Take a number

I like supermarket shopping. I like it even more when I have Sam with me, even though he won't always sit in the cart (and sometimes when he does he licks the plastic covered handle --- which I imagine, on a microscopic level, looking like a battle royale for germs).

We did some grocery shopping tonight and ended up standing in front of the deli for about 10 minutes before being waited on. Which was no big deal, as young Samson enjoyed just looking around at everything, and I'm fairly content to watch his reactions to things like ceiling fans, tubs of pre-packed potato salad, and septuagenarian rotisserie chicken choosers.

The reason we were waiting, however, was because the family in front of us was having their six-year-old daughter sample different turkeys, hams, and cheeses before deciding on buying one. Choosing a lunchmeat, while no doubt an important personal decision, should not take on the trappings of a wine-tasting. Beyond that, this family was making a grown woman wait on the decisions of a six-year-old. About ham. Okay, and swiss vs. muenster. But still.

I get the whole idea behind Erikson's stages of development, but do you really need to empower your child at the deli? (And yes, I had to look up Erikson's stages, but I did remember his name, and that it was spelled with a "k." I knew that minor in Psych was a good move.)