Shopping in silence

How nice to open the fridge in the morning and find I have some food. I went shopping last night after I collected Heidi's tablets from the vet. I timed it to be at the vet at 7.45pm, they close at 8pm, then on to Aldi. They now have red and green traffic lights above the door, the stop go is done electronically rather than paying a person to stand there and monitor the traffic entering. The shop was virtually empty anyway at that time. Two ladies each with a trolley, A man and a woman with hand baskets. It is so easy to shop late. I thought I would get this done before the new rule comes into force tomorrow about wearing a face covering. I have my mask ready but I suspect there will be a rebellion against it. 

Will the shops legally have to enforce it, if they don't will they get fined? I can see a few scuffles breaking out if people are refused entry. The police in one county have said they won't come out if they get a phone call saying someone is not wearing a mask, but they will if a disturbance breaks out. 

Single bananas at Aldi are 13p each, cheaper than buying them in a bag, so I pick out the biggest. 

Getting low on seeds again. I put these in my mini chopper and add the mix to my porridge or cereal. I did buy a packet of mixed seeds once, but even after chopping them there was still a lot of hard gritty bits in it. I didn't like that, won't buy them again. 

Have I got enough tins? I put a tin of beans in the trolley last night, didn't really need to, I already had three tins. Oh well, beans on toast, beans on a jacket spud, beans in a stew. So many things you can do with a 22p tin of beans. 

Going back to the vet experience for a minute. Customers have to wait outside. I gave my name at the open window where a receptionist sits at a desk. She had the tablets ready. I got my debit card out to pay, she puts the machine on the window ledge in front of me, expecting me to waft the card over it. I said I have to punch in the numbers. She puts a small plastic bag over the whole machine so I can continue with the transaction. I wonder how many times she uses that same bag, how many other people have touched it. Luckily I remembered to take my small hand sanitiser with me. They don't take cash.

I called in at the petrol station for some fuel on the way home. Using my gardening gloves which I now keep in the car, and stopping the filling just after the £20 mark. I sauntered over to the entrance taking the exact amount of cash out of my purse, opening the door with a shove from my whole body, and covering my hand with my sleeve to open it to get out. 

It's difficult to do supermarket shopping with gloves on, I tried with soft cotton gloves, can't get a grip on the boxes and jars, so now I don't bother. They have cleaning stations if you want to clean your trolley I don't use them. Other people have touched those bottles of spray, and look at all the waste paper it creates. I push my trolley the wrong way round, back to front, not touching the handle. Or use the sides of the trolley to move it along. I don't know if this makes any difference, but it makes me feel better. 

Shopping has never been so boring. No smiles, no chatting, moving around like chess pieces on a board. No discussing favourite products, just grab your items drop them in a trolley and get out as quick as you can. Hardly a word spoken. 

Anyway, that's me done. A nice day I think, my friend might come a walk with me today. I will put the flags out if she does. Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.  ilona