Too Helpful

Maggie Mason went into The Container Store and the clerks couldn't contain themselves. She writes about it in Helpful:

Container Store? Get off my back.

I can find my own damn shelf extender. Tell your clerks to stand down, before I knock one unconscious with a Keepsake Shadow Box.

On my own shopping oddessey yesterday, I conducted my own informal survey of sales clerks.

#1 Annoying
I found the Best Buy sales clerks to be the most annoying. They huddle around in groups, laughing and telling jokes to each other, trying to arrage dates for later that night. Some clerks hunt the TV isles alone and pounce when you make eye contact.

#2 Annoying
The sales ladies at Chicos are in a world of their own. You'd think that they'd notice someone waiting to check out. But no. The two sales ladies were trying on a cute little scarf that one of them was considering purchasing.

Sales lady #1: Oh that looks so nice on you.
Sales lady #2: I might just buy it. It's the last one.
Sales lady #1: Well if you don't, I'll buy it.
Sales lady #2: It's so pretty.
Sales lady #1: Looks over at me and says, do you need some help?
Me: Yes. I need help.
Sales lady #1: I didn't see that you needed help.
Me: Why not?
Sales lady #1: We didn't see you over there.

Um, hello, lady. I thought it was your job to look over at the checkout line to see if anyone was next. It's sex discrimination I tell you. If I was a woman, I'd get waited on!

Hmm, and if I was a woman I could wear pretty lace underwear, high heels and nice little scarves.

Me: I want to buy that nice little scarf over there that you were just talking about. ;-)