this was funny...
so the other day I was grabbing some things from the Walmart on Georgia Avenue...
the Walmart next to the towers just down the street from my house in Manor Park
it is the closest grocery store in an area that could be considered a food desert
the Safeway on Piney Branch is my go to... but sometimes the Walmart will suffice...
went up to the local Walmart to grab a few items...
Walmart can be an amusing place...
without a proper list I gathered my goods in a less than logical manner... eventually collecting the primary items that were etched in my brain on my mental list
the lines can be long and slow at the Walmart so the Self Check Out is often the preferred method of check out
so... I went to queue up in the very short Self Check Out line...
in front of me was a woman with cart filled with this and that
it was not clear if she was in line or not as she was sort of off to the side... she was not really in the line... maybe shopping for women's garments as the line queues up in between the women's section... so I asked, "excuse me... are you in line"
to which the woman responded "no..." then in an almost panicked fashion she gathered up her I large blue IKEA bag from her shopping cart
she threw the bag over her shoulder and started to move
it was clear what was happening here...
the woman with her Blue IKEA bag over her shoulder weaved her way through the chaos of the Self Check Out area
there is a bit of tone of madness in this area...
with its several broken registers, multiple people ringing up their items, and the two Walmart employees assisting the process with guiding the line to the open register and approving alcohol sales and other such things that happen in self check out that need staff approval
it was clear what was happening...
this woman was taking advantage of the chaos and bypassing the check out
I watched her as she weaved past the Walmart employees and then the Walmart Security staff that was face down in his cell phone... nose poking out of his mask
she was gone... through one set of doors... out the next set of doors...
on the sidewalk...
FREE! Not sure if she boarded the bus that was directly out front... that would have been stellar timing... just as she was gone... she was gone from my interest\concern
I saw that there was a free register... so I moved forward with my cart
then it happened
the Walmart employee stopped me and said.. "You have more than 20 items in your cart... you can not use Self Check Out!"
I glanced at my cart... it was not clear how many items I had... maybe 22... maybe 26
unlike the woman in the Walmart vest with the Walmart name tag... I can not guess the number of gum balls in a gum ball machine nor can I accurately guess at a glance the number of items in a person's shopping cart
it amused me...
I had not known the 20 item cut off
yet it amused me how on top of things this worker was in terms of my going to Self Check Out or the Human Operated Cash Register
while she had no real concern for the shop lifter
she had seen her... she and the other employee in the Self Check Out area each had a response to the woman passing through with her IKEA bag
but they did not act on things
they did not even alert the security officer to the possible theft
I get it... to the worker... it may not be worth the conflict...
it could be a scene... it would be paper work... and it could ruin someone's day
but really
where can I get one of those IKEA bags?
oh... IKEA or my basement
Walmart can be amusing... life in the city has its quirks...