Was I AIBU to walk out of supermarket.

[Witchcraftandhokum]

I went to a supermarket which isn't my usual one today. There was a queue outside, but it moved pretty fast and was ably managed by staff who were also helpfully cleaning trollies. All well and good. However, inside was a different matter, it felt really busy and barely any of the customers (the majority of which were waring face masks) were adhering to the social distancing rules. I had a woman reach round me to get something and people were passing really close.

I got to the end with of an aisle which was blocked by 3 members of staff 2 of the large trollies they use to stack shelves. I couldn't safely pass so I turned around and tried to go up the next aisle which was empty and was loudly told off my a member of staff for not following the arrows, I tried to explain that I couldn't get up the other aisle but he just walked off. At that point I picked my shopping bags out of my trolley and walked out. Was I unreasonable.

EmbarrassesUser Again, I don't see how I was acting like a martyr. No, shouting, no histrionics. Just me walking quietly out of a shop.

I think now we’ve all know about the likelihood of contamination, who it affects most etc the average healthy person isn’t worried about getting too close for a few seconds.
It would of course now be the height of rudeness to cough or sneeze in a shop or to spend time chatting unless you are a noticeable distance away.
It’s only going to get worse/back to normal, in the next few weeks anyway.

... and then writing a thread all about it and asking for votes on the subject

If I didn’t feel safe and people were not keeping their distance then I would have walked out too.

Was it Aldi?

It can’t have been Waitrose as very few are let in there at a time, probably Asda

Can I ask why you left your shopping in the trolley and just abandoned it for it to become someone else's job to put back? Why, if you were not stropping or storming out as you so frequently insist, couldn't you return your own shopping and trolley if it was just a simple case of changing your mind?

I think it’s really sad that coronavirus is creating all these mental health issues. It must be such a hard way to live racked with fear all the time. Sorry Op hope things aren’t so hard for you in the future.

My local Asda has been very good. Morrisons on the other hand... all sorts of mayhem. Not even sure the management at Morrisons knew they were supposed to be making some changes.

So you abandoned your trolley on an aisle therefore making that aisle narrower for everyone else until a member of staff noticed? Also, where are trolleys free? Or did you lose your £1 deposit too?

"The 1 way aisles are a pain as the things I want are usually at the wrong end for rapid shopping so I go up aisles I don't need to get to the one I want" > 2Rebecca
Queing up outside (one in, one out) makes sense to me. Originally the one-way aisles also made sense. However, they're increasingly making less sense. You want one thing from a sparsely populated aisle but you then need to follow arrows around two aisles to reach somewhere else, which seems daft. The other week I picked up some chocolate (I know, bad) from the end of an aisle, and my trolley was parked in the centre aisle waiting for me (he luvs me), so I moved two feet from the end of the aisle to my trolley. A man turning into the aisle muttered 'one-way'. If I'd followed the arrows, rather than moving a couple of feet, I could have come into contact with several people. As it was, I came into contact with Mr Passive-Aggresive and nobody else.

@Perisoire I sometimes put away milk and meat that other people dumped in the bread aisle.

Please don't do that - not for chilled foods. Alert a member of staff instead, as they usually have to be discarded for health reasons. There's no telling how long that meat has been out of the cooler and your good deed could give someone food poisoning (or off milk in their tea which is nearly as bad)

I would have done what you did, too, OP.
Some PPs have re-imagined your thread as a stroppy person storming out of a supermarket - which did NOT happen. You calmly decided it was not safe and left. Lemons and a card are going to be put back!

@ClassicCola So, nobody has caught this just by walking past someone, then? Or are you just talking twaddle?

I think it’s really sad that coronavirus is creating all these mental health issues. It must be such a hard way to live racked with fear all the time. Sorry Op hope things aren’t so hard for you in the future.

It's really kind of you to offer OP this support.

It's scary how so many people are confused by the science.

Of course you can catch the virus in less than 15 minutes!

The 15 minute idea is about track and trace! If you test positive, you are supposed to give contact details of anyone you may have been with at less than 2 metres, for 15 mins or more.

It's a small risk you could pass it on otherwise BUT it's still a risk. Hence the 2 mtr rule.

The virus is spread via breath droplets, sneezing and coughing as well as touching things/ people.

You can get it by talking face to face to someone for far less than 15 minutes.

Please God don't let everyone start thinking they can do WTF they want as long as it's under 15 minutes.

Not just about track and trace Lordy.

From this information from public health:

Coronaviruses can be spread when people with the virus have close, sustained contact with people who are not infected. This typically means spending more than 15 minutes within two metres of an infected person, such as talking to someone for instance.

publichealthmatters.blog.gov.uk/2020/03/04/coronavirus-covid-19-what-is-social-distancing/

You can catch coronavirus by being in contact with someone for less than 15 minutes but it’s imperative people make risk assessments on their daily tasks. There haven’t been outbreaks of thousands of supermarket workers getting the virus for a reason.

On Monday I have to go to work (TA), with no social distancing. I will also be in an enclosed space, prolonged contact (hours), often performing intimate care (first aid, toileting accidents), no masks or PPE allowed.

Personally I wouldn't be so worried about passing others very briefly in a supermarket,especially if most of them were wearing masks.
I think prolonged contact (like teachers and TAs in schools will have) is risky but brief contact, like shops is not high risk.

I am very worried about my safety going back to work on Monday.
Going shopping, not worried.

Rates of infected in the community still pretty high. Higher than when schools were originally shut.

Government don't care about teachers/TA LIVES. They only care about money.

I note that MPs aren't going back into the House of Commons as they say it's not safe. (even with social distancing and masks allowed).

I wish my MP would come and shadow me in my job on Monday!

[quote Eckhart]@ClassicCola So, nobody has caught this just by walking past someone, then? Or are you just talking twaddle?[/quote]
No I don't believe that anyone has caught it by being in contact with someone for seconds. Even the track and trace says in contact for 15 minutes. Now unless it takes you 15 minutes to decide which baked beans you want while reaching over someone, I don't think there's a risk.

Well, 50/50 on this thread, so I hope we're all clearer 😉. Thanks everyone for your input I'm off to bed now.

But, one more thing. Washyourhands I really hope yours was a genuine wish of support and not a dig at people with mental health issues. Because that wouldn't be nice.

Oph and Lavender I'm a teacher too. I agree with everything you say.

"Oph and Lavender I'm a teacher too"

Then you must accept some responsibility for the behavior of the people you meet in public.
We are all shaped by our educators.

As a matter of interest has anyone seen any figures of how many shop workers have got Covid 19 and passed away from it?
Surely that would give us some idea of how dangerous it is as they must be seeing hundreds of people a day in big supermarkets.

Oh fgs. So now a staff member has to unload your trolley and put it all back yet you’re moaning about other people’s behaviour?! Lolol
Feel better now you’ve had your petulant tantrum do you?

@Witchcraftandhokum I was being genuine. I can see so many people around me suffering and afraid of this disease and it’s causing huge amounts of stress and anxiety. You left a shop mid shopping today and then started a thread about it. That must have brought you stress and anxiety that if it wasn’t for this disease you wouldn’t have. That is what I find sad.