# bag your own **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 14, 2003, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630 "2003-01-14T23:48:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![GregAtlanta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/eb9ed0/32.png) [@GregAtlanta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GregAtlanta)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/41 "2003-01-15T18:34:01Z")
UncleBeer, I hear ya. I use the self scan lanes sometimes just for speed but I still oppose them on principle. Why am I doing the clerk’s job? When did it become so evil to expect service in a retail establishment? Jesus F. Christ, now if I go to a store and actually expect some service, the fucker behind me in line is gonna think I’m all high and mighty and treating the clerks like my own personal servants? What the fuck? It’s a grocery store! They offered to put my fucking crackers in a bag if I bought them here, so why do I have to throw myself on the crackers to stop them? It’s not like I waltzed in and demanded something the store didn’t offer to every customer. If they don’t want to bag groceries or can’t hire enough staff to do it without making Mr. Next-in-Line burst a blood vessel, then they don’t have to offer the fucking service. But they offered the fucking service, so why am I the bad guy? You bleeding hearts rushing to bag your groceries before the clerk can do it remind me of people who condescendingly try to help people you think are beneath you, patronizing them and never realizing that you’re insulting them. I think it’s a lot better to just stand back and let people do their jobs, and not be so fucking critical of them if they take a few minutes more than you think is absolutely necessary. ---
**Author:** ![Suspenderzzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@Suspenderzzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suspenderzzz)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/42 "2003-01-15T18:45:40Z")
In my neighborhood supermarket, it is considered bad form to bag your own groceries, because it deprives the designated baggers (I secretly and evilly refer to them as “beggars”) of their 15 cent or whatever tip. They are so desperate, as soon as they see someone coming (I usually don’t shop during the busiest hours with long lines), even if you only have one or two items, they _jump_ out of nowhere, grabbing the stuff straight from the cashier to make sure you can’t bag it yourself. The reason of course is to guilt-trip you into tipping them. I can understand them doing this when you are buying a _lot_ of stuff; then, the help is greatly appreciated. But why should I tip a bagger/beggar 50 cents for bagging my 79 cent box of catfood, the only item purchased?? Before I get hung out to dry again, I want to make it clear that I always tip these people generously, and that I thank my lucky stars that I don’t have a shitty job like that. Also, the OP mentions something (sarcastically) about the grocery boy helping you to schlepp your shit home. As usual, things are different here in the Rotten Apple as they are in the heartland: Here it is common that the bag boy accompanies you home with all your purchases in a shopping cart (if it’s walking distance) if you request it. (Of course, you have to pay for it – usually around $5.00 or $6.00). I think this is a valuable service, especially when you have too much to carry in your hands, but it’s only a couple of blocks, not really far enough to bother with a cab. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/43 "2003-01-15T19:43:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Suspenderzzz \* > \*\*In my neighborhood supermarket, it is considered bad form to bag your own groceries, because it deprives the designated baggers (I secretly and evilly refer to them as “beggars”) of their 15 cent or whatever tip. They are so desperate, as soon as they see someone coming (I usually don’t shop during the busiest hours with long lines), even if you only have one or two items, they _jump_ out of nowhere, grabbing the stuff straight from the cashier to make sure you can’t bag it yourself. The reason of course is to guilt-trip you into tipping them. \*\* I imagine that can cause some awkward moments for food stamp users… ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/44 "2003-01-15T19:54:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ferret Herder \* > \*\*Though I’m surprised that it could take 20 minutes to bag any amount of groceries - if the bagger was that damned slow I probably **would** push him or her out of the way and bag them myself. \*\* Maybe the guy bought a live squid, a lobster and some live eels. My store has bag your own lanes and cashier bags lanes. I tend to self-bag as I’m fussy on how things are bagged. ---
