COVID-19 Shopping Experiences

Pound Shilling & Pig

Pound Shilling & Pig

Adult Guinea Pig
Joined
Aug 22, 2012
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Location
shropshire
Who would ever have thought that something as ordinary as popping to the supermarket could become an activity that is a threat to life? Or at least that is how it makes me feel. I went to my local co-op the other day, the first time out to a shop for 10 days, just for a few things I needed. It was quiet, well organised and most people were observing social distancing correct!y. But I still looked on in alarm as someone rummaged through the reduced veg selection handling every packet of near identical salad leaves until selecting the one they wanted. I know it is what we all do normally but really? Now is not the time. Then at the checkout there was a man slowly packing his bags while trying to engage in conversation with the poor woman on the till, seemingly unaware of the situation, instead of moving on quickly. I was in there a lot longer than I had wanted and as soon as I got home I had to take off my clothes and put them on to wash, have a shower and wash my hair. Extreme I know but I felt contaminated!

On a much brighter note the little independent whole food shop I use is doing weekly deliveries only instead of allowing people into the premises, so I have an on going order with them. Also the weekly market has moved location from the tiny market square to the town car park. Only the fish stall and fruit and stall are still trading. You place your order in advance then go and pick it up by car or foot at an allocated time, observing strict social distancing. Such a new way of operating for the traders but I am really pleased as it means I can get the piggies their veg again since I am no longer driving to lidl, all be it for twice the price.
Also today I got some hay bales from the farm. Usually I arrange to go when the farmer is around and have a bit of a chat. Today we arranged I go when he was in a field somewhere with the sheep, so I could just help myself as leave the money...........Extreme distancing!
It is a strange new world.....
 
I am feeling the same way as you.... I had to say something yesterday to a lady in supermarket when fetching some shopping for a neighbour She seemed shocked when i asked her to step back....
I will never take shopping for granted again after this. :))

Stay safe
 
I've been shoulder charged, sworn at, and pushed in front of but on the whole people have been nice. To be honest I take my life in my hands every time I go out here anyway, just in a different way. Red lights on crossings mean rev your engine and go as fast as you can through them, at least now there's a bit less traffic!
 
sport_billy said:
I am feeling the same way as you.... I had to say something yesterday to a lady in supermarket when fetching some shopping for a neighbour She seemed shocked when i asked her to step back....
I will never take shopping for granted again after this. :))

Stay safe
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There is a lot I won't be taking for granted any more :)
 
I got shouted at today in tesco for literally stepping 2 steps backwards, the wrong way down the Now one way ailes. Aile was empty and I just missed an item almost in arms reach. By going back round the block of ailes to get back to where I wanted to be, would have risked more spreading if I or someone else had the virus. Absolute b. S

I'm not particularly clever, but I do have common sense, and when I tried to explain, the tesco lady walked off. She knew I had a point, and didn't like it, so she fled.

I've said this in the rant post, but I work on busy building a sites, keeping my distance with dnagrous equipment all the time. I'm used to following rules, if I didnt I would be sacked on the spot
 
Is anyone else shopping for other people right now and finding it a bit more effort than you expected?
Yesterday piggy daddy did shopping for my old Mum, his old Uncle, our daughter and baby grandson, as well as us and 8 piggies!
Took him 3 hours altogether to queue to get in, shop for 4 households, then queue to pay... 90 items and £130... all we got for us after all that was 9 items: butternut squash, 3 onions, 2 tins of tomatoes, 2 bottles of wine, and a packet of biscuits! The piggies got 10 veggie items. Everything else... was for somebody else!
 
It's quite stressful trying to find things on someone else's list, particularly if you don't know them well enough to know what they would substitute. I still live in the town where I was born and have ended up helping shopping for the parents of some school friends who have moved away. They don't buy at all the same things I buy! And trying to look at one trolley containing multiple shops is a little mind boggling too :))
 
