The Black Vault

Between last night and this morning, we saw 2 things that are just signs of bad times, and things will get worse. We went out to eat last night at Coco's just wanted to sit in some A/C and not cook. On the way out 2 guys were sitting on the ground a few cars away with signs. Said something to the affect of "God Bless" "Help", etc. Thats pretty common to see, usually at freeway ramps, not usually in a shopping center. We just got in the car which was before them, and left.

This morning we had to go to the market. We usually buy a lot all at once which gets up mostly through the month. Takes us a while by the time we get all the stuff we need, so we usually sit for a while in the deli-area where they have tables and a coffee-bean, all the take out things, etc. I'll sit with the cart and Mrs. G2 goes and picks things nearby.

A lady about 40 asked if she could sit and share the table, I said sure while I was texting back and forth to my son. I didn't really talk to her at all, glanced to see she was eating fried chicken from the deli, looked like about a 6 piece box, and she drank a Mountian Dew bottled. I realized after she left what she was doing. She used us as a shield to look like she was shopping, sitting next to me while Mrs G2 piled things up, nobody would think anything about her eating. It looked like she was one of us. She got up with probably 4 pieces of chicken still in the clear plasic container, and only about 1/4 of the mountain Dew drank. She didn't say a word, goodbye, thanks or anything, quietly walked over to the trash can and tossed it all in the trash. She than left, walking straight twards the exit directly about 100 feet away, and walked right out the door.

You can not pay for anything is the Deli area, it goes into your cart and you pay going out the cashiers. If you buy 6 pieces of chicken, they box it in a plastic container, and put a price label on it, to pay with all your groceries. A 6 piece box might have been under a hot light ready to buy.

I was dumbfounded, that someone would walk into the deli, get a box of chicken you would think you were going to buy, eat only 2 pieces and throw out the rest. Its kind of an honor system, that if you eat something, you would be sure to show it to the checker on the way out. Not keeping the soda and walking out the door showed she had not paid for that either. Pretty brazen, and she did not look homeless, or like she was living out of a car.

Some people stoop to anything, and find all kinds of ways to make everyone else pay for them. This one is an easy scam, but its still shoplifting and stealing. She knew enough to not take any of it out the door. The markets know it goes on, they just shut their eyes to it, and the losses are folded into those that pay. The old story.

here in the warmer States we SEE the homelessness..we have no choice..it is in our faces..yah know?

We went out to lunch with the neighbor and daughter who works for Home Depot. She was telling us about a rash of problems related to what people are doing. One is a rash of people buying a new item that is like an old one that broke. They take it home switch them, and bring back the broken one for a refund.

Another insodent was while a spotter watched her at the checkstand, someone else was ready with a expensive tool to take off sprinting to a car waiting, jump in and speed off. She said he made off with a Millwakee saw of some kind, and all she saw was the guys backside, running like heck.

If that was all not bad enough she told about antoher scam, where a guy loaded a cart really full of items, where he split the load on 2 big push carts equally. He went through the check stand with one cart, paid and got the reciept, went back in and pushed the second cart out, with the same reciept. Instant 50% discount. Unbelievable!

greeney2 wrote:We went out to lunch with the neighbor and daughter who works for Home Depot. She was telling us about a rash of problems related to what people are doing. One is a rash of people buying a new item that is like an old one that broke. They take it home switch them, and bring back the broken one for a refund.

If that was all not bad enough she told about antoher scam, where a guy loaded a cart really full of items, where he split the load on 2 big push carts equally. He went through the check stand with one cart, paid and got the reciept, went back in and pushed the second cart out, with the same reciept. Instant 50% discount. Unbelievable!

These two are old tricks. My buddy's dad told me how he used to do the first one way back in 60's when he was living in D.C. If there's a corner to cut, people will find a way. Not really a sign of the times, just the lengths that people will go to in order to feel like they can come out on top.

Or they're just lowlifes.

When I was living in the city (New Orleans)
before I moved across the lake to the
Northshore I would watch a lady that
pulled this stunt off in the grocery I shopped at.

She liked those Enquirer/type newspapers at the check
out counter. She'd get a cart, couple of cold sodas and
a treat packaged up from the deli. She'd always come in when the
lines were long and would munch, sip and read then move
to the back of the line. I would catch her afternoon readings
in episodes from my grocery visits. And found she got by with
it by later taking the cart with the empty munchie wrappers
to the back of the store. She did put the newspaper back
and walk out the store empty handed but her enquiring mind
was full.

Kinda similar to one greeney2 posted.

I agree returning a broken item switched is nothing new wing zero, but I had never herd about dividing you load of lumber and materials exactly in half and using the paid reciept twice. Usually a door checker puts a mark on a reciept, so if they did that, the 2nd cart couldn't get through. Lots of times, they do not look your cart over and check off your reciept.