**Author:** ![Judith\_Prietht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b19c9b/32.png) [@Judith\_Prietht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Judith_Prietht)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/45 "2003-01-15T20:08:20Z")
I think it’s a requirement at my Dominicks that a bagger bags your food. They also seem to be required to ask if you need any help carrying your bags to your vehicle. Since I don’t have a car, I don’t know if they get tipped or not. I think I’d only bag my own if there was no bagger available, but even then the checkout person usually starts bagging my shit before I can get to it. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/46 "2003-01-15T20:19:51Z")
> [@](#): > > I don’t like my raw meat to touch my other food. Um, isn’t the raw meat already in a styrofoam tray and wrapped in plastic? I think adding a freezer bag AND a carrying bag is a little excessive, myself. That’s a little more than my doctor does with biohazardous sharps. ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/47 "2003-01-15T20:33:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by matt\_mcl \* > \*\*Um, isn’t the raw meat already in a styrofoam tray and wrapped in plastic? I think adding a freezer bag AND a carrying bag is a little excessive, myself. That’s a little more than my doctor does with biohazardous sharps. \*\* Are you kidding? You’ve obviously never handled a package of raw chicken. It’s often slimy and dripping with goo. Yuck. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/48 "2003-01-15T20:52:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Joey G \* > **Whoa, this is a surprise. Bagging my own groceries never even occured to me. I can’t recall ever seeing someone do this, or even being in a store where it was possible to do without crawling back there with the cashier. Not that I would mind, some of those checkout girls are rather cute.** Same here. Except in the “scan your own groceries” line, then I bag my own groceries. But don’t they usually just put them in bags while they’re scanning them? I’ve also never tipped bag boys. That just seems weird. ---
**Author:** ![In\_Conceivable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@In\_Conceivable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Conceivable)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/49 "2003-01-15T21:02:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by matt\_mcl \* > \*\*Um, isn’t the raw meat already in a styrofoam tray and wrapped in plastic? I think adding a freezer bag AND a carrying bag is a little excessive, myself. That’s a little more than my doctor does with biohazardous sharps. \*\* Ditto what **Indygrrl** said. Often the plastic around the raw meat is yucky and slimy. All it takes is one poorly wrapped tray or small leak to make all the meat at the counter icky on the outside plastic. I leave the raw meat wrapped in the grocery bag in my fridge until I cook it. If I put it in the freezer I usually transfer it to my own (clean) bags. ---
**Author:** ![Audrey\_Levins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Audrey\_Levins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Audrey_Levins)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/50 "2003-01-15T22:02:21Z")
Either we don’t have those special “full service” grocery stores, or I don’t know where they are…but at HEB, which is the only real grocery store in San Antonio, the bags are a good five feet away from the cashier, on the END of her little stand, or whatever you call it. And since I shop late at night, they usually don’t have any baggers. I’m not saying that everyone who lets the cashier bag their stuff is an asshole; nor am I saying that it’s foolish to “expect customer service” when you go into a retail establishment. But if there isn’t a bagger, and your cashier, as at HEB, doesn’t bag anything until the end of the transaction, I don’t think it’s any skin off your nose if you lend a hand. This isn’t about your “rights” as a consumer, or about taking a stand against crappy customer service, for God’s sake…it’s about common sense and a little courtesy. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/51 "2003-01-15T22:44:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cessandra \* > \*\*This has been brought up here before, but since no one has mentioned it in this thread yet: Some places would prefer that you do NOT bag your own groceries. \*\* That would be [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=124855) thread. I added my own personal experience stories into that thread, which in a nutshell are that both grocery stores I go to **forbid** you to bag your own groceries. ---
**Author:** ![andymurph64](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a88e57/32.png) [@andymurph64](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andymurph64)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/52 "2003-01-15T23:15:35Z")
by Audrey Levins > [@](#): > > Either we don’t have those special “full service” grocery stores, or I don’t know where they are… Same here. You mean there are places where you DON’T bag your own? 😕😃 ---
