Shopping in a New Era

Shopping+in+a+New+Era

Maddie Cowgill, Staff Reporter

Lines that have never been there before have been springing up in front of grocery stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joes. Markers on the ground have appeared to point out where people should be standing to ensure they stay 6 feet apart while waiting in line. At peak shopping times it can take up to 20 minutes to get into stores. 

These lines serve a valuable purpose, to keep customers 6 feet from one and other and to allow the staff time to clean carts and prevent the spread of germs. Other stores like Walgreens have taken much less caution. There are no lines outside of their stores making it more convenient for customers but less safe too. 

Once you are able to finally get inside a grocery store you may find shortages of quite a few things. In the first few weeks of the shelter in place people bulk bought many things ranging from frozen fruits and vegetables to box pasta to toilet paper. During the peak of much of the panic buying many stores had to hire additional temporary workers just to help shelves stocked. At this point, many items like frozen fruits and vegetables have reappeared on shelves but other necessities like toilet paper, yeast, white vinegar and sushi rice are still rare finds. 

While many people have been wearing masks and other face coverings to stay safe while shopping, it will now be mandatory in certain settings. These will settings include stores and other areas in which it may be challenging if not impossible to continuously maintain 6 feet of distance. This mandate was passed on April 18th but will become mandatory on April 22nd at 8 am. 

Times are crazy with all these new shortages, restrictions and fears. We must do all we can to stay safe by respecting all the rules set out for us, even if it is inconvenient.