round of golf. There are two guys, obliviously in the same group ahead of me paying separately. I am in line behind them. As the first guy is paying an old guy stands next to me. If anyone has been to the Bridges in Madison you know that there isnt alot of room to stand in line there. As the second guy ahead of me is paying the old man next to me moves up the counter but stand off to the side where there is no one at the register. As the two guys turn and leave the old man slides over with money and GC in hand and pays. I am just dumbfounded and all I could utter was "Are you ------- kidding me?" and looking around to see if I was the only one that saw that. Neither the old man or the cashier said a thing.

[Katuluu]

What a cashier should do in that situation (before opening the lane) is go and grab the next customer/cart and walk them over to the checkout lane they'll be opening. Then the herd can follow.

Exactly. It is bad customer service by the cashier if they don't. Though some stores like Target have it as a policy to ask to help the last person in line, which makes no sense.

[theavrock]

Exactly. Just like the title of this thread suggests. It's not illegal to be last in one line and?"skip" to the front of a new line, but some people find it rude.? This clip is from my favorite comedian,?Brian Regan. About 3:50 into the clip he talks about people?trying to stuff things into overhead bins on an airplane and towards the end?we talks about protocol for moving sidewalks.?Very funny and very true and very much related to the type of behavior that shows how people can be completely oblivious to the world around them.

 

How is paying by check being completely oblivious to the world around them? Thats what I am getting at. How is it they are being rude to you because they are paying by check or using exact change or any of the other numerous behaviors that people exhibit that cause other people such a hassle?

[jazzytrav]

It is simply someone doing something differently than someone else.

 

And because of that, "someone" is making "someone else" wait longer than they need to when there are perfectly feasible alternatives to the way they do things.

 

-Use a checkcard or credit card

-Write out part of the check in advance, just don't sign it

-Keep your loose change in a coin jar and cash it in at your bank or credit union rather than be tempted to pay exact change

-Take the coupon that the cashier won't accept up to the customer service desk and argue your case there

[Patrick425]

How is paying by check being completely oblivious to the world around them?

You are right. It's not. The act alone of writing a check is not rude in itself. As many have pointed out, some people are prepared to write the check and get out of the way and others don't seem to worry at all that they may be holding other people up. I find the later to be true most of the time. Of course, this could all be avoided if everyone would just realize that the check card is our friend and not something to be afraid of.

[Jimbo]

It may not be that people have poor time management. It may be that they spend 40 to 60 hours a week at work and in traffic and running errands and they don't like shopping and they rather get home and relax, enjoy time with the family, etc. than wait in line any longer than is necessary. I'm not just in a hurry for myself, but also to show courtesy for others who may be waiting for me.

 

I'm not bothered if I have to wait an extra 30 seconds or whatever. By the time I get back to the car I have already forgotten about it. All kinds of time to relax at home. If someone is so bothered that I decide not to use a check card, that guy needs to get over himself.

 

Yeah, why keep track of your purchases by hand if your bank already does it for you? It just seems like a huge waste of time to me, unless there is some other reason for it I'm missing.

 

I keep track at home so I can enter it in my spreadsheet, track my cash flow and plan for future savings/expenditures.

 

Couldn't you just take the receipt and record it when you get home?

 

If I stick it in my pocket, I may misplace it when I get home or forget altogether.

 

If you are on this website you are more than capable of checking your balance online.

 

Yeah, I'm capable, but a big pain to look it up when I can grab my register and flip it open in a sec.

[FVBrewerFan]

Of course, this could all be avoided if everyone would just realize that the check card is our friend and not something to be afraid of.

I don't think the check card is our friend at all. In fact, the check (debit) card and it's sister, the credit card, play a huge role in what happened to our economy. They have made people feel comfortable spending without the immediate consequences. Obviously, this doesn't apply to everyone who uses a card. Whteher subconscious or not, it's a lot easier to scan a card than to shell out actual currency or enter an amount in a checkbook and see your balance change. A bit OT I know, but my point is that if 100% of the population used a check card 100% of the time, it wouldn't be all good.