Trader Joes Line

If you’ve ever been to a Trader Joe’s that has really long lines (I go to the one’s in New York City, so they’re among the longest) you may be familar with a system that use to move the line along. They have two seperate lines and at the front of the line they have someone who filters both lines alternatingly towards the register. There are upwards of 30 registers in some of the bigger New York City stores. It is bustling, and in those situations swiftness of flow is essential. So at Trader Joes, after finishing a transaction, the person at the cash register waves a number flag, signifying they are done. The employee at the front of the line then tells you the number of the now aviable registe.

I am kind of psychotic when it comes to participating in this process. First of all, I make sure to greet the person. “Hey how’s it going.” I say to a person who’s life is currently about saying a number to me. While this might seem like I’m being friendly, grateful and seeing this employee as a fellow human being, ripe for a potentially surprisingly meaningful interaction. Nah, fuck that. I’m disarming them for this game I play. I like to see the flag with the corresponding register number before they tell me. I like to show the employee my rapid fire reflexes. I step up to the front of the line, eyes locked in, ready to win. I am focused. This is actual footage of me at the front of the Trader Joe’s line, with the guy who’s job it is to alert me to my register number talking to me.