6 ms·

I was talking with a colleague at the coffee machine, telling him how this weekend I went to the supermarket to do the groceries, and how it was a pain to carry

I was talking with a colleague at the coffee machine, telling him how this weekend I went to the supermarket to do the groceries, and how it was a pain to carry bags around. He replied 'I haven't stepped in a supermarket in months, I do all my groceries online. It is much more efficient'. I have to admit I felt dumb for not optimising my time like he does. But reflecting on it, I feel sad that our private time is becoming a soulless corporate enterprise where everything has to be optimised.

AstralStorm 9y ago
The real question is what you do with the extra time this affords you.
- ghostbrainalpha 9y ago
  The real real question is why he was complaining about the difficulty to carry bags around.... carts were invented fulfill that purpose.
acjohnson55 9y ago
But even the modern grocery store is soulless, compared to what preceded it. In my typical trip, I talk with no one.
- tjr225 9y ago
  I go to the same cashier every Tuesday. Yesterday was Yolanda's "Friday," and she was very excited for the "weekend." She asked me how my camping trip went. She was going to have tacos for dinner. If you choose to value relationships with the people around you then the world doesn't have to have changed very much at all.
  - acjohnson55 9y ago
    Yeah, but there are many ways to achieve this without the grocery store. There's nothing special about it as an irreplaceable social hub. My point is, compared to going to the butcher and baker, who are artisans running businesses that are to some extent expressions of theirselves and maybe even their heritage, a supermarket is relatively soulless. Save the time and do something like dance, art, or sports.
douglaswlance 9y ago
Why soulless? Your life is what you make it. Build meaning yourself.
- jerf 9y ago
  I've always found it a bit odd when people are singing elegies to the joys of human contact in... a supermarket checkout line. There's no point in my life in which that was a serious source of "human contact" and I think anyone who can't say that has a problem that needs immediate addressing. One that can't be fixed by complaining about how impersonal shopping is now. I do see human contact in the grocery store... it's between the employees of the store, who know each other, and actually have some sort of relationship, not with the faceless masses that transiently stream through. Of course they don't get to just chat the whole time, but humans being humans, they manage to find some time.
  - alanfalcon 9y ago
    I don't find joy in a supermarket checkout line, but I have witnessed joy in some people (customers, mostly older, who found a way to stand out from the masses and have a face). Perhaps those who take the time to sing elegies actually do find personal joy and fulfillment even a checkout line even if you and I do not.
  - Volt 9y ago
    It's like the difference between working in your bedroom and working in a coffee shop. Sometimes you just want to be around other people.
kop316 9y ago
To provide an opposite opinion, I know I can do all of my groceries online, but I enjoy the experience of going grocery shopping. I like picking out my own produce and meat and seeing what's there. Sometimes I see something, buy it, and look up later how to make something with it. I don't get the same experience online. But I also like making food and try to make things from scratch. Is it efficient? Not in the least? It's an experience I enjoy though. Your private time is just that, yours. I tried doing the over optimizing and in the end, it stressed me out way too much.

AstralStorm 9y ago

The real question is what you do with the extra time this affords you.

ghostbrainalpha 9y ago
The real real question is why he was complaining about the difficulty to carry bags around.... carts were invented fulfill that purpose.

acjohnson55 9y ago

But even the modern grocery store is soulless, compared to what preceded it. In my typical trip, I talk with no one.

tjr225 9y ago
I go to the same cashier every Tuesday. Yesterday was Yolanda's "Friday," and she was very excited for the "weekend." She asked me how my camping trip went. She was going to have tacos for dinner. If you choose to value relationships with the people around you then the world doesn't have to have changed very much at all.
- acjohnson55 9y ago
  Yeah, but there are many ways to achieve this without the grocery store. There's nothing special about it as an irreplaceable social hub. My point is, compared to going to the butcher and baker, who are artisans running businesses that are to some extent expressions of theirselves and maybe even their heritage, a supermarket is relatively soulless. Save the time and do something like dance, art, or sports.

douglaswlance 9y ago

Why soulless? Your life is what you make it. Build meaning yourself.

jerf 9y ago
I've always found it a bit odd when people are singing elegies to the joys of human contact in... a supermarket checkout line. There's no point in my life in which that was a serious source of "human contact" and I think anyone who can't say that has a problem that needs immediate addressing. One that can't be fixed by complaining about how impersonal shopping is now. I do see human contact in the grocery store... it's between the employees of the store, who know each other, and actually have some sort of relationship, not with the faceless masses that transiently stream through. Of course they don't get to just chat the whole time, but humans being humans, they manage to find some time.
- alanfalcon 9y ago
  I don't find joy in a supermarket checkout line, but I have witnessed joy in some people (customers, mostly older, who found a way to stand out from the masses and have a face). Perhaps those who take the time to sing elegies actually do find personal joy and fulfillment even a checkout line even if you and I do not.
- Volt 9y ago
  It's like the difference between working in your bedroom and working in a coffee shop. Sometimes you just want to be around other people.

kop316 9y ago

To provide an opposite opinion, I know I can do all of my groceries online, but I enjoy the experience of going grocery shopping. I like picking out my own produce and meat and seeing what's there. Sometimes I see something, buy it, and look up later how to make something with it. I don't get the same experience online. But I also like making food and try to make things from scratch. Is it efficient? Not in the least? It's an experience I enjoy though. Your private time is just that, yours. I tried doing the over optimizing and in the end, it stressed me out way too much.