I once read somewhere...people need to realize "how are you?" is really just a greeting and not a question. My answer is always "fantastic, thanks for asking."
I have many of the same pet peeves as everyone else, but life is too short to let it really bother you.

As was stated before, the "rant" was started in fun, and nobody is obsessing over these things. Nothing wrong with a little venting.

10 items or less
 

Why do they put the nicest personality at the quick checkout register? Put an anti social, efficient person there. No chit chat. Business only.
And don't get me started on the person who hears " $10.34 please" and then starts the search for change. The little fingers dig into a small, dark, change purse. And starts the search for a quarter, dime, pulls out a nickel , throws that back in , and then pulls out various coins until 4 pennies are found. My inner voice is screaming, "Just give the cashier $11.00. " LOL

And from the other side of that, if I'm told $10.34 and I open my change purse, for sure my fingers become twice their normal size, and I'm going to spill everything in my rush to try not to hold up the line. So you're right--give 'em the $11!!!

I so agree! What's the hurry? We're retired. When I'm waiting in line, regardless of the situation, I always remind myself that some people are lonely and this could be their only social contact for the day.

This is a great video to remind ourselves that we don't always know what's going on in another person's life:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v...type=2&theater

:a20:
That's clever! Love a sense of humor.

My worst experience was standing in line at Joann, where the customer ahead of me took a sandwich out of her bag, unwrapped it, ate it, then unwrapped and ate a candy bar, folded the wrappings and put them back in her bag and then finally left the store. I'm like WTF is going on?

Checks not customer friendly
 

As for the checkbooks.......where I used to live, we wrote checks just about every time we went to the grocery store, the clothing store and any other store we visited. Once we wrote the first check at the grocery store, they had our info on file and we breezed right through even faster than swiping a credit card. Since living here, I've noticed that they seem to make it much more inconvenient to write checks. They have to take your license each time which In Turn holds up the line, making for some frustrated customers behind you. After writing only two checks at Publix, I decided it wasn't worth the time and wait to complete the transaction this way. Perhaps they should take a look at making it easier for customers to write checks. I personally know if the store implements different means of accepting the check then it will be more customer friendly.

I think most stores are moving away from checks because their customers are moving away from checks. No idea about percentages, but I'm sure it's a high number of people using credit cards and debit cards.....probably over 90%. I bet it won't be too many years before there aren't even checks, at all.

Low blood sugar, maybe?? That must have been a long line for her to get through a sandwich and candy bar. Could be the time just slipped up on her, but I can see how that would have been a little odd. I often have something in my purse, and if I feel my sugar getting too low, I will sneak a bite or two, as discreetly as possible.

Where we're from (midwest) it was always a problem of copying ID/Drivers license numbers or store check-cashing card numbers when fiddling around with checks, and that is why Debit cards took hold so quickly and efficiently.

With debit card, the money is instantly taken out of the checking account, and by running it as "credit" thru the system, you have the protection of Mastercard or Visa against fraudulent use.

With debit and PIN number, or debit run as signed credit, there is no need to write checks and have cashiers fiddling around with hand copying ID numbers.

And about "people in a hurry" and "what's the hurry?".......Most of us have been working the last 40-50 years in jobs that required productivity and customer service, which means working fast and efficiently as well as courteously.

I think it's not that we're "in a hurry" so much as it is our awareness of productivity as employees or business managers/owners during decades of work, supervising employees, and ownership.

Oh yeah, the people (mostly women) who wait until the total rings up to slowly pull out their checkbook DRIVE ME CRAZY. Do they not anticipate that a check will be written at the end of the ringing-up process? I write my check while I'm waiting in line, leaving only the amount to be filled in. Of course, most of us don't write checks anymore anyway.

And yes, I am a woman too. I much prefer to get behind a man in line as they are much faster, unless they start pulling out the change...

The other thing: Ladies who must put everything back in their purse and organize themselves after they have paid, holding up the next customer. They do not think to just move to the side somewhere and "organize" themselves away from the line.

Okay, off my chest. Have a great day!

Writing checks in the first place is hard for the clerk depending on the store policy and holds up everything, unless it is big ticket in which case there wouldn't be a line anyway. Cash or charge is my motto.

lets not forget is was debit and charge cards that got us all new cards because of target...

In this same vein of thinking. It drives me crazy when I am in line at someplace like a restaurant or an auto parts store and then the phone rings and they disregard the folks in line to give the person on the phone preference. Is it me? HELLO I'm standing right here! I AM a customer and I'm right in front of you! Not a potential customer who is likely price shopping or checking reservation times.

It just drives me NUTZ.

There is a reason for that. The person on the phone can't see what's going on. The customer at the counter can, plus the ringing of the phone is annoying, as you try to finish up your business. Not saying the clerk should stop dealing with you and complete their business with the phone caller, but they do need to answer the phone and either ask the person to hold, transfer them to another dept. or take a number to call back.

