Petty Pet Peeve

Pet peeve: People who don't return shopping carts to the front of the store, or in one of the MANY shopping cart return corrals.

true story:

The other day the kids and I were unloading some things from Wal-Mart into the car. I finished filling the trunk of the car, and we walked to the row of cars behind us, putting the cart into the return corral. At the same time, a family of four grown-ups finished loading their car and looked around for a place to put the empty cart. Their SUV was parked right next to the empty cart return. It was literally 12 inches from the side of their car. I watched in wonder as the man looked around, intensely searching for a place to put the cart. Seeing a grassy median between parking rows, already overflowing with abandoned carts which were randomly shoved onto it, the man walks 20 feet from where he is, rather than use the cart return that is in the SPACE RIGHT NEXT TO HIM!

Was he confused? Did he think the unlabeled, grassy area was the real cart return, and the one with all the bars and the giant sign with a picture of a cart on it was some sort of government trick? When he saw me put our cart in the cart return RIGHT NEXT TO HIM, did he think that I was an idiot for putting it there?.....because obviously there only 3 carts in the cart return, whereas the median had about 20. Was I some sort of anarchist going against the current of popular culture in his eyes?

Obviously, everyone else who was too lazy to walk 20 feet to the VERY CLOSE BY cart return, had left their carts on the grassy median, but I am assuming that it was at least closer to them. Although, what do I know? Maybe there is a whole class of people out there who is more interested in working harder to do things the wrong way, than in seizing the opportunity to do the right thing with ease.

I worry for our future! :-