I wrote this piece for my Sociology Qualitative Research Methods class two weeks ago. We were supposed to go to a grocery store and spend an hour walking around and observing things. Then, we had to write a narrative about our time there.
Upon my arrival at Giant, I followed the unspoken rule of grocery shoppers by grabbing a basket and strolling inside. Immediately, I was surrounded by hordes of people determined to get what they needed, especially since it was Super Bowl Sunday. Walking straight ahead of the entrance, I made my way toward the dairy wall to pick up some cheese and yogurt. On the way, my attention snagged on a loud group of college age girls giddily trying to find chips and soda. I continued toward the dairy wall. A middle aged blonde woman was standing in front of the cheese slices complaining to her husband. "There aren't any," she asserted. I assume she was talking about the mozzarella slices that were absent from their usually stocked spot on the wall. After grabbing provolone slices, I proceeded toward the yogurt, then I meandered along the back wall.
When I got to the bakery and frozen food sections, I noticed that the aisles were less crowded than the produce section. I picked up a pie from the bakery section and fought the natural flow of the store to double back and get bread. Like the droves of other shoppers, I proceeded to checkout. Noticing the self checkout had no lines, I walked up to the kiosk and scanned each item. I payed with a debit card, took my reciept, picked up my bags of purchases, and returned my basket. Then, I sashayed out the door, my keys in my hand.
