289885 Sun Jul 21 16:17:16 -0700 2002 34 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1571020 To avoid the each-item-gets-its-own-bag syndrome at larger supermarkets, I bring my own canvas bag. Has anyone else encountered a range of reactions from checkout and bagging people ranging from an eye-rolling "what's with this guy" attitude to downright rude comment-- usually from the bag-boy? I am a fairly hale middle-age guy, and i couldn't believe this kid had the nerve to mouth off. I suggested he apologize profusely. He did. Sun Jul 21 16:17:16 -0700 2002 0 CliffA 1 1571028 You don't live in California, do you? You sometimes get the opposite reaction in some places if you don't bring your own bag. Don't even think of asking for plastic. Sun Jul 21 19:49:36 -0700 2002 1571020 0 Stanley Stephan 2 1571035 Stanley: Maybe what you're saying is true in the Bay Area, but here in LA, it's pretty standard paper-or-plastic. No funny looks for plastic. Not even at Whole Foods! Sun Jul 21 21:21:29 -0700 2002 1571028 0 Scooter Pie 3 1571040 Where do you shop in LA? I've lived here 20+ years and the Chow-ish grocery stores (TJ's and Whole Foods) sell the canvas bags with their logo. It is odd to NOT see the canvas bags. I don't count the *other* grocery stores (Ralph's, Albertsons, Vons) as I haven't shopped in any of those for 20 years. Sun Jul 21 23:41:04 -0700 2002 1571035 0 Palliser 4 1571074 I was actually responding to the phrase "larger supermarkets," way back in the original post, meaning Ralphs, etc. But I mostly shop at TJs, Whole Foods and Bristol Farms, and have never felt pressured at any of those placed to buy a canvas tote bag. No weird looks. Never even been asked about it. Mon Jul 22 12:19:58 -0700 2002 1571040 0 Scooter PIe 2 1571043 LOL, that was the first thing I thought when I read the lead post. Mon Jul 22 01:52:31 -0700 2002 1571028 0 mikeb 2 1571062 Here in NYC, when I bring my own bag, I just put it in front of all the groceries and say "I want everything in here" (sometimes I have to repeat myself or raise my voice [politely] to get the message across). But there are NO paper bags anywhere in this city at grocery or drug stores. Not at local natural foods stores, not even at Whole Foods. The only alternative to plastic is whatever you bring. On the other hand, if I don't have a canvas bag or a backpack with me, I can usually get them to put more in a single bag, though I do have to say, "No really, it'll be fine, I know it's heavy, but I do want it all in that ONE bag." Mon Jul 22 11:34:09 -0700 2002 1571028 0 Caitlin McGrath 3 1571065 I just smile sweetly and explain that I am carrying this ton of groceries on my bicycle- and I need to pack strategically in my asst'd canvas bags. that always works for me Mon Jul 22 11:47:59 -0700 2002 1571062 0 lindsayd 1 1571029 It is all timing... I am a longtime vet of retail grocery. If a customer offers up their bags at the beginning of the process all is good. In fact most places will offer you a token discount. The problem occurs when the bulk of a $200 is already bagged and the customer says "oh I brought my own bags" (or runs out to their car to get them). I am on a timer and I get ranked by it. A customer that makes process longer is an irritation. They make me look like I take longer than I do to perform a task. Anyone who has their own bags up front and ready to go is appreciated though. Make the clerks job easy and they should treat you well. Chow!!! Sun Jul 21 20:18:24 -0700 2002 1571020 0 Brandon Nelson 1 1571030 I don't have a problem in natural food markets and similar places but your standard grocery store, the looks tend to be saying, "Oh look at the tree hugging, recycling nut!" A few of the checkers are getting more use to it at my local Giant but only because there are two adult housing facilities (assisted living apartments and adult community individual homes) across the street. I've seen several elderly people bring more sturdier bags with them to separate glass and such as well as easier to maneuver in their cars or trikes (3-wheeled bikes with large basket on back). Sun Jul 21 20:20:13 -0700 2002 1571020 0 SisterT 1 1571033 I bring my own bags which are canvas and made to my specifications (they stand up like a regular brown bag). They are presented before any groceries are checked. At first the baggers wondered about them, but after using them, they liked them. I still have trouble getting baggers to fill them full enough, though, but they don't like it when I tell them how to do it. They are taught how to bag one way, and even though this bag is not the sort that they were taught with, they can't seem to see that there might be a different way of doing things. The checkers never have a problem with the bags. Sun Jul 21 20:31:45 -0700 2002 1571020 0 Jeremy Newel 1 1571036 I never bring my own bags. I always ask for paper AND plastic. Sun Jul 21 21:34:50 -0700 2002 1571020 0 2chez mike 2 1571052 Tip: never use brown paper bags. I learned the hard way that cockroaches love them but not plastic. After