Quality Service a Thing of the Past?

I really don't like using my blog as a place to complain. I know, I know... The Bible tells us to do everything without complaining, and this should include blogging! But sometimes an issue comes up and I just have to talk about it somewhere... Sorry!

Tonight's Issue: What has happened to service at the grocery stores???

We just returned from a week long trip to Ohio today (an entry to come on that later), and of course, our fridge was bare. I didn't think much about it until this evening, after it was too late to go before getting the kids to bed. So, I helped with bathtime and then quickly got Amy to bed while Bill took care of the boys. Then I was off to Kroger to replenish our food supply.

It was already 9pm by the time I began my shopping, so I knew I was in for a late night. But I was determined to get as much on my list as possible to hopefully prevent a second trip later this week. I managed to finish up in less than an hour, and I had quite the basket full, including four containers of ice cream (Celeste, you're rubbing off on me!). As I approached the front of the store and the many checkout lanes, I noticed that the only lanes open were the U-Scan lanes. I stood there staring for a bit, unable to believe that not a single normal lane was open. I finally flagged down an employee and asked if the U-Scan lanes were the only open lanes. She confirmed my observation, commented on my full basket, and walked away. That was that. So, I had a grand time checking myself out. Have you ever used one of these lanes before? There is a place to put your scanned items so that the computer can keep a weight tally. Througout your order, everything has to remain on this platform. Well, when you have a whole cart full of groceries, there is no way everything is going to fit on a platform made for express shoppers. So I had to split my order into two, and each time I had to go up to the attendant station to sign my receipt. I also ran out of bags midway through checkout. By the time I got home, my ice cream had become quite mushy.

I ask you again, what has happened to quality service???

There have been many times in recent years that I have had to sack my own groceries. This used to bother me, but then I realized that my groceries were in much better condition when I returned home if I had been the one to sack them. A long time ago when I was a Kroger cashier, I remember the required training where we learned exactly how to sack groceries. Now you get home and find every plastic grocery bag is about to rip open due to the excessive amount of items crammed inside, your can of bug spray is in the same bag as your grapes, and your bread is smashed into the same bag as your canned goods. Is training no longer provided?

And of course, now you are expected to unload your own basket, which I remember being quite difficult when I was almost 9 months pregnant!

Again, I know I shouldn't be complaining to all of you about this. But I am just so disappointed by the lack of service that seems to be more and more common in our stores these days. Am I selfish in my desire for the old way of doing things, back when store employees were actually quite helpful?

I guess I want to return to the "full-service" grocery store as opposed to the new do-it-yourself version.

Thanks for letting me complain. I'm done. :)