People are confusing, so much drama over things that are, quite honestly, not worth the energy to work yourself up. At all. And yet….

Some days, we were out of papers bags - nobody delivered them to us, despite us ordering for several days (turns out problem was due to the system thinking we have 1500 bags in stock, which????? How?????), and people were throwing absolute hissyfits about the lack of bags. Like, how “we don't care about nature, clearly” and “will never shop here again!” and “how can I shop without the red bags?!” and “just how fucking poor is this store to not have plastic bags!” and “this is inconveniencing me!”, etc.

One day, I had been sitting in the Self Check Out, collecting baskets in neat towers to be wheeled to the entrance and helping people when problems came up, that sort of thing. I look down and spot a fifty euro bill having fallen out of a mans pocket. I point it out to him, he says thanks and how can he repay me. I just say no need – he did kinda smell, like, possibly drugs, dunno, just knew it wasn’t alcohol. I come back from my short break and the Head Cashier of the Day who took up post there said the guy – who is Juris Kulakovs, a musician – left me a gift: a mango. I have never been gifted a mango before, so that’s a first.

And on a different day at the SCO, cops got called in because some guy tried to pay with counterfeit 50 Euros. Where do they find the time and energy for all this?

Incomes a Nutty Lady, who just leaves her empty basket in the middle of the store and walks around picking things up without it. The Security Guard got finally fed up and told her off, in front of a bunch of people at that, to get her basket and stop being a lazy bum, because the rules say you have to have either a basket or the cart with you. So, she comes back and is in a mood and she gets worse as I try to get the cheese to scan, eventually having to manually type the code and weight in. But then, after the transaction was done, she was yelling how I squished and dirtied the cheese and she doesn't want it anymore, she'll take another (can't just swap the cheese, these types are cut by hand, so differ by weight and size, which means different price) and demands a supervisor, yelling about the 'muddied' cheese. The amount of eyerolls and 'oh fuck this' that came from the other shoppers in the line was quite funny. Wish some of them would say something when these kinda people act up. Later, me and a colleague joked that she probably didn't know you are to remove the cellophane covering before eating the cheese.

Taking a candy from a baby to scan it results in one hell of a tantrum, I mean, face down on the floor and kicking. He was, like, 2, so, somewhat understandable and Mood, but still, kid, I gave it back to you…no need to shriek for 10 minutes and have the security guard try to help calm down.

One of the Cashiers Broke the Cigarette Stand – it has a door that goes up and down, like a garage door, but wooden? And they somehow broke it, like, door went completely off and snapped in half. They had to get a maintenance guy to come in, but he came the next day, when I was working. So, he banished me from the work area while he fixed it. I got to take an early lunch, but damn, how the fuck do you even do that?

For a while, we had this thing with the store loyalty card, you can set it so that your receipt saves electronically in your account, which you have to do manually. It was on the SCO first and then randomly put on the registers with no for-warning (so, me who worked two days in a row could not understand where is my receipt, everyone was so confused). Naturally some people ask for theirs, but hearing about it being saved electronically was enough for them…but not this guy. Oh no. He demanded, finger snapping, to call the manager and get him his receipt. Me and Colleague R tried to explain him where it is, but he got angry, nearly slammed the trolley into R's stomach, threw the trolley at the others, stomped out, declaring us incompetents and degenerates. A lot of people in the line called him a dumbass, like, how are we at fault, if you don’t listen?

A Wild Rude Man appears. Rude Man demands cigarettes. Head Cashier A asks for ID, cuz to her he looked a bit young. He said he didn't have any and started demanding cigarettes and when she denied him any, he demands a manager. Head Cashier A points out she IS the manager. He demands an actual manager. So, Service Manager M comes up and asks what is he yelling about, he says he's denied cigarettes and when Service Manager M asks why, Head Cashier A tells her because of the lack of ID. Service Manager M shrugs and says we gotta follow the law. He yells some more and gives his phone number to be given to the Store Director (it was a Saturday and she's on the clock only during the working days). Service Manager M shrugged and placed the number on the table. Head Cashier A calls up Store Director V and tells her the story and she's like 'got it.'

He came by two more times and demanded why he wasn't contacted by the Store Director – he did not like to hear that 'She's busy with important things'. Head Cashier A asked why she hasn't called him yet. And Store Director V says, paraphrasing, "Why the fuck should I? To tell him the same thing you and M told him? Nah, fuck it, I got more important things to do then talking to some brat."

Drunk Man Tries to Pay At the SCO (with signs everywhere saying Cards Only) by stuffing paper money e card reader.

Small Child Licked The Glass Part of the SCO Scanner – gross.

Another Small Child tried to have her (hopefully normal ) stuffed toy Missy Kissy eat me as I helped her mom with some produce issues.

Lady Thief Tried To Be Sneaky as she, in full view of Colleague R, rang up bags of expensive candy as Carrots (which are cheap, so the computer flags it up for us to check if it really is what it says). Apparently, she played dumb when he confronted her about the severe lack of carrots in the places of bags of expensive candies.

