5 Items

5 Items Only is a New Concept:



The upscale grocery store has a speed line. This is where the rich Chinese and white people shop. I go there for 8 dollar boxes of cereal and 10 dollar cans of crappy coffee. Since I am out of money after that, I like to go to the speed line. 5 items only. Keep in mind that the store is perpetually jam packed with a lot of people yelling at each other, into their cell phones and generally crowding your space.



Anyway, I am starting to think that the speed line is an "anti" speed line. The Euros who don't give a crap and the Chinese who either don't give a crap or have never heard of the speed line jump in there. So in fact, it is longer because you have clowns like me with two items and cash in hand in addition to the yahoos with a full shopping cart and a credit card that probably won't work. I always feel like China played another joke on me after I stand there for 15 minutes. The big white clown fell for it again. One of these times I will remember that even though it looks like America, it's not.

I never say anything since a sense of humor a lot of patience are complete necessities over here. I have witnessed other Chinese people go ballistic on the check out person though for not busting the people who don't know and don't care.



So you should know that check out line frustration exists in China. I am sure I will forget again when I go back for 8 dollar cereal.