Monday, September 24, 2007

Shopping with Mom

Yesterday I had the pleasure of food shopping with my mom. The last time I was at a super market with my mom I was probably twelve and I am sure my brother Lawnwhisperer was with me, and most likely we were sent to the car midway through the shopping trip with the instructions of "I have never been so embarrased in my life. I want you to sit in the car and DO NOT touch anything and I swear when we get home I am going to..."

Being that I never made it to the check out aisle in a grocery store with my mom present, she was never able to teach me a lesson about the cashiers that work the registers. Yesterday she taught me, what she considered, a life lesson.

As I squeezed the cart between the candy rack and the Magazine rack, where all the magazines talked about Britney and OJ and Angelina etc., my mom looked up to see that a guy, a boy, a young man really, was working the lane and she made a face.

"What?" I asked.

"You never pick a lane where a guy is working. They are slow. Women are much faster at the grocery store."

"What? That's not true."

"Bill, trust me. Men are so much slower with this type of stuff."

"Well that's sexist." I said.

We watched the guy working the scanner and register and he was barely bagging the groceries for the woman in front of us. For this particular incident, my mom had a point.

Whe we got home I told Lauren what my mom said about men working in the grocery store. My mom then said, "I have many years of experience, in the supermarket male workers are always slower than the females."


What do you think? In your experience are men or women slower at working the cash register?

39 comments:

Patience said...

Hmmmmm! I'm not sure about that! I just have never really thought about the checkers. I'm usually wondering why the person with a full buggy thinks it's okay to be in the 15-item-or-less line!

Unknown said...

*Most* males who work at the checkout lanes are slower than women. I think it's because women are more likely to understand/sympathize that you have a couple of kids in tow and that you're on a 'schedule', so they do their best to be quick about the process.

On the other hand, ANY cashier will become a little faster if the kids in tow begin acting out rather loudly and obnoxiously... uh, not that MY children ever do that, you understand...

Anonymous said...

I sometimes think woman are slower, because they will chat. I mean chaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat with the customer. I like chatting as much as the next shopper, but when I'm in a hurry, I always seem to get in line behind behind a chatty customer and cashier.

(psst, it's not CK's kids that the cashiers are trying to get rid of. It's HER. just sayin'...)

Anonymous said...

Oops. I didn't mean to put two behinds in there. I won't elaborate on that; that can't go anywhere good for me.

Anonymous said...

Absolutely

Anonymous said...

I look at the age of the cashier more than the gender. I have just started using self-check out and then I don't have to worry about the checker.

Effie said...

I hate to say it, but your mom is right most of the time...

Kami said...

I have honestly never paid attention! I just pick the shortest line, and get behind the people with the least amounnt of crap in their buggies.

Anonymous said...

not only are women faster...my other "thing" at the grocery...the baggers should have to bag groceries for their mothers before they are allowed to bag groceries for the unsuspecting public!!! The way some of them bag makes me CRAZY (or crazier)!!!

The Chick said...

I wouldn't avoid men over women, but I do try to avoid teenagers. MOST OF THE TIME, they're so surly and spend the time chatting with their bagger friends. Now THAT will slow you down.

Unknown said...

Men are distracted and they talk too much...probably because I have big boobs.

Ilanna said...

Never noticed one way or the other to be honest.

just found your blog and am going to bookmark it - it is TOO funny!

Anonymous said...

I was a cashier at a grocery store where they recorded our scanning time. I had the 2nd fastest, & I was a teenager. The fastest was Sean, a guy. I think the thing that slowed me down was that I wasn't old enough to scan liquor & had to have a manager scan it for me. *sigh*

The Egel Nest said...

In my experience, men are slower than women in everything...period...at least that is what my wife tells me :)


Bradley
The Egel Nest

Anonymous said...

The 3 best check-out people at my store are all women, but I will avoid any of them if they have a bagger with them. The bagger is key; I prefer to do it myself. That way if my bread is squished, it's my fault & I don't have to be mad at them all night.

Although now I take the easy way out & just have Genuardi's deliver my groceries to me. It really is the best thing ever! $8 bucks extra & I don't have to waste an hour dragging my kids throughout the store, loading up the car & then dragging the kids & the gorceries into my house by myself. Genuardi's does it all for me! Best idea yet in grocery shopping!