Peoples Eyes Are Expensive Decorations – because they do not have function. Not to read the price tag, or the product name nor to see what the product is or the rules for discounts. Of course, the Paw Patrol balloons have drawings of the characters! It's visible from the clear packaging and the images of what the balloons look like when inflated! If the signs says X and Y only, who do you think Z is somehow included in that? Wanna know why Wine X didn't have discount? Because the discount was for Wine Z…guess who tried to argue with a director about what the discount was about. And though they have to pass large enough signs that a granny with poor eyesight and no glasses can still see them clearly enough, they ask the SCO attendant if the SCO registers accept money.

Highlights include: a 92-year-old grandma has turned 93, still walking and talking, almost bragging how well she moves; the cutie Pomeranian who crawled out of the cart onto the lane and started sniffing around before the owner placed him back in the cart and the dogs in clothes – One in a Rudolph sweater plus a nose and the one in a dark blue vest and green and pink booties, what fashion icons.

Reminder, this was during the Pandemic, so when a colleague has to call in that they won’t be coming in because they were in contact with an infectee, so quarantine, the Head Cashier is supposed to fill that slot with another worker. Except this Head Cashier, M, did not do that. So, the Store Director told that Head Cashier M, that he has to come in and fill the shift…and he quit because he did not like to be called to work on his off day…what the heck, man…

They re-instituted mandatory curfew for the whole country – only instead of lasting from 22:00 to 5:00, it now starts at 20:00 and until 5:00…and instead of it being a Friday to Sunday thing, it's now everyday…also a lot of stores and restaurants got closed again, but that's a given.

So, considering the store works from 8:00 until 23:00, obviously, they changed the work hours: from 7:00 to 19:00…meaning the first cashier gets in at 6:45, while head cashiers open the store at 5:50.

Issue one that came up during the time: people assuming alcohol selling hours laws are store operating hours, as I’ve had drunks come up to my lane at 7:00 with a basket worths of bottles, only to be told they still cannot buy it and throw fits about it. Some get so pissed they throw their selection onto the floor and stomp away…how the hell is that my fault? Take it up with the government, dude.

Anyway, with the new time limits, we have signs that says we close at 19:00, but we stop letting people in at 18:45, so we can get them all out, close the registers and count the money and still make it home before 20:00. And people still try to yank the doors open and pound them when they spot us. Dudes, you still think cashiers live in the store, like you did in first grade?

Granted the smarter people rather use the Wolt Partner program to order their purchases and have them delivered home…it's just so many, we had 7 people, three of them like director/head of service, at one point collecting them just so we can keep up with the orders. Colleague R even said when he booted up the system for the day, he saw 22 pre-orders already waiting for opening time…something about a special coupon from Wolt, but then they discontinued it when dozens of stores complained about it that same day.

And that was our life until the 15th of November that year, but considering how many people could not figure out how to wear a mask and were happily quitting their jobs just so they don't get vaccinated, I had doubts it would just end.

I asked a lady to put on her mask properly, she mocked me and called store workers low degenerates, another guy compared wearing masks to…you already know it…Nazi Germany. When I asked a man to please put the mask on properly, he launched into a spiel about government brainwashing and killing people. I was so fed up by this point, I just shot back with 'can they do it to the Ruzzians first?', which seemed to offend him on the behalf of his owners, as he stomped away after paying.

When the government decided to remove the masks, the mandate was everywhere without masks is fine, except public transport, where it was still mandatory, so it became a 'you do you' thing. I will admit, I tried to sit without the mask, and I felt so naked, so I put it right back on the first chance I got. Besides, I would still stick a bit of my tongue out at morons and mutters rude things without people realizing, while my colleagues couldn’t. Kinda miss the thing, cursing was so much easier when nobody can read your lips.

As Colleague R said: "I see people with masks and I'm like 'okay, their choice'. I see people without masks and I'm still 'okay, their choice'. But what the fuck is the point of people wearing masks like chin diapers?! Either wear it or not!"

One granny got upset she was nearly locked into the bakery as the bakery girl was going on break…she's not psychic lady…how was she supposed to see you in the corner?

Pretty sure I heard the head jeweler yell at his employee for stealing money and possibly stuff from clients??? That was interesting, new camera, pointed at the table appeared soon after, yet, he still works there?

Aaaand, somebody got bit. Well, not in MY store, in another one I was subbing at. It was a store I had never gone, but had passed like billions of times, just never had the reason to go there, you know? But yeah, I was collecting baskets (mother of demons, that is a lot of old folks, like 5 per basket), when some late teens asked where's the disinfectant. So, I go to get it at my workstation and then this guy shows his hand – the top of it is bloody from the very obvious human teeth marks in the skin. When asked what the fuck happened, he said some crazy lady bit him. Now we don't know if he was innocent or got what was coming for him, but still…
I asked the security guard there if people get bitten a lot and…"Honey, that is not even the craziest that happened here."…yikes…

Alright, Part 5 done, Part 6, coming soon.