I hired an exterminator, he told me about the brown bags. Mon Jul 22 09:33:59 -0700 2002 1571036 0 Jerry Day 3 1571081 And then, many people store their brown paper bags stuffed between the fridge and the wall where it's nice and warm and moist for them, too! Do you wonder why most apartment buildings have them? Mon Jul 22 12:42:24 -0700 2002 1571052 0 saucyknave 4 1571158 That's it! Exactly. Dump those brown bags as soon as you get home. Better yet, don't bring em home in the first place. Dump all the brown bags from food delivery stores - another cockroach haven. One time I was on a city bus and was holding a doggy bag from my lunch at Bloomingdale's 40 Carrots cafe. While sitting on the bus I put the bag down and saw a huge roach crawl out of the brown bag and scurry across the floor. Everybody looked at me like I did it on purpose. I chucked the doggy/roach bag pronto! Tue Jul 23 09:46:45 -0700 2002 1571081 0 Jerry Day 1 1571046 I've run into the same problem - one item per bag. I've never gotten organized enough to keep a canvas bag with me in the car, but I'd love it if I could get just one/two bags per modest grocery shopping trip. Link: http://geocities.com/woodenmask.geo/stories/gruntled13.html Mon Jul 22 07:57:29 -0700 2002 1571020 0 fladd 1 1571056 We live in San Diego and carry a great Ikea canvass bag. It holds a ton. I usually do the bagging. Most of the baggers are now used to it. We get a slight discount for bringing it no matter where, Albertsons, Trader Joes (alas we have no Whole Foods in our area). WE have only one Ikea bag, and we have been back there numerous times to get another...no luck ; (. peace, jill Mon Jul 22 10:16:04 -0700 2002 1571020 0 jill 1 1571068 One of the best pieces of kiddie-oriented propaganda ever directed my way was a short documentary called "No Bag Please" which was shown to my class in second grade (I don't want to give my age away, but let's just say it was...before the 80's. ) It was the era of brown paper bags, and the film showed all these trees getting cut down - people shopping and throwing away brown paper bags... and then hammered home the message that you could bring your own bag, recycle, etc. The end message was that when buying groceries, you should say "no bag please" and to this day, it has left an impression. To this day I try to reuse the plastic grocery bags, bring a straw bag or stick things in my shoulder bag wherever possible. Most of the time the cashiers are too busy to notice where you're putting the groceries (and at my local supermarket in London, they don't bag for you anyway). On a similar note - I've had less success with recycling those horrible wire hangers from the dry cleaners, I won't put them in my closet (I have had my own mommie dearest moments) and I have tried to bring them back to the cleaners, since they could easily reuse them - but they don't seem interested even though it would probably save them a lot of money. Mon Jul 22 12:08:57 -0700 2002 1571020 0 magnolia 2 1571109 Cleaners build the cost of the hangers into the price of your cleaning, and so don't much care about recovering them. Nonetheless, many will take them back. Try a different store. Mon Jul 22 16:51:39 -0700 2002 1571068 0 dude 1 1571077 Here in my north-of-Boston area, no one asks, "paper or plastic?" Your groceries are automatically placed in plastic bags, lots and lots of them, unless you speak up very quickly and make your preferences clear. The supermarkets do keep paper bags around, but in increasingly short supply, so that the bagger (who is, increasingly, also the checker) often has to go scrounging to other stations for them. But we always ask for them (whenever we remember, that is), because our town has curbside recycling and we're required to put everything in paper bags. We used to bring our own canvas bags, but found that the baggers were always confused and often annoyed by them. Ironically, we finally abandoned them when the curbside recycling program started up. Mon Jul 22 12:31:39 -0700 2002 1571020 0 C. Fox 2 1571185 Also living just north of Boston, I should add that I have never had a major problem with asking for "paper in plastic", which usually halves the overall number of bags (because each bag thus reinforced can hold a lot more, and is also less likely to topple in the car....), while still getting a handle to hold. Of course, I prefer the handled paper bags at some places, but the glue used can be unreliable..... Tue Jul 23 14:26:42 -0700 2002 1571077 0 Karl S. 1 1571125 What's almost as bad is the proliferation of plastic bags at farmers' markets. I put my produce on the scale or hand it over to be weighed/counted, then they automatically go to put it in a plastic bag. "No, I have a bag," I say, and arrange it so things like potatoes are on the bottom and strawberries on the top. I used to bring canvas bags to the grocery store and at Vons the bagger told me he wouldn't touch them, because he didn't know when was the last time they'd been washed and he didn't feel like getting sick thank you