Also, one should never answer the phone with "Can you hold please?" That is extremely annoying and inefficient. Depending on the business, often it just as easy to transfer the call and be done with it. If they do need to talk to the person who answered the phone, again....ask them THEN if they can hold.

I just love all these little pet peeves we're getting off our chests.....LOL It might just stop us from actually being snappish or offensive in the real situation!

Yes, but you have better fraud protection with a credit card than you do with a debit card and especially a check, which when you write one puts your name address, bank account number and bank routing number out there for many people to see.

I would much rather deal with a cc company after a fraudulent purchase to get my money back than a bank after someone has wiped out my account.

I dunno about it improving our collective humor, kiddo. This cold damp weather is gettin' to me. I don't want any more "snow" days. I could just bite. It IS good to vent, but I have just done more today than I usually do.


I am so glad we have this place and this forum. We are a spicy bunch, aren't we?

I agree! Let us all rant so we won't come home from the store and yell at the poor dog!:grumpy:

Not to worry, Gracie....warming back up soon, and weren't the days just before this snap just glorious? I couldn't bring myself to stay inside.....my poor dirty house.:(

Southern folks, especially from smaller communities, consider it rude to conduct business without first exchanging social pleasantries. Just plain good manners. Have you ever noticed that people that are always in a hurry and can't be bothered with social exchanges are never smiling? I have yet to see anyone passing me in their golf cart with a smile on their face. Just saying. Wonder what makes them so unhappy and hurried?

If some get the same cold shoulder that my sister-in-law and I did at the rec center(s), I can see why some stay away and visit with clerks, etc. She loves to play Pinochle so I took her over to play (I love to play, too) when she got here to visit. Reluctantly, they agreed to "let" us play but were anything but friendly. They definitely were not happy for the intrusion to their weekly gathering, even though it was and still is published in the Recreation News on Thursdays. You would have thought that we were there to run them out. Needless to say, this did not make a good impression on her of our Villages or me, since we had not been here very long. Unfortunately, too many people are not very social, but very cliquish. As one poster stated, some will not even bother to say hello when greeted the same.

Solution: We never went again and I came home and rounded up others from one of our clubs to play. We have a great time and anyone is welcome. We will even teach you if you don't know how. The more, the merrier for us. We just want people who want to have a good time for a few hours and leave negativity behind. We take turns hosting.

Maybe some of the chit-chatters have had similar experiences.

We totally got the cold shoulder when we went to bingo at Paradise, right after we moved here. It was so uncomfortable, we just left....which is, I'm sure, just what "they" all wanted. We will never go back to anything at Paradise and have shied away from other activities unless we already know someone to go with.

I'm also getting a little tired of smiling and waving and getting nothing in return. Lots of pushy people, too. We were standing behind a couple of people, at the bar, at Bonefish who appeared to be finishing up. As they were leaving, we kind of backed away to give them room to get out of the chairs, get their jackets on, etc. A couple came through the door and made a beeline for the chairs. My husband politely said, excuse me, but we've been waiting for those seats for a while. Couple just ignored him, turned around and proceeded to enjoy their evening, while we continued to stand and wait for 2 more seats. That kind of behavior is so foreign to me, I don't even know how to respond to people like that. End of the world? No, of course not, but don't tell me this is "Florida's Friendliest Hometown".....HA!!

I truly, TRULY understand what you are saying. I have never encountered that kind of behavior before living here either.


It is more than surprising, it makes me sad.


We do have different upbringings for sure even though we are all "grown up"..


You are always so positive. Please don't ever change.

I heard this happened too, in another card group at one of the rec centers. It has made me reluctant to try to join one of those supposedly open groups of card players.

I'm sorry this happened to you, casita. And also, about what happened at Bonefish... The unfortunate part of that is that you end up feeling you must get as pushy as they are.

All I can say is, some on both coasts live in such crowded conditions that they have grown up having to fight for their "spots." When we lived in northern NJ I would go to Pathmark, a large grocery store, and frequently there would not be enough carts for everyone to have one. One time I had my cart "appropriated" by another shopper, and one time by a worker who wanted a cart to use for stocking! There were other instances too numerous to mention. You had to become proactive.

Those of us from Pittsburgh west to California simply cannot fathom that.

Too many times I am in the line to pick-up my prescription drugs and the woman in front is picking up hers plus a weeks worth of groceries. I can't believe Publix would allow people to hold up the line for prescriptions for someone trying to get around waiting in the normal lines for food.

I'll say this, and I'm totally ready for the backlash....

When we were still in the deciding stage to move here, we were at Panera Bread eating lunch and looking at floorplans. The couple next to us welcomed us as potential new Villagers. They had been here a few years. We spoke for some time, then I asked them, "What is the worst thing about The Villages?" They looked at each other, then asked us a return question before answering us. "Where are you from?' they asked. We told them Arizona, and they replied, "Ok, the worst thing about The Villagers is The New Yorkers" They were from Ohio.

