Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Checked Out

I had some time to kill before I went to physical therapy today, so I was lured by the siren song decided to go to Target.

I picked up all those must-have, can't-live-without items like Kashi Honey Sesame crackers and a six-pack of glue sticks and got into the checkout line. There was one woman in front of me and an ancient checker behind the register.

I've seen him before and he's a cute old Asian guy so I don't mind that he's not as speedy as some of the others. Turns out, he was the least of my problems.

The woman, after putting all her stuff in her cart, decides to write a check.

That's right. A CHECK.

Who the heck writes a check anymore? According to WalletPop, the personal check is one of the top 25 things that are fading out in our country, right along with outdoor plumbing and dial-up.

It's pretty obvious why. First she had to scramble around in her ginormous purse to find a pen. Why she wasn't filling out the check while the guy was ringing up her stuff I do not know. Anyway, the pen doesn't really work, but she's gamely making a go at it.

Meanwhile, I'm tapping my fingers, rolling my eyes and snapping my gum like a high schooler waiting for a homeroom pass. Okay, maybe not quite THAT obvious, but that's what my thought bubble was doing

Then she has to fish out her license. Luckily, the cash register now reads the license, unlike back in the day when I worked retail and had to meticulously print out the drivers license number and expiration on the check, AND ask for a phone number if it wasn't already printed on it.

Finally, after I read in TV Guide how Viki is dead AND in Star how Cher is married and signed a $600 million prenup AND sampled some cherry and mango Tic Tacs AND texted the Gettysburg Address to seven friends, it was my turn.

In went the credit card. Out it came. Done.

See, lady? I wanted to say. But I couldn't. She was out in the parking lot, using her door key to unlock her car before manually unrolling the windows.

6 comments:

Melissa said...

What??!! Viki is dead??!! OLTL's Viki? When does this happen? She was alive yesterday. Hmmmm... I guess I'll have to TiVo next week.

BTW, Do banks even print checks anymore?

Momfluential said...

hahahaha HA!

We just were at costco and my brill dh decided to pay for something with a check. He was astounded that all he had to do was sign it. Costco has ways of dealing with people like my husband and the woman in the line in front of you. I just made the dh read your post and he is mumbling angry expletives to himself and saying something about setting the VCR to tape wheel of fortune.

Anonymous said...

That is hilarious! I have recently run into this as well and I had to gently push my eyeballs back into my head when I saw this lady pulling out her checkbook. I think people do it to be annoying. There could be NO other reason....And let me tell you there was a lot of sighing going on behind her.

Anonymous said...

OMG, my DH would have just about passed out. The bane of his existence is someone writing a check at the grocery store. He seriously stands in line and makes comments about the year and checks being obsolete, etc. I usually have to smack him and walk away..

But I agree with you, who writes a check anymore. I pay my nanny by check and EVERY week, I am like, where is that damn checkbook again. I actually just checked out a service that will direct deposit funds from my account to hers so I can avoid the check drama...

And then I think, remember when I was 16 and got my first checking account and wrote a check for $.97 for gas, that my car ran on for about a week...

Ah...the good ol' days.

(Sorry, apparently I am chatty today :>)

Kelli/plangirl

Mely said...

I can't stop laughing...and I need it so bad...thanks for the giggles!!!

Cheryl said...

M - See what you learn when the woman in front of you is writing a check??

C - So B, like, carries a checkbook around with him? Is it in a fanny back? ;)

J - HA! AHAHAHAHA!

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