I drive a Ford Escape. Which is a small SUV. Which is plenty big enough for my wife and me.
Which is why I have noticed lately that the back seat is getting increasingly difficult to find because of all the large synthetic shopping bags that are accumulating there. Which is worse than all those hangers multiplying in the clothes closet.
I’m taking about you, Big Y. And I’m talking about you, Stop & Shop.
I thought I had adapted pretty well to bringing a couple of these bags into the supermarket with me in the time since Northampton ban the use of plastic bags.
I even felt virtuous doing it. I even made sure I only brought Big Y bags into Big Y and Stop & Shop bags into Stop & Shop. I didn’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings.
So, how come the last five times I have gone food shopping, I have forgotten to grab the bags from the back seat? Am I getting older, losing my hair? And I was 64 two years ago.
This is a disturbing trend. The paper bags I pack my purchases in instead have suddenly become way more than we need to use for recycling the dead-trees editions of the newspapers.
What to do? What to do? And no, Lucy, I won’t put a bag over my head to help me remember.
What I do think would be helpful is if the supermarkets place large signs in their parking lots that say, “Bags! Don’t forget!”
Or something like that. In the meantime I am hoping that writing about this will help me remember the next time I go to the supermarket.
Which should be tomorrow. After all, I’ve only cooked three turkeys so far this fall.
—LOU
I often wonder why is it so hard to remember those reusable bags. I think there is a sign at Stop & Shop that reminds you, though. But if you are in an over-64-year-old daze you may not see the sign anyway. I sometimes bring my bags, but forget to give them to the checkout person. And I’m not even as old as you.
— LUCY