Where are the grocery baggers?

[Anonymous]

Speaking of bagging, when is Washington DC going to get with the times and ban plastic bags like some other progressive cities? I support the bag tax, and some stores like Whole Foods won't use plastic bags, only paper. Yet Giant and CVS only seem to offer plastic, particularly those thin plastic bags that can only hold a few light items and break easily. So they have to double them up and have to use more of them. Bad for the environment.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Well, in DC itself I think the use of baggers died off because most people bring their own bags (there's a .05 fee for a bag), a lot of people are on foot and have rolling carts and backpacks, and it's just not as simple as simply bagging stuff up, putting it back in the cart, and bringing it to a car. There are logistics involved and people choose to bag their own stuff their own way.

Why would it matter if you bring your own bag or not? Items still go in the bag. BAGGERS just take your bags and use those rather than the store bags. That logic makes no sense.

It matters to me because I'm usually on foot so I'm packing my own stuff very carefully in the most compact way possible. I'm evening out the loads between bags to make them easier to carry, and I'm consolidating stuff. I'm not just using plastic bags and throwing stuff into them willy nilly, as baggers are wont to do. Clearly you've never had to do this.

Yes, i have done this. But this has zero to do with why there are no baggers. Do you think people in nyc and Chicago and dc and LA have never had to walk home with groceries lol?

I walk home with groceries in my own bags often. You can simply say "I would like to bag my own things".....

Baggers did not die off because people like you. People have walked with groceries for decades, PP.

Thank you for correcting me. You clearly know more about this than I do. You're very smart and know about important things.

My PhD comes in handy in so many ways. Happy to pay it forward.

Actually, PhD, you come across as a pompous idiot. Grocery baggers only came into existence with the advent of the suburbs, car culture, and supermarkets. That's when people started to shop in bulk and buy tons of food at the same time. They need baggers to bag up all the items and bring them to people's cars. Before that mostly people in cities shopped at a small market daily (with no need for baggers) or called their grocer and had items delivered. So the PP who theorizes why there are no baggers in DC proper stores is on to something.

Which are the proper stores vs. the improper stores in Washington?

DC proper, dingbat. That's used to mean within the actual city. People around here say DC when they actually mean some far flung suburb of it.

In fact, most people say Washington or the District when they mean to refer to DC and the meaning is commonly understood. "DC proper" sounds rather queer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mom has always tipped the baggers that help her load the groceries into the car. Does anyone else do that?

My mom did the same! I've never had anyone load my groceries into the car but would definitely tip.

I moved to the south a few years ago and we have a grocery store called Market Street here. Pretty normal store, maybe slightly higher end but not like whole foods or anything. Their policy is to carry out and load groceries in the car for EVERY customer. I'm sure there is a way to refuse but they're very insistent. No tips accepted. It's amazing once you get over the discomfort of not being used to that kind of service.

You also roll your basket up and don't have to unload it on a belt (similar to TJ's). It is amazing how much better it makes grocery shopping only to have to touch your groceries to put them in the cart and then to unload them at home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, in DC itself I think the use of baggers died off because most people bring their own bags (there's a .05 fee for a bag), a lot of people are on foot and have rolling carts and backpacks, and it's just not as simple as simply bagging stuff up, putting it back in the cart, and bringing it to a car. There are logistics involved and people choose to bag their own stuff their own way.

Why would it matter if you bring your own bag or not? Items still go in the bag. BAGGERS just take your bags and use those rather than the store bags. That logic makes no sense.

It matters to me because I'm usually on foot so I'm packing my own stuff very carefully in the most compact way possible. I'm evening out the loads between bags to make them easier to carry, and I'm consolidating stuff. I'm not just using plastic bags and throwing stuff into them willy nilly, as baggers are wont to do. Clearly you've never had to do this.

Yes, i have done this. But this has zero to do with why there are no baggers. Do you think people in nyc and Chicago and dc and LA have never had to walk home with groceries lol?

I walk home with groceries in my own bags often. You can simply say "I would like to bag my own things".....

Baggers did not die off because people like you. People have walked with groceries for decades, PP.

Thank you for correcting me. You clearly know more about this than I do. You're very smart and know about important things.

My PhD comes in handy in so many ways. Happy to pay it forward.

Actually, PhD, you come across as a pompous idiot. Grocery baggers only came into existence with the advent of the suburbs, car culture, and supermarkets. That's when people started to shop in bulk and buy tons of food at the same time. They need baggers to bag up all the items and bring them to people's cars. Before that mostly people in cities shopped at a small market daily (with no need for baggers) or called their grocer and had items delivered. So the PP who theorizes why there are no baggers in DC proper stores is on to something.

Which are the proper stores vs. the improper stores in Washington?