Stepping Over the Junk said...

Men are slower on the register, for sure...

And another observation I have made is that I breathe a sigh of relief when I get a guy on the phone for customer service...they always figure out the problem with my internet, phone, cable, whatever...they figure things out, where I hear alot of women reps say things like "I'm not sure" OR I have been given the wrong information.

It's true. At least in my experience.

Stepping Over the Junk said...

P.S. Women are better multitaskers I think too, which can extend to jobs such as cashiers.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, I think guys are the weaker sex on this issue. The guy checker at my local grocery store also does a nice job of squishing my bread, too. He must have issues.

mrtl said...

If we're talking seasoned cashiers, women are faster. Unless they have super long nails. Those always get in the way.

Spilling Ink said...

I haven't noticed a difference. If there were some substantial difference, I'm certain I would have noticed. I hate shopping and generally can't wait to get the hell out of the store. This is an expert opinion! There is no difference.

TheStolenOlive said...

Well... I have to say that I will have to disagree with your mother.

But, that is only because I am the daughter of a grocery store manager. He has been in the grocery store business since 1959. And he can out scan any of these little teeny-bopper brats that he unfortunately has to call employees.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Lynn. Haven't notice a big difference in gender better checkers and I hate shopping.
My favourite store has a hand held scanner and you scan as you select and there is no re- bagging. When you pay you scan to check out and pay by credit card. It is possible to go through the whole process of grocery shopping and not have to talk to anyone! Perfect. I also like the home delivery too. But I like to squeeze and contemplate the food I buy so usually end up going to the supermarket.
( I have been reading your blog via Stepping's blog for months now. I am hooked. I usually can't wait to find out how Lauren or the kids have got one up on you!)

OhTheJoys said...

Am off to conduct a study...

Anonymous said...

Slow in more than just movement. I bring my own bags to the grocery and Target. I tell the guy at Target, I will be using these bags. He looks at me and starts putting my stuff in Target bags. No, I wanted them in these bags. He looks at me and sounds like Scooby Doo. I had to lift the bag and say: "This stuff in this bag". He finally got it and then it took him forever to bag them. However, I get weird looks when I bring my own bags, so maybe it is just me.

Anonymous said...

Women are efficient. Men are quite often bumbling idiots who can't multi-task. End of story.

theotherbear said...

Men WAY slower ingeneral. However, there are one or two really slow possibly intellectually mild cashiers where I shop who I avoid from painful slow experience more than I avoid the boys.

Amber said...

Is it a super wal-mart cashier? If so, they are all slow...or at least I think they are...I don't know, either way, I leave wanting to cut my wrist right to the bone! To the BONE!!

Gale said...

Here in the backwoods we don't let men at the checkout register.

Anonymous said...

Depends. If she's a talker, much better off with the man. But, you know, men are more awkward with scanning -- never noticed that before. Say thanks to your Mom for me.

Cat said...

Nevermind the gender difference. Have you noticed how slow they get when you bring your own bags? And all bets are off if you have a young checker and you have cucumbers and zucchini in the cart. No, they are not the same vegetable.

cindy kay said...

Men as cashiers?! I've only seen men as sackers/baggers (what's the right word?) I must live in the outdated boonies.

Or maybe we're so up-to-date here that we already know that men are slow, and therefore they don't get hired as cashiers in the first place....

Anonymous said...

I agree that typically the men (boys, really) are MUCH slower. However, there is one dude at our grocery store who ROCKS it.

Anonymous said...

Yes, bypass boys and go to the girls if you want to checkout fast.

If you want to slip more than one coupon for that single item you've bought, go to a boy checkout or a woman that looks like she is supporting her family.

Kris - saved $70.00 on last grocery bill.

Anonymous said...

Self checkout!!! It's the best invention!!!

t_cole said...

mom's dead on

Anonymous said...

seriously, momOf9 rox. she's really awesome. y'all are all blessed.

Andrea said...

YES.

Dollymama said...

They are either slower OR they don't bag properly. (ie: they put your grapes in a bag and then toss five cans of cream of mushroom soup on top)

Anonymous said...

I'm late to comment, but I have to disagree with your mom! (sorry Mom!)
The local publix where I shop has some very fast male cashiers, and I haven't noticed any difference at all.