Being Aware

How aware are you of your environment when you are out shopping?  This isn't about public safety, and watching your purse.  This is about noticing little details that could add up to a different kind of danger, at least in our household. 

Its amazing how many people eat where they work, or prefer scented products better meant for the home then the office.  When I was in college, I worked in a hospital as a receptionist for a medical department.  I opted not to wear perfumes, because if you were sick, I felt you didn't want to be overcome by any cloying perfume that you might not like or might be allergic to.  At one of our ER visits with the Babe, the triage nurse was eating food at her desk while working with us, and the foods were one's the Babe is allergic to.  I wanted to scream at her, but kept my mouth shut.  Fortunately nothing happened from that, but I know better now.

In more recent months, I've had to be more assertive while out shopping.  About a month ago, I had gone to a local general store to see what they had.  Someone I know had talked up the store and I was curious.  This was a business that has been in the town we live for decades, and sold general merchandise befitting a general store from fifty years ago (selling notions and household goods).  I figured it would be too tempting for the Babe (as in grabbing everything in sight), so I found a time when I could go by myself.  What I didn't expect was to see a small popcorn machine in the center of the store.  I noticed it the minute I walked in, but then ignored it while I walked around.  I found a little puzzle/sticker toy for the Babe, and that was my only purchase.  When I got to the front of the store to buy it, the sales clerk walked away from what she was doing to ring me up.  Suddenly I was internally debating what to do, because said sales clerk looked like she was just servicing the popcorn machine.  Would it be rude to ask?  Well, my child's safety usurps rude.  She was in fact restocking it and did have her hands in it.  I explained why I asked, and she offered to wash her hands.  We worked it out so that she didn't have to touch anything since I paid with exact cash, and opted not to have a bag or receipt.  When I got home, I unwrapped the outer wrapping on the item and washed my hands, figuring whoever stocked the item on the shelf may have handled other items.  I walked away from that store with a dirty feeling, so I won't be returning.  But I know I did the right thing by asking.

Another instance was at the grocery store.  I got in a line that had a new cashier, and I was her first customer.  Before she did anything, she grabbed her bottle of hand lotion (strawberry scented), and proceeded to grease up her hands.  Well, I immediately went on alert, because at the time we weren't sure if the Babe was allergic to strawberries, and who knows what else may have been in that lotion.  Since I was getting one item, the clerk was nice enough to let me scan it myself.  I used a credit card, bagged the item myself, and skipped the receipt.  Yes, I sound completely paranoid.  However, I cannot risk the Babe coming into contact with even the smallest amount of her allergens.  So, I must remain vigilant.  My husband got to experience this with me last weekend while grocery shopping.  The person ahead of us had a bag of pet food break open and spill some product along the bagging area.  The cashier didn't do anything, leaving the mess there as she was about to ring us up.  We requested, nicely, that she clean up the pet food.  She grabbed her bottle of cleaner and paper towels and took care of it without comment.  Had she not, I don't know what we would have done.  I cringed at the thought of our groceries touching what I knew was unsafe for us, and then transferring it onto our kitchen shelves and fridge.  Fortunately, it got taken care of without fuss.

While initially worrying about being rude or insulting, we're doing what we need to protect our child.  In each instance, the people we dealt with didn't make a fuss or big deal about it.  We were polite in our requests, which probably helped.  In the end, I can always walk away from the purchase or store.  However, with minor adjustments, remaining polite and pleasant, most people will cooperate.  They may not understand or get it, but that isn't what I need to accomplish during my minute interaction with them.  So, while it would be easier to flip through a magazine while waiting in a grocery store line, I opt to see what's happening in front of me.  In part, I'm just nosy, but also, I don't want any surprises when I get home.