Shopping Cart Rant....Aaaargh!!!

I just left the grocery store with another shopping cart battle scar! I came out of the store to find a shopping cart butted up against my car with a new scratch hiding behind it. This is the second time this has happened just this week, and I am sick of it!!

There are shopping cart corrals in most parking lots. There are usually several, scattered about the parking lot and only a few yards away from wherever you park your car. USE THEM!!! If you are closer to the store than the corral bring your cart back inside the store!

Is it so darn difficult, time consuming and tiring to walk a few extra feet to put your shopping cart someplace where it isn't going to scratch up or ding someone's vehicle? How do you like it when it happens to your car? Also, how do you like it when a wind blown shopping cart comes barreling at you out of nowhere while you're looking for a parking slot? It is just not cool people!

Please, have some respect for other people's property! Put your shopping cart up when you're finished with it!!!

That sucks

I really hate it when you see a shopping cart literally 5 feet from the corral. It's like the person thought the 5 feet was just too much!

Parking lots are dangerous places

Over here they are usually all chained together in the corrals and you have to put a pound coin into a little slot on the handle of the cart to release the chain.
You get the coin back when you put it back on the chain.

Seems to work out quite well

reply to post by davespanners


There's only one store that I know of in my area that does that. I wish they all did.

reply to post by davespanners


What a lovely idea!

I wish we had a similar system here. The closest we have is a system like that for luggage carts at the airport or for rental strollers at the shopping malls.

There is a Safeway in my town that has a sloping parking lot.
Sadly the cart corrals also have a sleight slope perpendicular to the main slope.
This means, that if it's fairly empty...You can leave a cart there, it will slowly back out on it's own. Even over the little bump at the opening. Then gravity takes over again, and the cart will start heading down the slope of the parking lot.
Gathering speed until it meets a curb, a car. If not, it crosses a small road, and enters the bank parking lot.

OR, there are ghosts.

But I've seen so many lonely carts just cruising along, looking for a place to rest. Like someone's car door.

reply to post by spacedoubt


Does it have bars across one end as most do? If so I would mention it to the manager. All they have to do is turn it around- problem solved!

Which is why I park at the back of the lot.

reply to post by nixie_nox


A lot of the time it makes no difference what part of the lot you park in. On really windy days I've seen shopping carts blown out of the lot completely and rolling down Main Street!

I love your rant. One of my pet peaves is people who don't put shopping carts where they belong. Either they are in a parking space you want or they are left next to your car or behind someone's car.

My worst shopping cart incident: A really windy day I came out of walmart with a full cart, a light bag blew off the cart so I stopped the cart to catch the sailing bag. Next thing I knew the cart was blowing toward me and nearly knocked me off my feet. I grabbed the cart but the wind was blowing so hard I could not control it. The wind was blowing me as well as the cart across the parking lot.

Fortunately a nice gentleman came to my assistance and pushed the cart to my car for me. Thank God for decent people.

reply to post by 1PLA1


Assailed by a shopping cart! My sympathies- I'd give you two stars if I could!

Originally posted by littled16
reply to post by 1PLA1

 

Assailed by a shopping cart! My sympathies- I'd give you two stars if I could!

Thanks, littled16. It was a harrowing incident.
btw...I always put carts where they belong. Even if I have to hunt for the where they belong.

reply to post by littled16


Actually, just last week, a couple were loading stuff in the trunk and their cart decided to make a run for it. The driver was in teh truck and I see them waving their arms wildly in the cab, LOL.

I ran and caught it. But yea, it had a pretty good speed going straight for a line of cars.

Unfortunately, there is only so much you can do. But most of the time, except holiday season, you can find empty spaces in the back.

I frankly have more bumper dings from yahoos who can't parallel park.

A scratch? Really? Ever come out to your car to find a giant #ing dent in it?

reply to post by phroziac


Indeed! But that is an entirely different rant that is too traumatizing to think about!

Originally posted by davespanners
Over here they are usually all chained together in the corrals and you have to put a pound coin into a little slot on the handle of the cart to release the chain.
You get the coin back when you put it back on the chain.

Seems to work out quite well

Aldi is the only place ive ever seen that in the states. Its only a quarter and people still dont put them back so bums come and return then lol

Originally posted by littled16
reply to post by phroziac

 

Indeed! But that is an entirely different rant that is too traumatizing to think about!

Gonna put a new door on my suv tomorrow to fix that. Got another car someone hit so hard they totalled

****The other side of the coin is: What about a disabled person who couldn't get into a handicap spot who literally could NOT walk the distance to put it away and did not have anyone available to help them. It really happens.

If there were more places to put shopping carts maybe it would help people more.

Also, bummer about the scratches this week, I have 2 on my car too....PLUS, Mercury is retrograde!!!

Originally posted by Starwise
****The other side of the coin is: What about a disabled person who couldn't get into a handicap spot who literally could NOT walk the distance to put it away and did not have anyone available to help them. It really happens.

If there were more places to put shopping carts maybe it would help people more.

Also, bummer about the scratches this week, I have 2 on my car too....PLUS, Mercury is retrograde!!!

Oh, please no! What, shopping carts are affected by the stars. Do shopping carts have star signs based on the date of manufacture. So, it's all those Gemini carts doing the damage!

Is there a Goddess of shopping carts we can offer a sacrifice to to help us!

P only joking btw.

My theory... it's that ONE shopping cart with the gimp wheel... and it's angry. This is the cart that, time and time again, is finally touched by another soul - only to be instantly discarded after a few steps.

It's a lonely cart that knows only rejection and pain.

So... one day, when it all became too much that poor cart wandered out into the parking lot, hoping to off itself to nd the endless pain of repeated rejection. The cart knew that cars are dangerous and that the parking lot is filled with cars.

The sad cart went out to meet its maker....

Unfortunately carts aren't very bright and it had no clue that the car would have to be moving in order for its goals to be achieved. So, in its innocent stupidity - it simply tried to end it all by banging its head against your car, over and over again.

Chapter two of this story is even more chilling. Now your car is angry and will live out its life looking for the cart that hurt it. My advice. Avoid parking lots altogether from here on out. That cart and your car are now locked in a war of destiny and they will let NOTHING stand in their way.

Dear God... it's "up the meds" time again. Isn't it?

~Heff