Sunday, May 31, 2009

Read Between The Lines

I have come to despise shopping. Yes, shopping. I avoid Wal-Mart like the plague. I have even come to hate stepping into my local grocery store. Why? Because of parents who cannot control their heathen spawns of the devil children. I can live with being recognized as a bus driver, but when your heathen spawn child is running up and down the aisles screaming mommy look it look it look it. Or mommy buy me buy me buy me. Or even granny I want I want I want. It is neither attractive nor appealing for me to listen to while I’m trying to do my shopping in peace.

For instance, today at the grocery store, I happened upon this mother and her devil spawn wonderfully behaved approximately 5 year old child. It was in that dreaded Ice Cream Frozen Treats aisle where this child was incessantly naggingpolitely asking his mother for more freezer pops. His mother told him no less than 5 times once that there was no space in the freezer for more Popsicles, and that he would have to finish the ones they originally bought. Not only that, the child insisted on following ME up the aisle where when I turned around and discovered the heathen sweet little boy, he ran off in the opposite direction back to his mother, while I resisted the urge to run him over with my shopping cart smiled politely and went about my shopping. I encountered him again at the checkout where he was running wildly up and down the checkout lane standing patiently next to his mother while she got the groceries. I resisted the urge to drop loud hints that this mother should put her child on Ritalin smiled politely again and went and paid for my groceries.

Checking Out,

The Bus Driver

3 comments:

institutrice said...

I resoundingly agree.

However, I have not always been so well-behaved as you were here. I remember waiting in line with my best friend at the Wal*Mart service desk, and the lady in front of us was not watching her kid. He was about three, and he was kicking the ATM machine next to us. She told him to stop - without coming over to get him or even really looking at him - and he stopped for about a minute. He kicked again, and she did nothing. My friend and I were exchanging furious looks and muttering to each other. Then the kid started banging on the keypad. Our eyes popped out because the mother still did nothing. My friend seethed, "No wonder the machines are always broken!" He kept hitting and kicking the machine, and I just couldn't take it anymore. It was the last straw. I said to the boy (in my teacher voice, tho' I wasn't even student teaching yet), "Ohhh-kaaay, you need to stop banging on the machine because that's how it gets broken." He was a little shocked, and FINALLY his mother came over to get him. She didn't say anything. ;-)

Slamdunk said...

We were in the Wallyworld yesterday with our challenging children and we heard this over the store intercom: "Attention, we have a small girl wearing a white shirt and pink pants with brown hair. If this is your child, please come to the sporting goods section."

A few minutes later, I see two angry young adult guys arguing with the apparent missing/now found little girl. They were pushing her into a shopping cart, while she hollered and kept struggling to get out.

I think this glimpse into the young girl's life probably illustrates what a lousy home life she has.

Also, thanks for commenting on my blog and for the important work that you drivers do.

Anonymous said...

Love when this scenario takes place at 10:48 PM at our local 24 hour Wal-Mart. My favorite time to go to WM - 7:15 AM - shelves are stocked (except at Christmas), staff is pleasant, and just a bunch or shoppers like me making a mad dash through the store before work.