Her two cents

If you've never worked in retail, it is difficult to explain to customers some of the concepts that you HAVE to have worked in a store to understand.

One of those is that some items are sold at a "pack," while others are sold individually. Think of a six-pack of sodas. The six-pack is cheaper than buying six individual cans.

OK. The trash that patronizes Wal-Mart likes to mix-and-match things that they aren't supposed to mix and match. Dog and cat food are particular favorites. When we don't have any of Rover's favorite, it's because you or your neighbor Fannie tried to get the case price by putting all the cans IN the case packaging, thinking the cases will ring up lower.

BUT - if she put her Fido's favorite kind in a container from ANOTHER kind of dog food, even though we're out of Fido's favorite chicken 'n bits, the merchandise computer thinks we're out of beef kibble. So what gets ordered? More beef kibble. Not chicken 'n bits.

I had a woman that did that Sunday with the Ramen noodles. So help me Buddha, but if you buy a six-pack of ONE flavor or Ramen, the price is $1.48. If you buy six individual packages, the price is $1.50, or $0.25 per for 6. OK. We all get that?

Large Marge rolls up (literally) to the counter. She's launches in a familiar spiel of "It's always something here" and explains the Ramen. At first I think it's a pricing mistake. Those happen ALL the time.

But when I look at the bag - heifer TORE OPEN a sealed case, took out the five that she didn't want, then proceeded to make up her own case of Ramen, just like it was a pick-and-mix candy store. When I tried to explain that she only got the TWO CENT discount for buying a case of the SAME KIND OF RAMEN, she sort of waved one paw at me and said "I'm not listening. I want my money."

I gave her two cents. God only know how screwed up the inventory over there is. I bet people are doing this left and right just to save two cents. It is a terrible, terrible world.