Sparklepetal said:
It's quite stressful trying to find things on someone else's list, particularly if you don't know them well enough to know what they would substitute. I still live in the town where I was born and have ended up helping shopping for the parents of some school friends who have moved away. They don't buy at all the same things I buy! And trying to look at one trolley containing multiple shops is a little mind boggling too :))
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Yes thats what piggy daddy said, its shopping for the unfamiliar not knowing what meal they want the items for and what they like- plus my old Mum has no teeth and cant swallow some things, so finding her a soft salad leaf mix that doesnt contain hard stalks she cant swallow or beetroot or onion bits that she doesnt like took him a long time seeing as there were no babyleaf salad bags left by 9.30am! The piggies were the easiest to shop for, 1 big catering size bunch of coriander, 1 bag of spinach, 2 lettuces, 3 peppers, 2 cucumbers, beansprouts, carrots, job done :)
 
I was getting stabby in there at the people in masks. (Sorry Tim) It appears a mask makes you invincible and so the rules no longer apply. My job means I have been spending 12 hours a day in a mask and having to remind colleagues frequently to leave it alone meant that I very much wanted to just scream “your damn mask is no use to you if you are fiddling with it, it’s a bigger risk than none” and then in the car park “hanging your mask round your neck is actually wiping potential contamination on your chin!)

If you choose to wear ppe, wear it right. It’s supposed to be protective, not a source of infection in itself.

Dont get me started on using mobile phones with gloves...
 
Tigermoth said:
I was getting stabby in there at the people in masks. (Sorry Tim) It appears a mask makes you invincible and so the rules no longer apply. My job means I have been spending 12 hours a day in a mask and having to remind colleagues frequently to leave it alone meant that I very much wanted to just scream “your damn mask is no use to you if you are fiddling with it, it’s a bigger risk than none” and then in the car park “hanging your mask round your neck is actually wiping potential contamination on your chin!)

If you choose to wear ppe, wear it right. It’s supposed to be protective, not a source of infection in itself.

Dont get me started on using mobile phones with gloves...
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The conversion to using full PPE is tricky for people not trained in PPE... piggy daddy suddenly has to wear full PPE for his community care work job despite having no training with it- he is really struggling with the masks, he has hayfever and sneezed in his mask the inhaled sharply and almost suffocated when the mask got suctioned to his face! He only does basic personal and social care calls usually, cook a meal for someone then wash up or drop in to have a cup of tea and a chat or do a bit of shopping or help an old man have a bath or get his pyjamas on and into bed... piggy daddy says masks plus hayfever are like having a slimy octopus suctioned to your face while you're trying to do your job!
 
My parents have been doing shopping for other people, and my mum's been saying that when she needs to substitute something, she looks for whether they want a store brand or something originally. Like one woman wanted some strawberry jam that Tesco didn't have, and she ended up getting a slightly more expensive option because she figured if they ate Tesco's own, they'd have put that on the list.
 
PigglePuggle said:
The conversion to using full PPE is tricky for people not trained in PPE... piggy daddy suddenly has to wear full PPE for his community care work job despite having no training with it- he is really struggling with the masks, he has hayfever and sneezed in his mask the inhaled sharply and almost suffocated when the mask got suctioned to his face! He only does basic personal and social care calls usually, cook a meal for someone then wash up or drop in to have a cup of tea and a chat or do a bit of shopping or help an old man have a bath or get his pyjamas on and into bed... piggy daddy says masks plus hayfever are like having a slimy octopus suctioned to your face while you're trying to do your job!
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My sister’s obv a carer too, got a posh email from bosses of the company last week saying they’ll provide protective gear etc. She went to pick some up at the wknd, was given 5 masks, that’s it! They’ve got to wear them in houses where people are showing signs of Covid19! How the hell do you know that until you go into the persons house and witness it, by then you’ve already breathed and touched stuff!? Unless other carers have noticed and passed on the info anyway! Useless company!
 
alpacasqueak said:
My sister’s obv a carer too, got a posh email from bosses of the company last week saying they’ll provide protective gear etc. She went to pick some up at the wknd, was given 5 masks, that’s it! They’ve got to wear them in houses where people are showing signs of Covid19! How the hell do you know that until you go into the persons house and witness it, by then you’ve already breathed and touched stuff!? Unless other carers have noticed and passed on the info anyway! Useless company!
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That's terrible, unfortunately carers seem to be at the back of the queue for PPE equipment, that’s so wrong!
 
