Friday, January 11, 2019

Encounters at the Grocery Store

     With next week's menu planned and the grocery list in hand we headed out on our weekly grocery run.
      Arriving at Aldi I hurried through the cold, into the questionable warmth inside. Grocery stores aren't known for their coziness, but even those temperatures felt better than waiting outside in the snow and wind while LV and his quarter selected a cart.
     We made our way up the first aisle checking off the items on our list as we went along. Rounding the corner we met some people we knew and stopped to talk for a minute or two before resuming our quest to find the groceries we needed.
     And thus the awkwardness began. Entering another aisle, we met the same people. What were we supposed to do? Ignoring them felt rude, acknowledging them again felt weird, so an awkward smile would have to suffice as we continued our mission.
    Meeting again and again in other aisles felt more awkward each time. It was with a sigh of relief when we got checked out and exited the store.
    Finishing up at Aldi and heading to Walmart to get the remaining items on our list, the last thing we expected was to run into the same people again. Even the items in our cart felt noisy this time around. The pack of toilet paper sent out a beacon "Look at me! ... Look at me!" while the potato chips for LV's lunch box seemed to wave for attention.
    I love friends, and meeting someone I know while out shopping is fine and even fun if it's a one time happening, but all the extra meetings and their layers of awkwardness about do me in.
   

5 comments:

  1. Something similar happened to me way back when, but it wasn't a neighbor - it was a stranger. He stopped to admire the baby (now my middle daughter, but then nine months old or so) and we chatted for a few moments. When I went into the next aisle, there he was again! I joked that we had to "stop meeting like this" and we went on our respective ways. The third time was embarrassing! We had been going in opposite directions, which caused us to sort of do a do-si-do. I turned my cart around, waited a bit, and then went the same way he was headed and didn't run into him again.

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  2. It is an awkard feeling. I've had it happen to me with strangers and it seems that they've not all ended the same way. With some we would chuckle when we'd meet again in other aisles, with others we actually got a conversation going, with others a smile or nod of the head was all that was needed. But I've not had that happen with friends and I could certainly understand how that would make you feel awkard.

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  3. It sounds as though we have all had this happen a timer or two. One time it got so awkward, I went clear to the other end of the store and started working my way back. That way I didn’t meet the person again. Blessings, Betsy

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  4. This has happened to me several times. It is an awkward feeling. I like Anonymous idea above. Start at the other end. haha
    Lisa

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  5. Try this if it happens again: skip a row. Go back to it later if necessary. I've done it.

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