DC proper, dingbat. That's used to mean within the actual city. People around here say DC when they actually mean some far flung suburb of it.

In fact, most people say Washington or the District when they mean to refer to DC and the meaning is commonly understood. "DC proper" sounds rather queer.

No one who lives in DC says Washington. Only people on the Hill and out of towners say that. The way the PP used "District proper" was in context to what they were saying, to differentiate between using "DC" as a name for a wider area than just the city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mom has always tipped the baggers that help her load the groceries into the car. Does anyone else do that?

My mom did the same! I've never had anyone load my groceries into the car but would definitely tip.

I moved to the south a few years ago and we have a grocery store called Market Street here. Pretty normal store, maybe slightly higher end but not like whole foods or anything. Their policy is to carry out and load groceries in the car for EVERY customer. I'm sure there is a way to refuse but they're very insistent. No tips accepted. It's amazing once you get over the discomfort of not being used to that kind of service.

You also roll your basket up and don't have to unload it on a belt (similar to TJ's). It is amazing how much better it makes grocery shopping only to have to touch your groceries to put them in the cart and then to unload them at home.

What if you didn't come in a car?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, in DC itself I think the use of baggers died off because most people bring their own bags (there's a .05 fee for a bag), a lot of people are on foot and have rolling carts and backpacks, and it's just not as simple as simply bagging stuff up, putting it back in the cart, and bringing it to a car. There are logistics involved and people choose to bag their own stuff their own way.

Why would it matter if you bring your own bag or not? Items still go in the bag. BAGGERS just take your bags and use those rather than the store bags. That logic makes no sense.

It matters to me because I'm usually on foot so I'm packing my own stuff very carefully in the most compact way possible. I'm evening out the loads between bags to make them easier to carry, and I'm consolidating stuff. I'm not just using plastic bags and throwing stuff into them willy nilly, as baggers are wont to do. Clearly you've never had to do this.

Yes, i have done this. But this has zero to do with why there are no baggers. Do you think people in nyc and Chicago and dc and LA have never had to walk home with groceries lol?

I walk home with groceries in my own bags often. You can simply say "I would like to bag my own things".....

Baggers did not die off because people like you. People have walked with groceries for decades, PP.

Thank you for correcting me. You clearly know more about this than I do. You're very smart and know about important things.

My PhD comes in handy in so many ways. Happy to pay it forward.

Actually, PhD, you come across as a pompous idiot. Grocery baggers only came into existence with the advent of the suburbs, car culture, and supermarkets. That's when people started to shop in bulk and buy tons of food at the same time. They need baggers to bag up all the items and bring them to people's cars. Before that mostly people in cities shopped at a small market daily (with no need for baggers) or called their grocer and had items delivered. So the PP who theorizes why there are no baggers in DC proper stores is on to something.

Which are the proper stores vs. the improper stores in Washington?

DC proper, dingbat. That's used to mean within the actual city. People around here say DC when they actually mean some far flung suburb of it.

In fact, most people say Washington or the District when they mean to refer to DC and the meaning is commonly understood. "DC proper" sounds rather queer.

Pompous idiot, PhD here. Is DC the only city with grocery store baggers? I grew up in Chicago, the actual city, where I assure you people not only had groceries bagged by baggers but they also "gasp" walked home with groceries.

THIS WAS IN THE 70s and 80s. We had baggers. You have no idea what you are talking about trying to theorize when and why the advent of baggers came about.


When I moved to DC in the 80s there were baggers in both the suburbs and in DC.

Not sure what point you are still trying to make.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, in DC itself I think the use of baggers died off because most people bring their own bags (there's a .05 fee for a bag), a lot of people are on foot and have rolling carts and backpacks, and it's just not as simple as simply bagging stuff up, putting it back in the cart, and bringing it to a car. There are logistics involved and people choose to bag their own stuff their own way.

Why would it matter if you bring your own bag or not? Items still go in the bag. BAGGERS just take your bags and use those rather than the store bags. That logic makes no sense.

It matters to me because I'm usually on foot so I'm packing my own stuff very carefully in the most compact way possible. I'm evening out the loads between bags to make them easier to carry, and I'm consolidating stuff. I'm not just using plastic bags and throwing stuff into them willy nilly, as baggers are wont to do. Clearly you've never had to do this.

You may want to read this.

https://uncommon-courtesy.com/2014/04/14/grocery-store-bagging-etiquette/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, in DC itself I think the use of baggers died off because most people bring their own bags (there's a .05 fee for a bag), a lot of people are on foot and have rolling carts and backpacks, and it's just not as simple as simply bagging stuff up, putting it back in the cart, and bringing it to a car. There are logistics involved and people choose to bag their own stuff their own way.