I say this only because there was a post above discussing the crowded cities and how people act that have lived in the big cities for most of their lives. Having come from AZ, (we also spent much of our lives in CA) we also notice a definite difference here (vs "out west") in the overal politness of many folks here while visiting stores, and other activities.

What we have experienced in about a year and a half here...If you ask anyone about The Villages, most will have a nice conversation with you about how great it is. But don't get in their way when parking, shopping, at a restaurant, or getting into a game with their usual friends.

So that is my "Rant"....whether it is true or not that New Yorkers or "big city folks" are more pushy then us "South Westerners", it is definitely noticable here. One last thought, I don't think of Florida as presenting the "Southern Hospitality" ...perhaps because most folks in TV are not southerners?

Everyone here is from somewhere else and regardless of where, there is absolutely no excuse for rude behavior....period. Those of us from the south and Midwest might be considered too laid back or red-neck. "Excuse me, thank you, please, hello, and welcome" are just good manners. At least, that is what I was taught.

It's mighty pleasin' to my Ohio ears, Maam.

99% of the time i have patience but sometimes i need to get somewhere else so list is:
1. People who drive in the left lane on a highway or parkway with no intention of passing another driver, and who won't move over, forcing me to break the law by passing them on the right.
2. People in supermakets that get in the twelve items or less, and have 27 items in their cart, If their bill is $43 and they give the machine a $100, they can count up to 57.
3. People who watch each item being wrung up, and then can't find their credit card, and fish trying to find it.
4. People at the drugstore that tell their life story when other people are waiting in line. I waited twenty five minutes, for one person to pick-up their prescription.
5. People who walk around stores, etc, and think they are the only people in their world. Two ladies talking to each other, and blocking a exercise machine,
and were totally oblivious, to what was going on around them.
6. People who use the automatic check-out lanes at Sam's and have no idea on how to operate the system. On elderly couple took thirty minutes to check out. They asked for assistance at least four times. At least, when I joined the line, and they were probably there longer.

Whew, I don't feel better, but I got my bitchin out of the way, all, at once.

It seems like to 1%, is increasing. OH NO!!!!!!

And, I thank you. :thumbup:

Gotta go catch 'The Millers'. Love that show!

On this subject I would add the cashier in a small store who answers the phone while waiting on a live customer. Instead of saying "can you hold please, I'm waiting on a customer", they talk to the person and answer all their questions while I stand there waiting. I want to shout HEY, I CAME TO YOUR STORE TO GET MY QUESTIONS ANSWERED AND BUY SOMETHING AND YOU ARE GIVING PRIORITY SERVICE TO SOMEONE WHO DIDNT MAKE THE EFFORT TO COME TO THE STORE?

I just bristle when this happens to me. I don't understand why some people think that it is okay to interrupt when someone else is being waited on. My pet peeve, also.

Tailgaters

I agree and don't like those interruptions either.

But....as illustrated in various posts above, sometimes a customer has waited a long time while that customer is carrying on a detailed conversation with the store clerk, discussing everything personal and nothing business related. People who actually want to buy something shouldn't have to wait for a customer telling their forlorn life story, or gossip, to the store clerk/cashier.

Exactly. It's mind boggling to be standing there with your merchandise laid out at the cash register, with money or credit card in hand, after already waiting in line behind 6-8 people.....

....and the cashier seems to think it's more important to attend to "somebody" out there who's out kickin' tires by phone than to actually make a sale and collect money!

Really?? You would want to get the clerk in trouble because he/she is conversing with a customer instead of ignoring them.
This whole issue should go under the heading "don't sweat the small stuff"

Just saying.............

Cabin Fever
 

I echo your sentiment of "What's the hurry? We're retired...etc."
EXCELLENT VIDEO by the way......

I also do not believe it's just a southern trait re neighborly chitchat; up here it happens , especially at this time of the year, or early spring, due to CABIN FEVER.......once people begin interacting with other humans again, all the news comes gushing out .......

Again, it is nothing new. I distinctly remember my mom and my grandmother back in the 1950's literally crossing the street to avoid Mrs. So and So, who would go on endlessly about her ailments, her grandchildren, her problems, etc.........some people just have no one else to talk to. Very sad. But truly, it only takes a few minutes out of a very long day to be kind and listen, if only for a moment.

We also have had neighbors who are more verbal than most; ironically married to very quiet spouses........when we see them walking down our street, most duck indoors to avoid a long long story.........but truthfully, it would be kinder if we all used our God given patience.

Patience is a virtue..........especially while standing in lines, waiting for service.

The video was an excellent reminder. Thanks for sharing.

Sales Clerk answers phone
 

I'm sorry but I don't allow it. I have waited in line, at the store, and now it is my turn to be served. If the clerk reaches for the phone I immediately ask them what are you doing? I tell them they can answer the phone after they are done with me. To me it's the same as having another customer butt in and serve them instead of me. I disagree with previous posters who thinks it is OK to answer the phone. Let it ring.