Trying to be a good express lane customer at IKEA
05.30.10
Yesterday evening I decided I wanted to look at kitchens. Not because I wanted to buy one – I can’t at this present point in time even consider it – but because I wanted to dream for about 15 minutes. While I was there I bought 3 magazine boxy thing sets, 2 kitchen paring knives and a corkscrew. The queues at the cash desk were long but as I was willing to cough by by card, and I had less than 15 whole items, I said feck it and went to self service.
Where the first item I scanned was one of the knives. It told me to wait for the assistant. Knives, you see, along with corkscrews I subsequently learned, are restricted items and you have to be over 21 to buy them. So I had to wait for him to come along and allow me to buy the knives.
Which he duly did, reckoning that I was probably over 21 (you bet, unfortunately) (and have you noticed they are all looking like 16 or 17 lately, the 21 year olds?) Anyway.
I then scanned the 3 magazine holder yokes. And then swiped my card, which the machine decided it wasn’t going to read the chip on. And so I had to “wait for the assistant again”.
Really I should probably have queued behind the one with 2 trolleys and an armful of other stuff.