I hate being pushed around in the supermarket.

I couldn't agree more! And, even though I'm older than you, it does frighten me a bit that I've already turned into a grumpy old woman!

Me too. I hate to think that at the tender age of 40, I am already one of those cranky old grouches you see muttering to herself about rude people the whole time she is shopping.  The way I see it, we are all after the same goal, to get food to feed ourselves and/or our families, whether it is a family of two like mine, or a family of 12, so we should work together to make it as simple as possible instead of a weekly demolition derby.

I am not a fan of Walmart, but I didn't mind grocery shopping at 2am when it was relatively peaceful in there.

I contribute the problem in the UK to two things.

1) People do not look where they are walking.  This isn't just an issue in the shops either.  They tend to walk aimlessly doing other tasks with their eyes averted elsewhere.  They don't look up until they are bumping into you.

2) Stupid trolleys that go any way, willy-nilly.  We were in Tesco's on Saturday and there was a guy in his late 20's or early 30's who was moving his trolley in circles as he criss-crossed back in forth across aisles and in-between other shoppers.  I can't blame him fully.  I blame the trolley.  If he had a trolley that only went back and forth and turned from the front only, he wouldn't have been able to do his one-handed circle maneuvers through the cheese aisle.

Whew!  I feel better getting that off my chest.  

1) People do not look where they are walking.  This isn't just an issue in the shops either.  They tend to walk aimlessly doing other tasks with their eyes averted elsewhere.  They don't look up until they are bumping into you.

I am going to be a grumpy old woman now and blame the ipod.

In my day  people were alert and paid attention to who was around them. They listened to footsteps behind them or near them.

I was always taught to pay attention to my surroundings and the people around me, for my own safety.

Now, people seem to be in their own little worlds, completely oblivious to those around them until they are about to run smack into them.

I must admit I am constantly daydreaming, but there is always a part of me that is very alert and aware of what is going on around me.

There have been so many times people have almost walked into me and then had this shocked expression like they are amazed that there is another human being on the same street as them.

There have been so many times people have almost walked into me and then had this shocked expression like they are amazed that there is another human being on the same street as them.

Exactly. Some act like you should get out of their way so they don't have to watch where they are going while texting too. I've had one woman ask 'Didn't you see I was busy?' I said 'Yes, but I didn't really care.' If I am texting while walking, I can still look around to see if I am going to walk into someone or be run over by a car.

I've even had to ask people to get out of my way in the supermarket because they will just stand in front of what I'm trying to get to (and other people) and text.

2) Stupid trolleys that go any way, willy-nilly.  We were in Tesco's on Saturday and there was a guy in his late 20's or early 30's who was moving his trolley in circles as he criss-crossed back in forth across aisles and in-between other shoppers.  I can't blame him fully.  I blame the trolley.  If he had a trolley that only went back and forth and turned from the front only, he wouldn't have been able to do his one-handed circle maneuvers through the cheese aisle.

Hee hee! I complain about the trolleys in the US that have the turning circle of an aircraft carrier! They are so cumbersome.

Hee hee! I complain about the trolleys in the US that have the turning circle of an aircraft carrier! They are so cumbersome.

Were you in the cheese aisle of Tesco on Saturday around 5pm, Mister?   

I am going to be a grumpy old woman now and blame the ipod.

And cell phones.. text messaging.  But, I notice that people here tend to look at the ground when they walk too.  A fear of stepping in something?  Afraid to look others in the eye?  I dunno.  But, I get that deer-in-headlights-look when they bump into me too.  Like I just popped out of nowhere.

But, I notice that people here tend to look at the ground when they walk too. 

I do that mainly because everything is so uneven and more often than not had a wild e coyote situation happening (walking in midair and then falling flat to the ground) or just tripping over and getting badly scrapped.

Were you in the cheese aisle of Tesco on Saturday around 5pm, Mister?   

Not me! In fact DW offered last Saturday to call at the supermarket on her way home from work in exchange for me going and picking her up when she'd finished shopping! 

But, I notice that people here tend to look at the ground when they walk too.  A fear of stepping in something?

For me that is a big part of it. I hate spending so much time looking at the ground while I am walking but there seems to be a BIG problem with people in our area not cleaning up their doggie bombs from sidewalks and the canal path. I've never seen such a problem anywhere. I do look up far more often than most of the locals though.