Wednesday, April 14, 2010

grocery shopping

Usually I like going to the commissary, the prices are good and they have good sales on after-Easter candy, but yesterday's visit was the pits. There were only a few bags of sugar, no high efficiency laundry detergent, and no sausage on the shelves. The contrast between the government run grocery and your average chain store is striking- the commissary features boxes down the middle of every aisle so you can't pick up items from the opposite shelves or get around anyone else's cart, I have had to throw away jugs of milk that weren't even close to the expiration date because they were sour, surly cashiers who don't swipe all the coupons, and foods in the most bizarre locations with frequent placement changes. For example, baking items such as spices, cocoa, flour, and chocolate chips are all on different aisles. The self check-out machines take twice as long because they require you to track down an employee to show your ID, weigh produce, and then tote up the total.

Think of shopping at "government foods" with the same efficiency and customer service as the Post Office, the DMV, and any public school system. I ask you to project into the future and see that Obamacare will turn the health care system into: long waits, limited services, and a bloated bureaucracy filled with people who have no incentive to be pleasant.

4 comments:

Renee said...

I'm wondering if you shop at a small commissary... ours has at least 4 or more brands of HE detergent. But yes they did recently move eggs from near milk to the deli section. But hey it saves me money so I put up with the inconveniences like whey they are out of boneless skinless chicken and the ever evasive ground lamb

Maurisa said...

Shopping at the commissary is my absolute least favorite chore! It is near to impossible to make a menu for the week, because you never, ever know if the meat you need, or other ingredients for that matter, will be in stock on the day you decide to shop.

Yep, I can definitely see what obamacare will be like. The pits!

Anonymous said...

Wow! What base are you at? Our family is at Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque and I love our Commissary. Everything is pretty well organized, but lines can get very long at the first and fifteenth of every month.

Unknown said...

Oh my heavens! What a timely post. TODAY I went grocery shopping, and had the the WORST commissary trip I have had yet, in my 19 years of them. I got to the counter, and the cashier was leaning on the counter "seething" mad over something. She was scanning, and throwing the person's groceries in front of me. First warning. I tried to be friendly...only to be glared at. The poor customer in front of me, was just trying to buy baby formula and apples. Apples which I'm sure are covered with bruises now. Then it was my turn. The woman is slinging and slamming my groceries, INCLUDING THE EGGS! Then she vanishes to do a price check on my onions, and is gone for about 15 minutes. Hello!? Then she comes back, slams the onions on the counter, and tells me the price and asks me if I still wanted them. Oy! Then she practically chews me out because I had sent my daughter out to the van with the first cart of groceries (frozen things I'd like to keep COLD) instead of waiting. I'm telling you, this woman was so nasty and hateful, that I did something I almost NEVER do. I filed a formal complaint with the manager. I will also pay close attention the next time I am in the cattle line, and will be sure that I never have "Annie" as a cashier again.