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Sunday 26 November 2006

You Can Look But You Can't Buy


I had to go to the supermarket today to get all the stuff for Sunday dinner I hadn't got yesterday because I made the mistake of popping in for a livener en-route - there really is no such thing as a quick pint.
Not used to Sunday shopping, I checked on the net to see what time the supermarket opened, noted that it said 9am, and so popped down just afterwards. I went in, grabbed a couple of baskets, zoomed round the aisles collecting what I had to and then made for the checkouts. Nine minutes flat - not bad I thought (man shopping, see) - and what's more there was no-one at any checkout. Suspiciously, no-one was manning (or womanning or yoofing) any of the checkouts either. I waited, and I waited, and I waited until I eventually spotted an assistant who was hovering up one of the aisles and frowning at me. "'Scuse me love, is anyone serving?" "No sales 'til 10am," she replied. "Yeah, right. No, seriously, is anyone going to come and serve me?" I queried, trying to press home my point. "Browsing hour from 9am," she said. Browsing! FUCKING BROWSING!!!! Who, in their right mind, wants to "browse" round a supermarket. If you're going somewhere to buy a new car I can imagine you would want to have a bit of a look around first before you handed over your hard-earned. Buying a house involves a lot of "browsing" and no doubt Al Faed shopped around (literally) before buying Harrods - but food shopping! What do these tossers envisage us doing? "'Scuse me love. This leg of lamb here. Could I try it on?" "Certainly dear. Just follow me to the freezer." Or maybe "Oi, mate! These bananas. Do you do them in a blue?" Perhaps "Do you mind if I take these Saccharino Cornycrunchflakes out into the light to see if they match my curtains?" Give me a break. Three quarters of a sodding hour I had to wait until someone was prepared to take my money off me. I'm going to write a book - '101 Things To Do While Waiting to be Served at a Supermarket Checkout'. I'd better warn in advance, it will be a bloody short book.
Browsing hour! I say let all of Grantham's shopkeepers open up early and then refuse to sell anything.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is typical of the petty smallmindedness displayed by many of today's supermarket shoppers. Not content with removing any opportunity for our staff to have a decent work-life balance simply because your raging alcohol problem prevents you being organised enough to get your shopping done on a Saturday like any normal citizen, you then see fit to add insult to injury by publicly complaining, just because your selfish consumer greed couldn't be instantly sated at a time when most decent folk are going to Church. So you had to give up a few minutes of your precious time, did you? Boo bloody hoo. It's not as if the pubs were even open. Mrs Thatcher would be gratified by your blatant materialism and obvious disregard for the menial serfs who get paid a pittance to pander to the likes of you at the checkouts.

Sounds to me like you're a sexually repressed freelance journalist with an irrational dislike of Catholicism.

Publish this on your blog if you will, Sir.

Evelyn Carnate (Ms.)
"Costcut Xpress"
West Wittering
Surrey

Barry Lawrence said...

Dear Anon-ce,
Thank you for taking a break from the 24/7 frenzy of masturbation in your dimly lit, bedsit grief hole which constitutes your life to comment.
Your views concerned me for 2.46 pecoseconds until I decided that as you were the kind of twat who is too scared to identify themselves I should spurn you as I would spurn a rabid dog!
Good luck in prison,

Love, Reg.
P.S. See you in the Comby.

WEDNESDAY, 21 NOVEMBER 2007

SHORTS DON'T MATTER! 1. From the greatest programme ever made about association football, Barnstoneworth United FC manager Mr Dainty delivers one of the finest English soliloqiues of all time.......and afterwards, spare a thought for the club steward's wife Vera (YOU ONLY HAVE TO WATCH HALF OF THE CLIP!!).

Monday, 12 November 2007

Not everyone who agonises over their life is a painter. Some of us agonise because we're NOT painters.

....And On the Subject of Great Public Services

I know most of you have heard this marvellous song by those doctors who are the Amateur Transplants......but I think the video is a nice addition. P.S. If there are kids in the room I'd shuffle them out before hitting play.

...There's More

On the subject of those great doctors, here is their version of More Than Words which presents their challenging views on women outside Watford. The very-soon-to-be ex-Mrs Pither, coming from Cumbria, is a huge fan. Again, get those kids out of the room!

Leave Britney Alone, Ok!!!

Oh...........my............God!!!!! My heartfelt thanks go to BGT for this. I won't say much more, I don't need to. Mr Loony of Loonytown, USA (I think it's a bloke, anyway), says it all. I fear he may be wound too tight for.....well.....well for everywhere, really!

Tuesday, 18 September 2007.

I wish I'd sung this! For non-Americans, and with apologies to all the smart arses out there who already knew, the FCC is the Federal Communications Commission and it monitors TV and radio output in the States - a sort of broadcast police - while the EPA is the Yanks' so-called Environmental Protection Agency, a body which does exactly the opposite of what it says on the can. (P.S. We went to the same school, you know? Eric and me, that is, not George, Martha, Dick and Condoleeza and me. I don't think they went to school.) P.P.S. Please see below if you are I Like The View, Malc or Doris.

To Make You Laugh and Cry

I was listening to this on a Sunday, the very-soon-to-be ex-Mrs Pither is a Catholic, Tom Lehrer is one of my all-time heroes and this is one of his best.............no other reasons. On a more sombre note (and with thanks to Fish for coming up with this Woman's-Own-passes-the-time-in-the-dentist's-waiting-room nonsense), why not get a computer to tell you that you are a waste of space and your life is a sham of a mockery of a farce? Ok, it's from one of those poxy dating sites but...go on, take the test. You ain't got much to beat!!
This Is My Life, Rated
Life: 4.2
Mind: 4.1
Body: 2.7
Spirit: 8
Friends/Family: 1.6
Love: 0
Finance: 5.9
Take the Rate My Life Quiz
Apparently, in my case, "computer say 'no!'"

I First Saw This When I Was Little - And Loved It! I Hope That Explains a Few Things

Fuck, Fuckety, Fuck, Fuck, Fuck

It has been pointed out to me that, particularly for one whose profession is supposedly literary, my language is getting worse. My use of the "F" word is, I am told, far too prevalent and hence loses impact. To those who share this view I suggest you watch the following:

Tony Blair Isn't a Burglar - But If He Was.........

In the spirit of Gustav Holst's Jupiter and Manfred Mann's Earth Band, I feel like raising a smile today. The Big Green Thing alerted me to this and, for no other reason than to raise a smile on an otherwise crap Wednesday, I think it has to be shared. Grantham shall not have him - when he gets out of prison.

Life On The Edge - No Net.

I was wrong when I feared it might be a dull weekend, what with my pals being away, my soon-to-be ex-wife in rehab and only the dogs to play with. How wrong can a man be? This much fun must surely be illegal? Just click to see the japes and hoots I am having! Click again to see how things got REALLy exciting! Tomorrow we're going to chase pigeons.

The Good Old U.S. of A. - Guardians of Freedom and Democracy. Nothing to Be Scared of, Then?

Be honest........

IT'S THE QUIZ OF THE WEEK! JUST SCROLL DOWN AND HIT "FULL QUIZ".