You left out the real heroes here. The one way arrows in grocery store aisles. I've got a glove compartment full of unpaid "aisle-violations" from the Stop & Shop PD.
Speaking as a deputized aisle warden at my local BI-LO, you people are the scum of the earth. I wish that my bosses could afford to give me a faster mobility scooter, preferably with the flashing lights and siren I asked for, so I could properly dispense justice upon the scofflaws.
I'm convinced those one way arrows were there just to get people to spend more time at the grocery store. Walked past something you want? Oh no, now you have to go all the way around again! Maybe something else will even catch your eye, like vegetable chips — and you win (if for whatever reason you actually wanted vegetable chips, at least), capitalism wins, and most importantly, the virus wins by having more time for everyone to spread it around. Yay!
Just as the TSA annoys us with "safety theater," we now have to endure "antiviral theater."
One interesting TSA-COVID theatrical crossover was in March of 2020 when they ruled that the 3.4 ounce limit for bottles doesn't apply to hand sanitizer, which can be up to 12 ounces if screened separately to make sure that you aren't trying to blow up the aircraft with an abundance of shampoo.
Where I went to college, they had a no smoking sign next to — but about 7 feet removed from — a building's entryway, behind some bushes, about 12 feet in the air. That sign also had "no smoking" printed in braille. This was the mid-nineties and everyone still smoked, so that exact area was the de facto smoking section for the media/communications/radio/film people that had most of their classes in that building.
I often wondered how a blind person would get all the way up there, behind those bushes to put their hand on that sign (that was fairly hidden anyway) to find out that they shouldn't smoke in that area with all the other smokers, as I took a drag from my cigarette. This piece, and some of the dumber Covid theater hi-jinks, remind me of that braille sign, that someone would break their neck trying to read.
My local grocery has over the PA on an endless loop a "helpful message" letting shoppers know about something called a "covid-pandemic", and that they're taking steps (with our help) to assure our safety. It wears on you. I would love to know who they envision this is news to, and who they envision this helping.
This is far from the only area where we prioritize performance and theater over effectiveness; it seems to be a cultural need.
I loved the bit about the plexiglass barriers. The mask + barriers is an impossible combination. My favorite was when I had to start shouting simple instructions at the top of my lungs ("SIT TOGETHER HERE WHILE I GOT GET SOME FOOD FOR US!!!") at my kids because they couldn't hear me through the mask in a noisy airport. I'm sure the cloth mask cancelled out the additional droplets I was putting out in the air.
You left out the real heroes here. The one way arrows in grocery store aisles. I've got a glove compartment full of unpaid "aisle-violations" from the Stop & Shop PD.
Speaking as a deputized aisle warden at my local BI-LO, you people are the scum of the earth. I wish that my bosses could afford to give me a faster mobility scooter, preferably with the flashing lights and siren I asked for, so I could properly dispense justice upon the scofflaws.
I'm convinced those one way arrows were there just to get people to spend more time at the grocery store. Walked past something you want? Oh no, now you have to go all the way around again! Maybe something else will even catch your eye, like vegetable chips — and you win (if for whatever reason you actually wanted vegetable chips, at least), capitalism wins, and most importantly, the virus wins by having more time for everyone to spread it around. Yay!
Just as the TSA annoys us with "safety theater," we now have to endure "antiviral theater."
One interesting TSA-COVID theatrical crossover was in March of 2020 when they ruled that the 3.4 ounce limit for bottles doesn't apply to hand sanitizer, which can be up to 12 ounces if screened separately to make sure that you aren't trying to blow up the aircraft with an abundance of shampoo.
How bout the “clean” and “used” ball point pens in doctor’s offices? I think (and hope) they just swap the cups during the lunch break…
Where I went to college, they had a no smoking sign next to — but about 7 feet removed from — a building's entryway, behind some bushes, about 12 feet in the air. That sign also had "no smoking" printed in braille. This was the mid-nineties and everyone still smoked, so that exact area was the de facto smoking section for the media/communications/radio/film people that had most of their classes in that building.
I often wondered how a blind person would get all the way up there, behind those bushes to put their hand on that sign (that was fairly hidden anyway) to find out that they shouldn't smoke in that area with all the other smokers, as I took a drag from my cigarette. This piece, and some of the dumber Covid theater hi-jinks, remind me of that braille sign, that someone would break their neck trying to read.
If it is worth doing, it is worth overdoing. The Great American Way.
My local grocery has over the PA on an endless loop a "helpful message" letting shoppers know about something called a "covid-pandemic", and that they're taking steps (with our help) to assure our safety. It wears on you. I would love to know who they envision this is news to, and who they envision this helping.
This is far from the only area where we prioritize performance and theater over effectiveness; it seems to be a cultural need.
I loved the bit about the plexiglass barriers. The mask + barriers is an impossible combination. My favorite was when I had to start shouting simple instructions at the top of my lungs ("SIT TOGETHER HERE WHILE I GOT GET SOME FOOD FOR US!!!") at my kids because they couldn't hear me through the mask in a noisy airport. I'm sure the cloth mask cancelled out the additional droplets I was putting out in the air.