very much. (!) Another thing that deviates from the Market Script is the idea of walking. "Can you use as few bags as possible?" I say. "I'm walking." Strange looks get thrown my way and the kid starts putting each item in a separate bag. "No, I'm WALKING, I can't carry that many bags, it makes it hard to move." I've just given up and joined the legions of residents of my (apartment building-lined) street who just push their 13 bags home in a pilfered grocery trolley. And then the management complain about how much it costs to hire those trucks that go and fetch the trolleys. Mon Jul 22 19:06:59 -0700 2002 1571020 0 PRSMDave 1 1571135 Ah one of my pet peeves. Hereabouts it is rare to get a bagger and I make sure to bag my own since it is clear that no one has been given any instruction or advice or even a casual comment about how to properly bag groceries. I get a single loaf of bread put in a double plastic bag, laundry detergent in the same bag as food, and forget the simple concept of putting cold things together so I can conveniently put stuff away when I get home. I have even unpacked stuff there on counter and re-packed it and handed the unneeded second bag back to the bagger when I get annoyed, and I am usually pretty easygoing, but this one gets me..... Mon Jul 22 21:26:48 -0700 2002 1571020 0 Hubey Plummer 2 1571154 To be honest, they do train baggers on ALL of those things... but some baggers are apparently flunkies! Bags are supposed to be a certain weight (can't remember what it is) and detergents and stuff are supposed to be separate, as are meats (since they sometimes drip)... Cold things are supposed to be packed together - especially the frozen things, and things like bread and eggs are supposed to be on their own (but together - a bag of chips won't break an egg). All bags should be bagged to create almost a square, with an even distribution of heavy and light things (my peeve - the "all the cans in one bag and two boxes of cereal in another" syndrome). Now if I can remember all of this and I haven't worked in a grocery store since high school (which I've been out of for 5 years) then why can't these kids get it now? I understand your frustrations! And, sadly, I look forward to the times there's no bagger so I can do it myself (which seems to be about 90% of the time now anyway.)> Tue Jul 23 09:25:03 -0700 2002 1571135 0 Jaylea 3 1571173 I know they used to train baggers that way, but I have to agree that they don't anymore. I like the idea of unloading the poorly packed bags and repacking them on the counter. I might start that today. In the mean time, I always ask for paper bags, even if I know they don't have them. Then when they tell me paper is not available, I make a point of 1. asking why (usually very forcefully) and 2. telling them I don't want 18 plastic bags that are poorly packed. It doesn't fix the problem, but it helps a little and it makes me feel better. Tue Jul 23 12:36:26 -0700 2002 1571154 0 iveygirl 4 1571178 But doesn't the unloading of the bags really just slow up the poor customer behind you? Wouldn't it be better to just go to management and complain about the perceived lack of training, or to say, AS the groceries are being bagged, that you would like the bags full? These seem to be better approaches, and seem as if they would do more than just hold up the others in line... and seem as if they would do more in the long run, for all customers. The same goes for asking the bagger for paper bags when you know they don't have them - is it just to humiliate and challenge them? Because they certainly don't do the ordering. It would be best to go to management or write a letter to the corporate headquarters - to people who CAN make a difference. Tue Jul 23 13:16:55 -0700 2002 1571173 0 Jaylea 5 1571193 You said this much nicer and more intelligently than I would have. I would probably have a case of "bag rage" if someone in front of me decided they wanted to repackage their groceries after they were bagged. I am afraid I would make loud and unkind comments. We are not ALL pleasant in California. Go ahead. Try it. Make my day. I do try to unload my cart in a way that my groceries will get bagged in the best way. Then I keep an eye on the bagger for sensative items like tomatoes or strawberries. I shop at a really great produce store, but the one thing that just gets me crazy is the way they bag the fruits so they get smashed. So I make sure the stuff that gets squished is unloaded last. Also put all cold and frozen items together so that they are more likely to get bagged together. Tue Jul 23 15:25:30 -0700 2002 1571178 0 Stanley Stephan 6 1571199 Thank you. I try! I DID feel the old supermarket worker in me welling up though! :) Tue Jul 23 16:38:06 -0700 2002 1571193 0 Jaylea 5 1571265 You might think repacking would slow things down, but at the speed some of these kids move, I can unpack and re-pack faster than they can pack. It shouldn't be so frustrating, but when I get home and have to unpack the groceries while making sure a 2 year old