The other day there was no queue to get in but you still had to go round all maze of barriers that they'd set up. This really doesn't bother me but there was a man who asked a shop assistant if he could just climb over them and got annoyed when she said no he'd have to go round claiming that he was "only going in for a drink" not sure how this makes it that rules don't apply to you or how you think that's an essential shopping trip. He then followed us round the barriers at a level of social distancing that would be considered an invasion of my personal space if we were at a rave with no pandemic going on. I wish I'd said something but really I just wanted to get on with my shopping and go home.
 
I’m running out of patience with people who do not heed the 2m advice. If I suddenly disappear off the forum it’s because I’m in police custody because I’ve hit someone. Reminder to self leave broom handle next to shopping bags 😁
 
Sadly there’s always people who think the rules don’t apply to them.
However the majority of people around here are good.
The queues to get into the supermarkets are good humoured, people are patient with those who need to be pointed to the end off the queue because it’s not obvious.
The security people are polite and helpful.
There’s just an odd person who will block an aisle or assume i’s other people who have to get out of the way, not them.
 
Shopping hasn't been too bad for me. I have been able to get everything I need from three local shops so haven't been near the local supermarket or freezer shop yet (both half a mile walk away). I hear there has been arguments & all sorts at those so I'm in no rush to go! I have found everyone to obey the 2m part, had to queue to get into butchers yesterday. Person behind me was on phone saying "it's silly, I have to queue to get in the butchers" - they are only allowing one customer at a time as the standing area for customers must only be 1m x 2m!
 
I'm finding the smaller shops are quiet and I can get most of the shopping I need in them (if I can't get it we go without). It seems if it hasn't got a carpark hardly anyone shops there. I don't drive so me and my granny shopping bag on wheels are quite happy moving around in peace. I have found shopping for other people difficult as substitutions are hard to decide on and I feel guilty spending someone else's money on a more expensive item. I felt very sorry for an elderly lady today who had been taken shopping by her daughter, the old lady just couldn't get social distancing and was going right up to people with her trolley, in the end the daughter pulled her to one side and was trying to explain but I don't think she understood what was going on.
 
Went to the weekly fruit and veg market again yesterday to stock up on veg for all the piggies. Very well organised and had loads of stuff. Just very expensive, always is compared to lidl and even more so now but I don't class a 12 mile drive each way as essential travel when you can shop locally, plus I want to avoid supermarkets if at all possible.
 
I've found it mostly OK. But I don't pack my shopping in store any more. I chuck it in the trolley, go through the checkout and chuck it back in my trolley and then pack it at my car. I just don't want to spend any longer in the shop than I have to!

Something that did make me smile though in the queue outside Tesco on Monday. A few people infront of me was a couple who were very hands on while they were waiting. And I'm not talking about holding onto the shopping trolley. He wore a mask she didn't 🤷🏻‍♀️.

I just thought well where's the sense in that. Obviously you're a couple. But if you're (as in the man) protecting yourself but she isn't, then why are you bothering to wear a mask? 🙄
 
Shopping here has remained fairly reasonable.
Numbers are controlled and well managed, and I have never had to queue for more than 5 mins at the end of a shopping trip.
Everything is in stock and people are for the most part very reasonable and respectful of social distancing.
 
We've had Tesco delivery for years but havent been able to secure a slot for a week or so.

We are shopping at our local Tesco Express and the Village shop and have managed to get everything we need between the 2.
 
I am getting rather stressed by the whole experience of food shopping.. I usually go Sunday morning to Lidl for most items then a quick pop to Morrisons..takes me about an hour maximum... not anymore....

Lidl hasnt been too bad, not huge queues and the majority of people respecting social distancing.. I did give a lady a £1 for her trolley last week but then thought i need to pass it her but managed to do it at arms length and very quickly!

On Friday I went to Morrisons - other half was off so I asked him to come with me to help - I have a disability and have been aching all week... the q for morrisons was very very long so I sent him to stand in it and I sat in the car ... it took an hour to get in... I did speak to one of the managers about why they dont let disabled people in with the elderly & vulnerable - Sainsbury's do - saw it on the tv... he said he wasnt sure 😳 but disabled people could get one of their special boxes delivered - trouble is they dont give u much choice ..

I just think its disappointing...

Took us 2 hours start to finish as shopping for my parents too... then when I get home, I wipe all the packets with anti bacterial spray and remove what packaging I can... then play freezer jenga !

Overall, I need a nap afterwards...
 
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