Grocery Store Etiquette Poll Makes Us Feel Guilty About Eating That Grape

The grocery store is just rife with opportunities to offend people: crashing carts, grabbing the last on-sale Skippy jar, sneaking 11 items in the 10-items-or-less express lane. But which do people find most offensive on an etiquette level? The folks at Treadmill Reviews—a site that usually devotes its time to yes, reviewing treadmills—"polled over 1,000 people about the most aggravating grocery store behaviors," and the results are about what you'd expect, with a few surprises.

Topping the list of "Most Inappropriate Shopping Behaviors at the Supermarket" was "leaving perishable items you no longer want somewhere else in the store." I know, who would do such a thing? Um, what about a mom whose toddler started having a massive meltdown in the middle of the store and had to flee, only remembering once she was in the safety of her mini-van about the bags of sliced Swiss cheese and lunchmeat she left in the cart? I'm just spitballin' here.

Also on the naughty list: "tasting produce before purchasing" and "consuming items you plan on purchasing before paying for them," which is bad news for a former Onion staff member who once kicked off a huge office controversy by revealing her habit of always tasting grapes before purchase. Also: "Leaving the checkout line to go back and get a forgotten item." Okay, that is the worst.

There's also a list of "Percentage Of Grocery Shoppers Citing Being Upset Or Confrontational For Specific Reasons," with 99 percent calling out people who cut in line, 96 percent irritated by lack of available registers, and 94 percent upset over people not giving you enough personal space in line. Again, fair enough. This survey makes for some interesting findings, enough for us to rethink our next trip to the Kroger and consider a PeaPod delivery instead. We're still not sure what this all has to do with treadmills, however.