What would you do?

[LaraK]

So I'm in the grocery store at the deli counter. With me are another woman shopping along and a family of 5...one mom, four kids ranging in age from about 12 to infant. The mom disappears for stretches of time leaving the 12 year old in charge (our deli counter is sloooooooooow). The three younger children are bouncing all over the place. Two youger boys and the infant..who knows if it was a boy or girl. The boys are about 8 and 6.

So the infant isn't strapped into the cart...probably about a year old and trying to get out of the cart. I'm standing braced and ready to run and catch the kid if she falls. The boys are into everything and the older girl is yelling at them. Whenever mom comes back she'll swat one and tell them to behave then leave again.

Then, when mom is gone, one of the boys reaches into the pickle barrel. They pull out a pickel and start sucking on it. Mom comes back. She says "stop" takes the pickel and throws it back in the barrel and they leave.

So what would you do?

Here's what we did. We were in shock that it happened (the other woman and I) and didn't say anything for a minute. Then we told the deli manager what had happened. They threw all the pickels away.

 

[bicker]

There isn't much more reasonable people can do to address the selfish actions of the self-entitled, without causing conflict that is arguably not worth it. Hopefully, the egocentric sector of our society won't grow to become the predominant sector.

 

[MoniqueU]

From the other thread this is why families shouldn't shop together. Get a sitter or wait til Dad is home. I couldn't stand shopping with my kids at that age. I also wouldn't of left children that age unsupervised and I certainly wouldn't of thrown the pickle back in the barrel, that is plain nasty!!! I would of done what you did or commented within ear shot that some people need to keep their children under control.

 

[bicker]

The counter-argument, of course, is that not every family can wait until another parent is available, or there isn't another parent, and that a sitter is costly. This basically sets up the intransient conflict that stems from how the circumstances of some ends up at least partially imposed on others. After all, those pickles didn't just magically show up there, and neither did their replacements. And the cost to the deli (stemming from such circumstances and from all other similar circumstances) gets visited on all consumers in terms of higher prices.

And there is no good answer for it.

 

[Shadow Dancer]

There isn't much more reasonable people can do to address the selfish actions of the self-entitled, without causing conflict that is arguably not worth it. Hopefully, the egocentric sector of our society won't grow to become the predominant sector.

Ummmm.... I think a simple answer is what the OP was looking for.

Example: Circle one:

yes, I would tell the manager

or

no, I would keep my mouth shut and let everyone who purchased a pickle in the future get cooties from the nasty kids


And OP, I would have done what you did. Ick! How gross!!

 

[Mermaid02]

Thank the Lord you saw it... ICK!

 

[ChristmasElf]

I would have said something to the obnoxious mother that threw the pickle back in.

Why do grocery stores even put a pickle barrel out in the open that way to begin with? Knowing that people could possibly contaminate the product, they should put the pickle barrel out of reach where an employee would have to retrieve it for sale.

 

[bicker]

Ummmm.... I think a simple answer is what the OP was looking for.

Unfortunately, the world is not so simple. There are deeper issues beyond that which you chose to reply to. Do feel free, though, to ignore the deeper discussion -- I didn't mean to imply that anyone should be expected to participate in all aspects of the discussion of this. You should participate as you see fit.

 

[bicker]

Why do grocery stores even put a pickle barrel out in the open that way to begin with? Knowing that people could possibly contaminate the product, they should put the pickle barrel out of reach where an employee would have to retrieve it for sale.

This is a really good point. We can, and do, say that a lot: "Knowing that people could possibly ..., they should ..." Just within WDW, itself, that has led to a whole litany of service changes and curtailments, making things more difficult, confusing or time-consuming for all guests, due to the carelessness, exploitation or abuse of a few guests.

 

[happygirl]

I would have done what you did was tell the manager and make sure the pickles got tossed

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Why do grocery stores even put a pickle barrel out in the open that way to begin with? Knowing that people could possibly contaminate the product, they should put the pickle barrel out of reach where an employee would have to retrieve it for sale.

Agree.

Our deli counters have the pickles on top of the counter. It is just not sanitary to have a pickle barrel accessible to the public. I know I would not buy a pickle from that barrel. I am sure that the kid sucking on a pickle is probably the least nasty thing that has been done in that barrel.

 

[happygirl]

I have never seen a pickle barrel. The Delis here have individual pickles for sell

 

[Shadow Dancer]

Unfortunately, the world is not so simple. There are deeper issues beyond that which you chose to reply to. Do feel free, though, to ignore the deeper discussion -- I didn't mean to imply that anyone should be expected to participate in all aspects of the discussion of this. You should participate as you see fit.

Ooohhhh, methinks I just got *****slapped in Bickerspeak....

 

[happygirl]

I would have said something to the obnoxious mother that threw the pickle back in.

Why do grocery stores even put a pickle barrel out in the open that way to begin with? Knowing that people could possibly contaminate the product, they should put the pickle barrel out of reach where an employee would have to retrieve it for sale.

What is the difference bewteen that and a free samples that people can touch all of them before taking one

 

[disney_mommy]

I think you did the right thing, and that is what I would have done. Nothing you could say to the mother would make her change how she behaves, and you saved countless others from getting her nasty child's germs. I possibly might have said something to the mother about the disgusting pickle she threw back in the bin, but probably not. At that point, the damage had already been done.

What a rude family! And disgusting to boot! That poor 12-year old girl... she probably has to take care of her siblings at home, when mom is too "busy" to look after them.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I have never seen a pickle barrel. The Delis here have individual pickles for sell

Too bad for you. Nothing like a big pickle from the jar from the deli. (repeat: ours are on TOP of the deli counter, no public access)

 

[alexandria674]

Well...


I am buying pickles from the jar now.

 

[EMom]

Of course I would have told the manager, but there really wouldn't have been a need. Why? Because the second I saw that nasty mom chunk that sucked on pickle back in with the others, I'd have let out an involuntary, "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" that could have been heard out in the parking lot. Every customer in that store would have been alerted to Picklegate within 5 seconds flat due to my shrieking.

 

[alexandria674]

Of course I would have told the manager, but there really wouldn't have been a need. Why? Because the second I saw that nasty mom chunk that sucked on pickle back in with the others, I'd have let out an involuntary, "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" that could have been heard out in the parking lot. Every customer in that store would have been alerted to Picklegate within 5 seconds flat due to my shrieking.

That one made me spit out my coffee

 

[Disney Doll]

bickerSpeak?????
picklegate?????


I would have done what you did OP, with the addition of pointing out the offending family so that the store manager could determine whether he/she wanted to charge the mother for all the pickles in the barrel that he had to discard. "You break it, you buy it"

You know, I can remember going shopping with my mother at a young age...never did stuff like that because my mother watched me. What a concept! I see many folks in my local grocery store who are shopping with children and actually supervising them so they behave in an age-appropriate manner. The problem isn't bringing or not bringing one's children into public places...the problem is properly supervising and teaching one's children how to behave in public places. Clearly this mother was doing neither.

That being said...I don't love salad bars either, for that very reason. Too open to the public for my liking. And yes, I know..."if only you knew what went on in the kitchen of your favorite restaurant". Well, I don't see it, so it doesn't exist!