No this isn't an advert or a tale of woe. I've seen many people bitch about big-box store type fish departments but believe me they are not all as bad as some and occasionally can totally surprise you.
Like today.
My other half asks me to drop her off at Canadian Tire and gives me a short shopping list for Walmart. Off I go on the short drive.
I zoom around the store and pick up the few items all of which were on special. I decided to go check out the little fish department. They have the usual bread and butter fish but quite often have in stock the cheapest Dojo Loaches in Toronto......but not today.
I see a tank labelled "Plecostomus" $2.87. There were some regular tiny Plecos in there, but there was something else too. I check the other aquariums and cannot see these other "Plecostomus" pictured anywhere.
I find a tiny, South Asian assistant labelling shelves in the pet department and ask if anyone is available to serve me fish. "Ooh I don't know Sir. I am just doing pricing. I will see if there is someone in the back". She dissapears.
She returns about 5 minutes later with a younger black girl. She doesn't work that department either, but knows they keep the plastic bags in an upper cupboard, plus a book which has the bar-code stickers for the various fish. She leaves. The original helper doesn't know how to catch fish so I lower her stress level by offering to catch them. She gladly agrees. So I quickly catch the five non Plecostomus "Plecostomus" and she sticks the label on the bag with X5 written beside the bar-code.
She can't find a rubber-band even to close the bag so we end up closing it with a cable tie that was in the cupboard. She's happy the interaction is over and she can return to her labelling machine.
I head for the cash registers happy to spend $2.87 each on what I have captured. I line up for ages then it's my turn. I leave the fish last on the conveyor belt. As she finishes the food items I say, "And now the lifestock". She looks at them and goes, "Ooh, pretty" and scans the bar-code. I say, "There's five". I pop the bag into a separate carrier bag, pay and receive change then leave the store most happy.
I get to the car, load up then drive back to Canadian Tire where my poor other half has been waiting 40 minutes for my arrival. She asks what the hell took so long and I tell her I will explain in a moment and pull over in a quiet part of the parking lot. I get the carrier bag out and show her the fish and tell her how much they cost. Then I asked her how much she thought they are actually worth.
After realizing I just got the bargain of the week she looks at the cash register slip............"She only charged you for ONE!!!!!!!!!!!! LOOK!"
In disbelief I see that despite me saying , "There's five", she had only rung up the code once.
So for $2.87 (plus tax) I got...............The deal of THE CENTURY
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Their tummies are a bit flat, need some feeding up.
Thar's Gold Nuggets in them thar hills! I suggest you check your local Walmarts because I got all the ones from mine
Martin.
Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated.
