There has always been a bottleneck at the checkout counters. After picking up all the stuff on my shopping list, I dislike waiting forever in long lineups. Safeway, like many other retail vendors, has given customers an alternative. Shoppers can use automated checkouts to tote up their purchases and put their stuff in bags.
Here comes the problem. Safeway gives us but one option. Customers MUST put their goods in Safeway's plastic bags. Of course, the store lets customers return the bags for recycling, which is good as far as it goes. Recycling is far better than throwing used bags in the garbage dump, but recycling requires energy, and it never recovers 100% of the original material. Mind you, plastic grocery bags are made with as little material as possible. Yet they are prone to tearing and strewing food items all over the place, so customers often request double bags.
A better solution is to carry canvass bags to the store. Sturdy canvass bags can be used and reused for decades. The plastic drops out of the equation. It's unneeded. Canvass bag don't inconvenience folks in any way. Just remember to bring them whenever you go shopping.
At the old-fashioned checkout counter, canvass bags present no problems. The checkout person simply loads the goods in canvass bags instead of plastic bags. The canvass bags that I use even have loops that hook onto the plastic-bag frame, which then holds the bags upright and open for business.
There is a glitch with the automated checkouts, which are programmed to keep folks from sneaking unpaid items inside their carryout bags. The automated checkout uses a sensor plate that gauges the weight of each item and matches that weight to the item's in-store database. If customers put unrecorded items in their bags, the automated checkout will announce the error and will alert the attendant who oversees six to dozen of the automated devices.
Automated checkouts are convenient for customers who no longer have to face lengthy lineups, but they also let the vendors get more bang out of their employees. Persons who used to do checkout can be occupied with inventory and restocking chores. The attendant at the automated checkouts also handles other tasks, such as receiving recyclable containers, assisting customers, etc.
So here I am at the automated checkout. I put my canvass bags down on the sensor plate. The device informs me, "There is an unexpected item. Please remove that item before continuing." The user interface screen displays a caption and instructs me to seek help from the store attendant, who happens to be counting plastic containers in a large bag that someone has returned for recycling.
Believe me. It can take up to fifteen minutes to grab the attention of the attendant who must press some buttons on his or her computer before the ordeal even begins -> before the automated checkout device starts to scan the prices of my purchases.
Once my items are scanned and totaled, I am asked to pay for them. I can submit cash or pay via debit card or credit card or with the store's cash cards. I choose to pay by debit card. Why monkey around with cash nowadays unless you happen to be engaged in criminal activities?
Here's the kicker. Safeway has recently upgraded their purchase-confirmation gizmos in my neck of the woods.
It has been my experience that each new "upgrade" in digital technology solves the old problems but it also introduces many more problems. I suppose this is due to the increasing complexity of what we expect from our digital servants. But the glitches are there nonetheless. As our devices become "smarter" they also become more annoying. They are prone to being stumped and flashing strange excuses that even Einstein would have trouble deciphering. Anyone who has used Windows 95 has fond memories of how easy it was compared to Microsoft's newest version. Granted the newest version offers way more capabilities, but it also produces way more error messages.
Anyway, when the automated checkout reads my debit card, it squawks like a mad dog with its tail on fire. The digital dummy wants me call the attendant over once again. The idea, I suppose, is to make sure I haven't slipped a pack of Double Mint Gum in my canvass bags. I wave my arms, but the attendant is arguing with another customer about the discount price on a bag of cookies. I'm beginning to feel like a terrorist suspect. The whole reason for using canvass bags is to be responsible for my ecological footprint. Apparently common sense is the last thing wanted or needed in our consumer-mad world.
At last the automated checkout shakes hands with my bank and confirms I have enough juice to cover my purchases. As I'm pocketing the receipt and getting my stuff ready for the walk home, the automated checkout keeps saying, "Your transaction has been completed. Please pick up your purchases and leave before we call the dog catcher and haul you away."
The message repeats several times until I'm ready to kick our wonderful digital age to hell and gone...
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