Checks Out At Check Out

I like to think that I have a fairly healthy outlook on life. My dad always told me how important it is to maintain a positive attitude, and I'm grateful to have grown up with that lesson so deeply ingrained in my psyche. It's not the easiest thing in the world, but I do pretty well at keeping things in perspective-but then came shopping with my mom recently.

Even though we try to do our weekly grocery trip together-most of the time, she does all of the actual work-it still takes me about an hour and a half to go through check out.

At first, I handled things with aplomb. I knew that it would take me an hour and a half to shop, and so I didn't make much of a production out of the process-it was just a little wait for me. My mother, on the other hand, made everything about the place… and it drove me crazy.

Firstly, she got upset because she had to wait for her turn on the self-checkout line. Well, I understand that; it's not like she had been standing in line for any extended period of time. Unfortunately, though, she didn't see the point in my taking the slower lane when my turn arrived (this only made her more upset). Then, as we were about to leave, she got thrilled because she found the "twenty percent off" coupon that she forgot to bring with her and had already used-a coupon that was clearly no longer valid.

That's when I really started to lose it. I mean, what do you do in a situation like that? It wasn't enough for me to tell her that she was wasting time; instead, I had to waste my own time telling her how stupid it was for her to be upset about all of this. At least I didn't have a heart attack or anything (however unlikely), but I'm pretty sure it's only because my health is so good overall.

The whole experience made me wonder: How do some other people deal with the everyday problems of shopping with their mothers? Here are some of the people who submitted their stories to us on Facebook and Twitter:

"My mom is a huge fan of coupons. When we go grocery shopping at Walmart, she finds the coupons and reads them over at least three times. She's always worried that she might have missed one." -@VeeOboe

"After 15 minutes in line, I have to remind my mother that it's not a good idea to eat from the sample table. The other day, I had to use my most threatening voice to stop her from getting another free sample." -@LauraSulli

"Whenever my mom goes shopping, she tries to be helpful by asking everyone she sees if they can put their items on our cart. It's not as bad when it's just a mom talking to other moms, but when it's an old man or someone else who's old it can be awkward." -@d_o_k_g

"When my mother shops, she starts off with the same idea that everyone else does-she wants to save money. However, she soon begins to feel like this goal is too ambitious of her and gives up. Then she begins to feel like this goal is too ambitious of her and gives up. Then she decides that the store is so-so, but the shopping experience has been good. And then she asks me if we should go around again. I always think it's hilarious to see her try and play with herself like that." -@girllover

"The day I had to try and explain how my mom was wasting time by looking at different options on the airplane free sample menu, while we were flying to New York. She ended up continuing to look at them while we were boarding the plane." -@whycantiwant2fly

A few people mentioned that they've had a similar experience to my mother's, and the truth is-we've all been there. It's almost like when we're children, we always think that our parents are right and that they have the answer to everything… but as we grow older, we stop trying to please them. Sometimes it's not so simple though; sometimes it takes a little bit of convincing (or even a lot) for us to listen. After all, we've got our own lives to live.

What advice would you give to people who are trying to convince their mothers to give up on coupons or sample menus? We'd love to hear from you! Tweet us at @The_Boston_Phoenix, and we'll post your comments here next week.

Checks Out At Check Out [ARTICLE END]

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Checks Out At Check Out

Checks Out At Check Out

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