Beyond the barcode.

The grocery store.   I go there a lot.  Not just for the heck of it…. like taking a trip to Opryland.  No.   I buy a lot of groceries.  Specifically, I go through more produce items than most of the general population.  I eat more carrots in a week than Bugs Bunny ate during his entire career at Warner Brothers.

I think most people have an aversion when it comes to groceries.  You can see it on their faces when you are in Aisle Four, or in the Check-Out.  There appears to be some sort of semi-catatonic glaze which covers their faces.  A Supermarket Stupor, I like to call it.

My guess is…  those 89% of the population afflicted with Supermarket Stupor,  are completely affected about 1.5 seconds after pulling into the parking lot. This is painfully apparent.  They seemed to be inhibited in their ability to park a car between two lines.  The also exhibit a general unawareness of other cars and pedestrians.  Not to mention, grocery cart consciousness.

Once inside, it worsens.

First and  foremost, there always seems to be that “one guy.”  You bump into him / her, right at the entrance.  As he tries to walk through the door at the same time as you.  From that point on, you meet at the turn of every aisle.  He is typically, the person who leaves their cart, smack-dab in the middle of the row…. while they decide between Frosted Pop-Tarts, or Chewy Granola Bars.  This is while his kids are paying a game of tag around your cart.  And of course, in the check-out line, he is the one with 110 coupons, and paying with some sort of voucher system from a foreign country.   That guy.

I guess these might be some of the reasons people have disinclination toward going to the grocery.

But most days, I like going to the store.  It isn’t so much the activity, as it is the place.  I love the grocery here in Eaton.  There is only ONE, in my estimation.  And that is the Marsh Supermarket on Aukerman Street.

You see, this is the closest thing I have to “Cheers”… with Norm, and Sam, Carla, Woody, Diane, and Clifford,  …. where everybody knows your name…  and they’re always glad you came.  It is true.  When I walk through the door at Marsh… they all chime in… “Pollllllly.”  Just like Cheers.

Once there, I soar. I know where everything is located, and I glide through the aisles like Disney on ice.  The store is stocked and neat, and clean.  I fill my cart in nothing flat.  And if they don’t have it… they try like the dickens to get it for you.

Yep.  It is a little bit of sunshine, on a rainy, rainy day.

But the biggest thing is… the people.  They are very good at what they do, and they are very kind in the process.  Always smiling, always helpful.  Always a good word to say.

I’m sure I don’t see the trials and tribulations that must occur behind the scenes.  Most places have them.  But whenever I go there, the experience is quite pleasant.  The people…. make the place.

Well. Except for that one guy.

I’m thankful for my friends at Marsh.  And for all their goodness.  … Besides that?  They never call me Norm…. …

You wanna be where you can see,
our troubles are all the same
You wanna be where everybody knows
Your name.

 

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“There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves, it is not my nature.”
― Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey

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“If you have two friends in your lifetime, you’re lucky. If you have one good friend, you’re more than lucky.”
― S.E. Hinton

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