Inconvenience at the convenience store

On Monday morning at 08.20 at my local supermarket they test the fire alarms - I know this, they know this, every early morning shopper knows this - we all ignore it. THIS Monday morning at 08.20 they decided to have a fire drill. Now, clearly, this will not work. We all KNOW it isnt real even when they insist that there is a real fire. The shoppers were sent to a point equidistant between the store and the petrol station (erm Hello - if the fire should spread is this not possibly the WORST place for a crowd to be standing?). Brazenly ignoring my own safety I made for the cashpoint so that I could take out some money and shop elsewhere. No-one challenged me for being on the wall of the (supposedly burning) building. On rounding the corner on the way back to my car I spotted the people from the cafe eating their breakfasts from their trays seated on the kerb. One lady was holding a tray while a man ate off it (theres the true British grit that we are so famed for). I applaud Tes... (oops, nearly named the store there) for being vigilant and safety-conscious but think that 08.20 on a Monday morning was a pretty silly time to do the drill. I might have played along and believed it if they had chosen a totally different time from the usual.

And incidentally, I was late to work - which of course made me very GRUMPY!

Not put off I returned to the store this morning at - oh, I think it was roughly - 08.20. I was walking along the pathway around the car park when I met with the guy who tidies the public areas and his broom and cart. He was pushing the cart while looking behind him, and so that he would not knock into me I said 'Good Morning' loudly and cheerily; he shoved the cart harder and I threw myself to one side clutching my knee. And his response? 'Nearly got ya'.

Every little helps.........