It's almost closing time at my local Publix supermarket. The woman ahead of me in the only open checkout line has a cart full of purchases – cereals, milk, meat,
pasta, foil, frozen foods, canned goods, paper towels, cleaning supplies. The cashier scans them and announces the total. “That comes to $112.25.”
The woman hands over a fistful of coupons. Some are from Target
– Publix accepts competitors' coupons -- and can’t be scanned, so the cashier has
to enter the numbers manually.
The shopper, an Hispanic woman in her thirties, says nothing. She simply stares ahead toward the front of the store, as if she is afraid the cashier is going to say something that will draw attention to what is taking place.
I'm annoyed at the delay, but then get into it as I watch the value of the coupons being deducted from the total. It’s clear it’s going to be close. Ten minutes later the cashier calls the manager over to confer. The manager confirms the total, and tells the cashier to pay the shopper 99 cents.
The shopper, an Hispanic woman in her thirties, says nothing. She simply stares ahead toward the front of the store, as if she is afraid the cashier is going to say something that will draw attention to what is taking place.
I'm annoyed at the delay, but then get into it as I watch the value of the coupons being deducted from the total. It’s clear it’s going to be close. Ten minutes later the cashier calls the manager over to confer. The manager confirms the total, and tells the cashier to pay the shopper 99 cents.
“Good for you!” I tell the woman. She smiles shyly. “Gracias,” she replies. She takes the
99 cents, and wheels her cart full of free purchases out of the store.
“I’ve been doing this 20 years and I’ve never seen anything
quite like that,” the cashier says admiringly after the woman has exited.
As I drive out of the parking lot, the woman is loading her bags into a beat-up mini van.
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