**Author:** ![bernse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2003, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/53 "2003-01-15T23:23:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by In Conceivable \* > \*\*Ditto what **Indygrrl** said. Often the plastic around the raw meat is yucky and slimy. All it takes is one poorly wrapped tray or small leak to make all the meat at the counter icky on the outside plastic. > > I leave the raw meat wrapped in the grocery bag in my fridge until I cook it. If I put it in the freezer I usually transfer it to my own (clean) bags. \*\* Thirded. Its almost rare for me to buy meat and _not_ have blood leaking out of the bottom of the package. Ever seen what it looks like in the bottom of the meat cooler? It usually bloody. Guess where the blood came from? All the meat above it is wrapped. Personally, if they have a bagger I won’t touch them. If there is no bagger (like Superstore) I try but go damn slow as I hate getting fucked on the prices and if you don’t catch it before your goods are rung through its a hassle getting it fixed. **alice-in-wonderland** : I like Co-op too, but I find their prices to damn high. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/54 "2003-01-16T06:27:05Z")
> [@](#): > > Are you kidding? You’ve obviously never handled a package of raw chicken. It’s often slimy and dripping with goo. Yuck. Don’t give me that. Maybe my supermarket just packs it properly. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/55 "2003-01-16T06:50:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bernse \* > \*\ ***alice-in-wonderland** : I like Co-op too, but I find their prices to damn high. \*\* Well, Co-Op prices are higher than SuperStore for sure; however, I’ve always found them comparable to Safeway or IGA, and the service is really, really spectacular. Also, as I mentioned, I do get a nice fat cheque at the end of the year. ---
**Author:** ![In\_Conceivable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@In\_Conceivable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Conceivable)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/56 "2003-01-16T11:58:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by matt\_mcl \* > \*\*Don’t give me that. Maybe my supermarket just packs it properly. \*\* You must go to the only supermarket in the world that always packages raw chicken so well that the outside is never contaminated. I have shopped at many groceries stores and usually notice the same problems. 2 other people in different parts of the country have said the same thing I did. The experts agree that it is a good idea to sperately bag your raw meat. [http://www.healthandage.com/Home/gid2=1201](http://www.healthandage.com/Home/gid2=1201) [http://www.freep.com/news/groceries/qrisk26.htm](http://www.freep.com/news/groceries/qrisk26.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/57 "2003-01-16T14:52:46Z")
I’d say half of the meat I buy is packaged improperly. I don’t mind the extra bag for the meat, but I don’t have a problem with putting ALL the meat into one bag. I side with the “let the bagger bag it” bunch. I’ve only shopped in a couple places that made me bag it myself, and I resent it. I think I should be offered a 5% discount if they make me do it myself. Why should you pay the same price for two different levels of service? Like where someone here said they have a “bag it yourself” lane. No fuckin’ way. Unless I get a discount. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/58 "2003-01-16T14:53:51Z")
Oh, and there’s no such thing as tipping the bag boy in the Chicago area. ---
**Author:** ![Demise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/34f0e0/32.png) [@Demise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Demise)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/59 "2003-01-16T15:48:20Z")
> [@](#): > > _Audrey_ - …it’s about common sense and a little courtesy. Yeah, it is. From these responses, you’d think someone was asking people to stomp on puppy heads. If I have a lot of groceries, and there is no bagger for my line, I bag the damn things. Do you people like standing around in a grocery store? If you want to spend more time there, I guess I can understand, but do it when you’re not in the checkout line. Those of us that aren’t so enamored with the pretty colors want to pay for our groceries and get the hell out of the store. This, of course, only applies to stores where you _can_ bag your own groceries. ---
**Author:** ![In\_Conceivable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@In\_Conceivable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Conceivable)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630/60 "2003-01-16T16:05:12Z")
I understand your point **Denise**. But what about the people who said that they like to watch the prices which their groceries are scanned? Should we just let the grocery store rip us off? It is much quicker to get things fixed if you notice the problem while the groceries are being rung up then after you pay. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bag-your-own/148630.md?page=4)