I went to the grocery store this weekend, and for some reason, I was extra observant of the other shoppers. Sometimes it is fun just to see what other people buy, although I do not stare or dig through anyone else’s cart.
So, on Memorial Day, I grabbed my shopping cart, and wiped it down with a nice Purell sheet provided by Meijer. As I was walking, I realized that my cart was squeaking and somehow uneven. I decided to put up with it as I was too lazy to go back and get a new one.
I got to the back of the store, and I left my cart near the restroom as I ran down a crowded aisle real quick to grab something. By the time I returned, another patron had stolen my cart and was walking away with it. I didn’t really care because that cart was obnoxious, but I chuckled at the opportunist who was now stuck with my squeaky, uneven, germ-free cart.
I ran to get a new cart, and by the time I returned, I saw my old cart sitting there, abandoned, and just shoved in the middle of the aisle. (I know it was abandoned because it was still sitting there 15 minutes later when I had to go back down that aisle to get pickle reslish.) The cart thief even left his items in the cart and must have just bolted. How rude!
Anyway, while shopping, I kept coming across what appeared to be a father and son who were grocery shopping. They looked incredibly puzzled the entire time, and they were taking forever. I am guessing we shopped about the same amount of time, and in the end, all they had was ice cream, ice cream cones, a can of chili, and some sort of frozen chicken nuggets. Obviously, dad was in charge of dinner that night… 
While walking past the wine aisle, I saw what may have been a match made in heaven. It was an elderly gentleman chatting with an elderly woman, both in their little scooters. They seemed to be having such a nice time catching up, and it was obvious they did not arrive together because they were parked in different directions. Maybe they are kicking back in their scooters right now drinking from a box of wine…
One thing I noticed throughout my entire shopping trip was the large number of people with grocery lists and coupons, both clipped and printed from the internet. I don’t know if the Extreme Couponing show has anything to do with the couponing trend or if it is because people are just trying to stretch their dollars further. Regardless, I was just happy to see so many shoppers trying to save some money on their grocery bill.
After shopping and paying for my groceriess, I realized I would not qualify to be an ‘Extreme Couponer’. My total bill was $80, and I had saved $45 from both sales and coupons. I would be considered a coupon embarrassment by ‘Extreme Couponing’ standards. I would love to see someone save 98 percent on their bill though, but I would not want to be in line behind them.
Do you have any grocery shopping stories to share? Do you notice a difference between men and women shoppers?