To dislike people commenting on what you are buying?

This annoys me too. There is a small supermarket near where I live and I regularly buy stuff like drinks,milk, toilet rolls etc from there. A few months ago I bought a pack of 4 toilet rolls and the girl on the till commented that I'd only bought a pack the day before. I felt like saying 'And? So what?'. On another occasion when I bought a packet of sandwiches,the girl remarked 'Having a break from cooking tonight then?'. Really bugs me! There's making conversation and there's making remarks that feel like a criticism. Make small talk by all means but keep your thoughts about what I'm buying to yourself!

They’re probably being told to make conversation with customers.

I’d be impressed is a cashier knew what I usually buy, that’s a great memory.

If it bothers you, it bothers you but I don’t think it’s that deep. Just make non-commital noises and don’t ask any questions.

I work in a convenience store and honestly while there are plenty of customers that are so regular as clockwork that not only can you predict what they’re gonna buy, you also worry when you haven’t seem them- mostly elderly. I would never dream of commenting to them about it- it’s none of my fucking business.

Do you work in retail, perchance?

I couldn’t care less what they’re saying, they’re probably bored and just trying to make conversation.. I just nod and wish them a nice day.

I would hate this too. It would make me want to find somewhere with self check outs and that's a shame cos I don't really want cashiers out of jobs but then again I absolutely wouldn't want someone noticing and commenting on how often I buy stuff!

Stick to chit chat about the weather, or what you fancy for dinner maybe?

I also don't think people should be trained to make chit chat to every single customer regardless of whether they show any signs of wanting chit chat.

I love it. Shows personalisation and client centricity

Intrusive?! It's bloody sandwich ingredients they're not asking you when you last had a wank or what you think happens when you die 😂

I’ve had this and I hate it.

There are many ways to start a conversation without being a dick about what someone else is buying.

Think, “oh, I love those biscuits, I must get some next time!” Rather than, “wow, you really going to eat all of them!”

I ordered a newly published book for my son when he started University,
from a proper posh bookshop, waited a couple of weeks, went to collect,
the woman on the desk picked it up, said, “O yes I read the review of this
looks interesting” then not only opened it but bent the spine and ran her
hand down the page, in one movement, flicked through the pages.

I asked her if she found it interesting, yes? in which case have it
and left the shop, went to Blackwells for a virgin copy.

Charity Shop assistants, who are point of sale cannot resist comments,
often describing what I could wear whatever it is, with, as
though I couldn’t possibly know - they cannot resist, it’s tiresome.
One such person last week advising on portion control,
offered to help me look for diet books, because a blouse I tried on,
was too small.

Smile and nod, OP, they mean no harm and if they didn’t like you they
wouldn’t bother saying anything, just sling your shopping along the belt,
take your money, Next!

"You have to be a little bit of a wanker to comment on what someone else is buying though, don’t you?" erm, no. Some of us like human interaction. Suppose you'd hate to go to a café or bar and have a "regular" order, too. Not me, I like it, and I like that the lady in the shop opposite my work knows my name, that if I buy lucozade I've had a late night, and I like knowing that her son is starting uni in September.
If you can't deal with speaking to people when shopping perhaps use self service or get shopping delivered to your house. Hopefully by an unfriendly delivery driver.

Image, when it loads, is from an interview with Kurt Vonnegut about a time he told his wife he was going to the shop to buy a stamp.

I completely get you, I absolutely hate shopping with my mum, she watches everything and comments. I was also the same growing up, if I wanted a snack out of the kitchen or make my own dinner, I’d wait until no one was around and then make a run and grab because even someone asking me what I’m eating really annoys me, at work I eat at my desk to not loose time and I hate anyone commenting on my food

I wouldn’t like this tbh but it’s part of the reason I like living where I live as it’s quite an anonymous sort of place.

I am not diagnosed as autistic. I have OCD and a lot of anxiety around social interactions and food.
I went to a college for people with disabilities. A lot of the other students had autism/ ocd/ social anxiety. There was a local shop where a lot of used to buy lunch etc. The women on the deli were constantly pointing out that so many of us had the same thing every day and a lot of us had restricted diets and only ate particular foods. That and coming in at precisely the same time.
It was excruciating having this pointed out every day for me. I’m deeply ashamed of my rituals and I find it very humiliating when people call attention to it. One day I was in the queue when one of the women commented on it yet again and one of the students who had no filter said “it’s because we all have autism, get over it!”
They actually stopped commenting after that and it was a massive relief.

You have to be a little bit of a wanker to comment on what someone else is buying though, don’t you?

What is it to anyone if I was buying them for someone with a dementia, or my personal kink of shoving a thousand custard creams up my arse on a Friday night?

There’s no need to comment, or even be bothered by what anyone else chooses to buy?

@Bellasmellsofwee are they being wankers? Or are they just not psychic and know the very specific set of circumstances around your cake buying? My Dad has dementia so I understand the comment was not helpful, but it's not malicious.

This really reminded me of Caroline Ahern's check out girl! "Air freshener....house pong, does it?"

When my dad had dementia, the ONLY things he would eat were biscuits, cake and chocolate.

While he was eating biscuits them, he would crush loads up at the same time. He would eat a slice of cake, and crush up the rest saying it had been poisoned.

So I used to buy hundreds of packets of biscuits and cakes a month. I would stop at Aldi before I visited a couple of times a week and stock up, just a huge basket of biscuits, cake and chocolate.

There would always be some prick passing comment on what I was buying, either directly or indirectly. other shoppers or people on the tills.

And I’d always set the judgemental arseholes straight, and at least some of them had the good grace to apologise.

People can be wankers.

I know we're all supposed to hate self service tills, but one big advantage of them is that they aren't instructed by their misinformed and delusional managers to make awkward small talk with customers. If it happens naturally, fine, but not when it's forced or over-familiar like this.

When I used to live alone, I’d fairly often go to the fish counter in the supermarket on my way home for work for a single portion of salmon.
They started to recognise me, remember I always bought the same thing, and comment on it. So I stopped going.
I’m aware that’s an overreaction. And it probably reflected my own internal worry that I was in a very boring routine, and so didn’t want people commenting on it.

I would genuinely welcome the interaction and also recognise that the person serving me is probably just making the best of a long hard shift working for shit pay. If I don’t want to talk I’ll use the self service option.

Those things said would not bother me.
I do though have an issue with what I would call false conversations which often less so now, but in the past, supermarkets I think told their checkout staff to gain a rapport with the customer. And then you had’ What are you doing today’. Which I found off putting. I just want to pack my groceries, be pleasant but not over familiar and leave.

It’s intrusive.

Another one who has to make it personal