Why would it matter if you bring your own bag or not? Items still go in the bag. BAGGERS just take your bags and use those rather than the store bags. That logic makes no sense.

It matters to me because I'm usually on foot so I'm packing my own stuff very carefully in the most compact way possible. I'm evening out the loads between bags to make them easier to carry, and I'm consolidating stuff. I'm not just using plastic bags and throwing stuff into them willy nilly, as baggers are wont to do. Clearly you've never had to do this.

You may want to read this.

https://uncommon-courtesy.com/2014/04/14/grocery-store-bagging-etiquette/

Jaya: I mean, I grew up with them at Gristedes in New York City. And I live near two pretty large grocery stores. I think it’s more of an economy thing. Why hire two people when just the cashier can do it? I only noticed them not in the city in the past five years or so. However, what I did notice in research, is a lot of people getting frustrated at cashiers not bagging their groceries with the bags they brought, or then getting frustrated when it took too long. You can’t have both! Or! People getting frustrated when it isn’t done to their liking, which happens no matter what bags you use.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, in DC itself I think the use of baggers died off because most people bring their own bags (there's a .05 fee for a bag), a lot of people are on foot and have rolling carts and backpacks, and it's just not as simple as simply bagging stuff up, putting it back in the cart, and bringing it to a car. There are logistics involved and people choose to bag their own stuff their own way.

Why would it matter if you bring your own bag or not? Items still go in the bag. BAGGERS just take your bags and use those rather than the store bags. That logic makes no sense.

It matters to me because I'm usually on foot so I'm packing my own stuff very carefully in the most compact way possible. I'm evening out the loads between bags to make them easier to carry, and I'm consolidating stuff. I'm not just using plastic bags and throwing stuff into them willy nilly, as baggers are wont to do. Clearly you've never had to do this.

Yes, i have done this. But this has zero to do with why there are no baggers. Do you think people in nyc and Chicago and dc and LA have never had to walk home with groceries lol?

I walk home with groceries in my own bags often. You can simply say "I would like to bag my own things".....

Baggers did not die off because people like you. People have walked with groceries for decades, PP.

Thank you for correcting me. You clearly know more about this than I do. You're very smart and know about important things.

My PhD comes in handy in so many ways. Happy to pay it forward.

Actually, PhD, you come across as a pompous idiot. Grocery baggers only came into existence with the advent of the suburbs, car culture, and supermarkets. That's when people started to shop in bulk and buy tons of food at the same time. They need baggers to bag up all the items and bring them to people's cars. Before that mostly people in cities shopped at a small market daily (with no need for baggers) or called their grocer and had items delivered. So the PP who theorizes why there are no baggers in DC proper stores is on to something.

Which are the proper stores vs. the improper stores in Washington?

DC proper, dingbat. That's used to mean within the actual city. People around here say DC when they actually mean some far flung suburb of it.

In fact, most people say Washington or the District when they mean to refer to DC and the meaning is commonly understood. "DC proper" sounds rather queer.

No one who lives in DC says Washington. Only people on the Hill and out of towners say that. The way the PP used "District proper" was in context to what they were saying, to differentiate between using "DC" as a name for a wider area than just the city.

Arguably "DC proper" has more tea-baggers than grocery-baggers.

[Anonymous]

I can't stand it when the cashier touches and scans everything before she then touches and bags everything. Takes twice as long. Touch, scan, bag.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can't stand it when the cashier touches and scans everything before she then touches and bags everything. Takes twice as long. Touch, scan, bag.

Agreed.

[Anonymous]

I am fairly certain all the baggers are off taking classes so that they can qualify as daycare workers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am fairly certain all the baggers are off taking classes so that they can qualify as daycare workers.

Oh, what a witty comment

[Anonymous]

Simple economics, really. Why pay 2 people to do a job when 1 can easily manage?

I often see the cart guys at Wegmans pulling double or triple duty (getting carts, bagging, loading cars).

My nephew is developmentally disabled and was hired to bring in carts and bag at Harris Teeter. He loved it there because he's a big people person. Unfortunately he also has almost no filter. He got in trouble for telling customers that Harris Teeter got a tax break for employing him. My BIL then got in trouble by SIL because my nephew was parroting what he'd heard his dad say!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Simple economics, really. Why pay 2 people to do a job when 1 can easily manage?

I often see the cart guys at Wegmans pulling double or triple duty (getting carts, bagging, loading cars).

My nephew is developmentally disabled and was hired to bring in carts and bag at Harris Teeter. He loved it there because he's a big people person. Unfortunately he also has almost no filter. He got in trouble for telling customers that Harris Teeter got a tax break for employing him. My BIL then got in trouble by SIL because my nephew was parroting what he'd heard his dad say!

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