Rant #3,674: It Ain't Necessarily So

Yes, these boxes are all over the place, and they are eating me up.

And, I bet that unless you work in a supermarket, you didn't know thst boxes have become something of a political.issue.

All of the supermarkets' products come in boxes of one size or another, and when all of the contents of these boxes is removed, the boxes often get broken down, or cut apart, so that they are easily disposed of.

Having gone from supermarket to supermarket to try to get boxes for our move, I have found that some stores are more than willing to give you as many boxes as you can carry, while other stores won't give you anything--

And it doesn't matter what store you go to within a supermarket chain, because I have discovered that some of the chain's stores can be more than willing you give you boxes, while another of the chain's stores will refuse your request.

And I found out the reason, and yes, it has to do with not just finances, but what type of help that they deploy in their respective store.

Evidently, some stores get money back when they return the distressed boxes, so they are less apt to give them away for nothing.

And I also found that some union stores won't give them up because they have night crews, who not only stock the shelves, but are tasked to cut up the boxes.

I am simplifying all of this, and I am sure supermarket workers have a better bead on this than I ever will, but I found this to be true as I went from supermarket to supermarket 

I went to one store, asked for boxes, and was put through the ringer about all of this being true throughout that particular chain.

I told them that I had just been to one of their sister stores, and that they had given me some boxes.

"Well, they weren't supposed to do that!" I was told.

"What can I say," I replied. "They gave me boxes."

"What store was it?"

I told them, and I immediately thought that I shouldn't have.

"Well, they aren't supposed to do that," was their reply as I was leaving the store empty handed. "We have a union work crew here, maybe they don't, but if they do--"

No, I didn't wait to hear the full reply, as I was already moving on to the next supermarket 

We ended up getting plenty of boxes from one store or another, but I never thought that this was such an issue.

Every time I have moved throughout the years, we have always gone to the supermarket to get boxes.

It was like an unspoken-about free service that these supermarkets provided to the community they did business in.

In today's world, it ain't necessarily so anymore.

When something is monetized--even an empty box--these things, which were nothing more than garbage at one time--seemingly all of a sudden have become precious coomodities, and you just can't gave them away anymore.

I guess I could buy boxes from Staples, but that would simply add to the cost of our move, which, believe me, is costing us enough without this added expense.

I could think outside the box, but my mind is so frazzled right now, that I don't want boxes to add another brick to my already very heavy load.

Who would have thunk it?

Not me, bad English and all.