Arrangement

I'm not sure what kind of training the checkout clerks receive when they sign up to work at a grocery store, but I'm assuming that they're taught the basic concept that:

1. Chemicals and food products shouldn't be in the same bag.
2. Similar items should go in the same bag.
3. Fragile items should not go in the same bag with heavy items.

In fact, the above guidelines sound like common sense. But as the saying goes, if common sense was common, we'd all have it.

Yesterday at the grocery store, I was treated to 22 minutes of agony watching my checkout clerk violate every rule listed above. In addition, she scrutinized my purchases, making bizarre unwelcomed comments about the things Nathalie and I were buying.

"Wow, that was some expensive vitamins."
"What's this thing?"
"This looks delicious."
"I like peas, too."

I stood by horrified watching her put potato chips with the onions and the cans of peas, one carton of juice with the rice and the other carton of juice with salsa, bathroom cleaning supplies with the toothbrush and the Tobasco sauce.

If she were scanning my items with superhuman speed and throwing things in the bags haphazardly, I'd understand, but she was picking out the various items one by one from the conveyor belt, studying them carefully, scanning them, and then placing them with meticulous care into each bag... with no obvious logic at work. Nevermind the fact that I had grouped my items appropriately on the conveyor belt.

I tried to intervene, but it only added to her confusion. Nathalie and I just stood by silently, sharing looks of dispair and disbelief between us, both wishing we had gotten into Register 3.