doesn't pull a gallon of milk off the counter onto his head I'd rather the stuff was bagged right to begin with..... Wed Jul 24 16:22:07 -0700 2002 1571178 0 Hubey Plummer 3 1571189 I too get irritated when all the heavy cans are in the same bag. Seems like the baggers would have the sense to wonder how little old ladies like me are supposed to manage to carry one of these bags. I prefer plastic for carrying groceries in - you can grab a bunch at once - but do ocasionally get a paper one or two to put old newspapers in for our recycling program. While on the subject of supermarket checkout, I also get so irritated when the cashier slams the bags of chips and cookies and other delicate things on the scanner so it will scan the price. I really watch for this. Thanks for listening. D. Tue Jul 23 15:16:08 -0700 2002 1571154 0 Donna - MI 4 1571198 Hammacher Schlemmer has a plastic grocery bag caddy that can carry eight bags at once without squishing the bags. A few people in my condo have them and they look really cool. Well, cool in the way that says to me I don't have to throw my back out getting the bags home. Link: http://www.hammacher.com/publish/68207.asp?pcat=&pcont=grocery%20KWSP&cat=grocery%20KWSP Image: http://www.hammacher.com/images/large/68207.jpg Tue Jul 23 16:20:56 -0700 2002 1571189 0 Stanley Stephan 3 1571201 The thing that really annoys me, when checker is scanning or ringing items is the continual chatter between that person and other checkers or bag boys/girls. I would like attention put on the process of charging me for groceries an not on his/her personal life. I cannot believe this chatter needs to take place,on company time, in front of customer. This is most likely cause of many overrings and incorrect charges. If I am helping pay their salary, I feel I deserve the attention. I have complained to management, in various locations, a number of times but does not seem to have effect. I feel Gelsons and Bristol farms has this under control a lot better than Vons, Ralphs, Albertson, Etc. Any other thoughts on this or am I just a crabby old lady? Tue Jul 23 17:06:07 -0700 2002 1571154 0 marti 1 1571213 oh boy, have I been wanting to vent about THIS for a long time. as another pointed out... here in nyc, there are no paper bags. at least not in queens. as a matter of fact, they try and purchase the A #1 most useless bags possible to require using as many as possible. why not get better ones? and what more.... you get the look of an insane woman when bringing your own in. like I'm somehow stealing the stuff if I'm putting it in my own bag. but keep trying. really. I occassionally forget... I try to pack them myself... but sometimes that doesnt even work. I've seen one checker grab something out of my boyfriends hands and double bag it, even though we'd gone back and forth 4 times about how its fine. (I've seen this same person throw away any bags that get a little wrinkled in the bagging process before going on to the next person. maybe there's a support group) and once upon a time, this forgetfullness resulted in me getting ONE LITTLE BRICK OF CHEESE in TWO PLASTIC BAGS (uh, none woulda been fine). I was in such shock I didn't even know what to do. I was counting change to pay. and I looked up, and she had it double bagged. I'm not talkin no big wheel'o brie. I'm talking a 3 inch square of cheese. ya know. LIGHT. what the hell? I realize everyone zones out, but really. and then. then, just the other day I went in. and I didn't have my bags with me. and the girl looked at me while she was bagging (and I'm sure I was nervously staring) and said "fit it all in one, right?" and I was in shock and glee and did something just short of exclaim "oh, that would be awesome" and I'm not even sure I'm ever in her line alot. I must have that look about me. see, persistance. (of course the thought of having a supermarket reputation leaves something to be desired)In NE Ohio they have a supermarket plastic-bag tradition of blue. your grocery bags are blue, and you can go home and use them as recycling bags. genuis. I wish ny had that, then I wouldn't feel so bad about the excessive bag usage of everyone else. OH WAIT we don't have recycling anymore. can we now discuss the cup-of-coffee-to-go-in-a-bag phenomenon? I mean.... arn't ya just gonna drink it? Do I really need 'the look' for not wanting THAT? you people in California. you've got it made. but you know that already. Tue Jul 23 21:48:14 -0700 2002 1571020 0 mia 2 1571269 I feel like I wrote that post myself! I think the cashiers a) are zoned out from scanning like robots, and b)think you're crazy for not wanting something for free if you don't want 10 bags for 8 items. What do people do with all these plastic bags? Memories of "paper or plastic" are just that. Aah--and remember glass recycling ? Wed Jul 24 16:44:39 -0700 2002 1571213 0 K. McB. 3 1571270 My solution to the extra bags? I have a dog and live in Boston - takes care of them mighty quickly, if you know what I mean... ;) Wed Jul 24 16:57:24 -0700 2002 1571269 0 Jaylea