To have moved this lady's empty trolley - she obviously thought I was

[slartybartfast]

shopping in Asda earlier

women in her late 60s had her trolley blocking salads, I moved it slightly, leant over and got my watercress.

She was then muttering at a packet of ready salad. I thought she was reading it out loud, then wondered if she wanted help reading the ingrediants. I said "are you talkign to me"
She said "you could have said excuse me", before I moved her trolley.

It's only a Trolley was my retort.

It does annoy me,
I must admit I occasionally do say excuse me when I move people's trolleys out of the way but do find it unreasonable that people get so protective of their trolleys, when they are standing in the way of the food!

• DH said if i was a man I would be in permanent fights in pubs with my attitude!

What I do if I am looking at a shelf is stand with the trolley to the back side of me so that it's not blocking the aisle or the shelf. Then keep half an eye out for anyone that I might be getting in the way of.

Oh I could have done with some MNers last week.

2 couples meet in the bread aisle, right next to the bread baskets with the rolls. They stop, 2 trolleys park, they laugh, they joke, they hug, air kiss, chat... I wasn't the only one trying to get to the bread rolls, 'scuse me's went unheard.

Then man sneezes, BIG sneeze, he turned his head away from the other 3 - towards the rolls. His sneeze stopped their chat and other man said 'oh, do you want to get through?'... I managed a weak 'not now' and sloped off.

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeick! I'm never buying rolls from there again. The open ness of the baskets had never really bothered me before.

So if someone's trolley is in my way by the coco pops I should come back later? What if the supermarket is busy and there is someone in my way of every item I want?

Should I just abandon my shopping?
Should I set my alarm and haul my kids out of bed to be there as the doors open at 8 am in the desperate hope I can get to the tiger bread before the crowds?

Where was your trolley during all of this, OP?

Maybe we should all get these?

Trolleys make super impromptu BBQs if you turn them on their side and put something solid on the bottom side that you light the fire on.

Option 1: you say excuse me, she says sorry for being in your way.
Option 2: you both save your breath and you gently move the trolley.

She is more of an option 1 person, you are more option 2. However don't take it heart. It would be boring if we were all the same.

Oooh, I simply HAVE to share (again ...) my shopping trolley story. I'm in Budgens (dunno what the store's called now) standing up against the frozen cabinet, deciding between petit pois (we're dead posh in Islington) or basic frozen peas.

Suddenly, a big young guy absolutely RAMS a wheelchair containing an elderly lady HARD into the back of my legs. I fall over, which is not good news as I have one metal hip and one crumbling real hip. I get up, feeling hurt and bewildered. Young guy growls at me 'you shoulda got outa my way ...!' Elderly lady in wheelchair (his grandmama?) looks embarrassed. I am too gobsmacked to say anything! I didn't have a trolley in his way, I was toting a wire basket.

i had a basket on wheels, and after my altercation it had fallen over

someone upthread did say my saying "where you talking to me" was aggressive, actually I remember the first thing I said was "Pardon"

... and another thing ... I've lived in Hong Kong and Japan, so I know about noodles. And I LOVE Pot Noodles. So there!

can't imagine what your budgens became , our's is a expensive Sainsbury.

your trolley story is shocking though.

and I have often wanted to put other things in other shoppers trolleys but haven't got the nerve. tis a bit norty.

On my giddy aunt if you had to tip toe around the supermarket waiting for empty trolleys to be moved you would be in there for bastard weeks.

I try to eat a large bag of Monster Munch before going to the supermarket. Then I stand close & breathe on people who I want to move their fat arses out of my way. No need to utter a word.

Works a treat.

OldGrandmama -
Bloody ignorant youngsters!

Online shopping - clearly the only way forward. What with that and social media, texting, etc - very soon we'll never have to socially engage with another human being ever again. Never have to feel sympathy or empathy, never help a struggling person to reach something from a shelf too high, never have to barge someone out of the way because they're dithering choosing their piece of fish. Never have to skip out of the way because some annoying youngster is bashing you on the ankles with their annoying scooter. Bliss!!

lljkk - only so many bags of Monster Munch you can munch before you get a fat arse too (Worth a mention)

Sod humans, I'm all about skynet.

On my giddy aunt if you had to tip toe around the supermarket waiting for empty trolleys to be moved you would be in there for bastard weeks.

Yet I've managed to do it for more than 30 years. Strange how times change. I've never had to tiptoe around, or be meek and mild. It's sometimes simply being helpful and considerate to other people around you. I've also been guilty of having my trolley in the way whilst chatting. Just apologise, make a joke of it, and everyone's happy.

Was just wondering what it was blocking/whose way it was in.

Unless your supermarket is palatial, it will always be in someone's way if they are looking for something specific.

Hang on, was it you blocking my grapes?

Christ, I've never asked someone before I've moved their trolley. Walk up, shift trolley, slip between it and the produce, get stuff, move trolley back.

Life is just too damn short to get precious about supermarket shopping - unless of course you are loudly explaining to your DD about the evils of Nestle whilst the shelf stacker is replenishing the Golden Graham's... That was a good row

OP, next time you get evils do the "Careful, if the wind changes you'll be stuck like that". Nothing takes the wind out a mardy buggers sails quicker than talking to them like a child.

But that's fine because when you are chatting by the kidney beans everyone wanders off to do something else and comes back.

Sounds like the supermarket in Bedford falls to me.

Maybe there should just be parking spaces for trolleys in supermarkets.

Or chatting spaces (that's more important). Park and chat, then shop.

Or maybe people should just, you know, "shop" in a bloody shop. If you want socialise go to a sodding cafe.

Get in, get your shopping, get out. It's not a bloody church social, it's a place of business.

Gah. Drives me mad.

Tricky if someone wants to stop and chat to you though. Should you just say "Sorry, this is not a chatting place". In a supermarket you often see lots of people who stop and chat, sometimes people you haven't seen for a while. Should you hold out the palm of your hand and say "Sorry - can't talk to you, this is a place of business, chatting is not allowed" (Even though for us, it is actually a social occasion. I'm not being paid to shop, I'm in my free time, I'm allowed to natter