Self-checkout Lane Woes

So, one of my old "pet peeves" blog entries inspired Scot to write today's blog entry with similar peeves. And that in turn inspired me to write this :-) Funny how that works out, eh? Will it become cyclical? I wonder...

I went to Wal-Mart yesterday on my way home from work. It's a pretty nice one. It is big and is not usually crowded, but I always opt for the self-checkout lanes, as I've grown rather adept at ringing up my own purchases efficiently and speedily. I got there and all 3 lanes were occupied. In Lane 1, a woman was putting a whole bunch of small items on the conveyor belt, having just arrived there herself. I figured she'd take a while and scanned the other lanes. Lane 2 showed a teenage couple scanning just one or two small items and getting cash out to pay. And Lane 3 showed a woman having trouble with her credit card. I thought: cool, she's paying, so she's almost done.

I watched the Wal-Mart employee come to her aid and then turned my eyes back to Lane 2. The teenagers were putting coins into the machine. Okay, I figured maybe they bought some snacks and were getting rid of a few dollars' worth of change. I looked at Lane 3 again. The Wal-Mart employee was gone and the woman was signing the screen, a sure sign that she's done. I waited patiently and looked back at the teenage couple. They were STILL throwing coins down the register like it was a casino slot machine! I started to wonder if they were paying in pennies, or if their small purchase was actually a lone $200 iPod, paid in quarters.

I got ready to move to Lane 2, but to my utter disgust I watched the woman grab her receipt, study it, then, as slow as can be, opened up her wallet, stuck it in, and then even slower, opened up her purse. The teenagers were still playing coins. And the woman in Lane 1? The one with the 30-odd small items? She was down to her LAST item, and she wasn't even moving that fast! If she hadn't had trouble ringing up her last item, she would've been done before the other 2-- THAT's how slow the other two were moving!!

I grew more impatient, and as soon as I saw the woman in Lane 2 start to reach for her shopping bags, I charged forward. She was still standing there grasping at her bags when I pulled my shopping cart up to the register and began taking items out of my cart. I didn't much care about granting her "personal space" or whatever. I may grant her the benefit of the doubt that she was ailing and couldn't move as quickly as everyone else, but standing there reading her receipt while making the rest of us wait? I'm sorry, but THAT's inexcusable.

I thought I'd never get out of the store, but here I am. The teenagers were still playing slots while I was busy ringing up my own purchases, so I never got to take another proper look at them or even find out if they were still there when I left.

It never fails to amaze me at how folks think they're the only ones in the world. I mean, I know some people are going to fumble a bit getting their stuff together before they leave the store, but come on-- is it that hard to move to the side, out of the way, where you can collect yourself in peace and take all the time you need without getting in someone's way and hampering them?