The Coupon "Rush"…
As I walk up to the register, my hands start to tremble and my heart starts to beat. My eyes are moving around quickly… I am trying to catch at least a glimpse of each cashier. The cashiers that look the most promising get yet another glance from me. Oh who should I choose… decisions, decisions. As I walk closer to the cash registers, my breathing picks up speed and the sweating starts to ensue. Yes, I am getting near the point of what I like to call “Coupon Chaos”.
I choose the cashier, the hardest decision of all, a guy in his early 20s who looks as though he just came from the beach. He smiles and I begin to nervously chat… I am not sure what exactly I’m saying, but things are definitely coming out of my mouth. With each item I put on the belt, my talking (if that’s what you want to call it) picks up pace. Soon enough, I have to completely stop as I’m running out of breath! Oh, I am so close to the finish line.
The “surfer dude” (the young cashier who appears to have come from the beach) lets me know my total… my very high total I might add! As my hand shakes, I smile nervously and pull out my coupons. The mountain of coupons I’m pulling out don’t all make it on the counter, so I bend down to pick up the ones that have taken the plunge to the ground. As I bend over, I am so thankful that I chose to wear a long shirt as I am wearing low-rise jeans and well, bending over and low-rise jeans don’t really go together. 😉
As I hand him the coupons, one by one, yes, I am that anal… I notice the person behind me. A lady in her mid 30s with a in-a-hurry look on her face. She glances at my large pile of coupons and has a very confused look on her face. As the coupons keep getting scanned, I can feel the tension build up behind me. Finally, I hear her high heels tapping the ground with force… she wants me to know that I have inconvenienced her day in a big way. I ignore her knowing that I’m almost there… I am at the home stretch.
As the “surfer dude” scans my last coupon, I let out a large exhale. Phew… I feel like I’ve just run a marathon! The ‘Surfer dude” states, “Wow! You saved $91.50 and your grand total is just $2.39.” I smile slowly trying to contain my excitement and pull out my money. I am able to give him the exact change. He hands me the receipt as my smile grows. I stand there with pride as I look up and down that magnificently long piece of paper. Life is good!
As I leave the store, I know beyond any reasonable doubt that every part of getting to the moment of victory is so worth it in the end. And now I can head home with my head held high and brag to anyone who will listen.
Love it!
I would have looked right at the lady behind me and said, wow, $91 in two minutes…that was worth it for me! 🙂
this is exactly how I feel! I could have written this!
also had to say-I thought all the nervousness was from only doing this for 7-8 months now…I still get so nervous-what cashier to choose?? who is most likely to not give me issues? is a line going to form behind me? am i going to have a problem with one of the coupons, needing a manager, who might tell me i cant do it, with the ever growing line behind me and people getting impatient….
yep, choosing the cashier and line is like choosing your winning horse to bet on.
I like to be able to load all my groceries on the belt before they start ringing. so I pile high if I have to.
Love it !!!!!!!!!!!!
I’m glad I’m not the only one who feels this way when shopping!
that is absolutely awesome, for the lady behind you, tell her there is self checkout for people in such a big hurry
Cute Picture!!
Go girl! Great post.
LOL That post almost makes me want to go do some “risky” couponing. It’s been a while since I’ve had a nervous rush at the counter.
LOVE IT!!!
AWESOME!!! It’s nice to know that the pros feel that way too!
This is great, exactly how I feel!! I’m glad to know that even the coupon queen gets nervous 😉
yup that is how I feel when we go to the store, my wife is much better at it then I. We actually had a guy say to us, really? you are going to use all those coupons, i wish i would have known before i put my stuff on the belt. the funny thing was, both cashiers next to us had no customers and he chose to come to our line, not sure why, but of course we said we are sorry, but we are trying to save money. we can help you move your items to another lane if you like, while the cashier scans our coupons, he said no thanks and moved them himself.
That is a very polite way of dealing with people like that. : )
This made my day… I also could have wrote this.
I feel much better now!!! Thank you.
hehe – LOVE it!
wow! That is amazing! What type of items did you purchase? Could you post a pic of your receipt? This story is amazing! I think the most I have saved in one transaction is $25. Wow!
My feelings exactly especially being new to couponing!! Glad to know you still experience this even though your a pro! Thanks for a great post & glad you saved so much.
Awwww yes the sweet smell of VICTORY, the natural high when all goes well, it is sweet !!!
I think you were describing me! :O) Great post Collin. Made me smile.
i can totally relate!!!!!
Collin, I was cracking up at the part where you are looking for the cashier you want to check you out. I do the same thing at stores like Walmart and Target. It’s sad we have to do that just to get good deals. LOL
I have my favorite cashiers that I use when I go some place. I always try to get in their line because then I know i am safe…..lol
I agree. I hand pick my favorites and stick with them. After a few trips they would have tagged me too as the coupon lady.
I know that feeling soooo well. I can feel my face flush when I am in line, like I am doing something wrong. When I finally get to my car and look in the rear view mirror, I can see that my face is still all red. I really wish that stores had just one line for coupons, so that the cashier would be real familiar with that stores coupon policies and no one in line would get impatient and give me dirty looks.
GREAT idea! If only we could get a couple of stores to adopt this policy..
Oooh, I like that idea: a couponer-only lane 😉 Recently a guy behind me was all huffy and puffy because I had a few coupons that beeped (not my fault, buddy) and needed manager intervention. I noticed he was buying Huggies so I fished out a $1.50 coupon and attempted to hand it to him, thanking him for his patience, but he looked at me in disgust and barked “I don’t want that!” Then, he proceeded to floor it thru the parking lot, cutting me off. I can laugh about it now, but the whole experience got me so flustered…
Amen sister!
LOVE IT!!! I just wish I could have a shopping total like that!!
Wonderful Post! I can definitely identify with the “Coupon Rush.” The nervousness when choosing a cashier, hoping you won’t hear any beeps or have to argue about policy and then giddiness of seeing all the money you saved once the transaction is complete. I’ve never saved $90 on one trip though, way to go Collin!
I loved that story Collin, it makes me feel better when I am using coupons and people are tapping their toes with the in a hurry look on their faces behind me!
I work from home and make $x dollars an hour. But I would rather spend that hour looking up deals to save money at the store. My husband never understands why I dont just work an extra couple of hours and give up couponing all together. I finally explained this is my hobby and it gives me such an adrenaline rush. Your latest posting explains it exactly…..
So here I am ignoring my work, and looking for my coupon high…
I am fairly sure with the coupons and you bending over for dropped ones, help make you surfer cashiers customer of the year. lol.
That’s what I’m talking about. Big Savings so sweet.
Awesome!! I always try to find a young guy too! They don’t seem to care if you have coupons–they are just there for a paycheck!! Loved it!
Love it! Been there…. Done that…..
Today I got the once over and cashier says “this looks copied” – It was NOT!! She must have seen my immediate change in tone when I said ” I don’t do that!” Four coupons… two computers… two from each….. they pushed it through. Whew….. was sweating just a bit and I didn’t do anything!
Depending on if it’s SmartSource, Redplum, or coupons.com, there should be some additional “pin #” or barcode on the coupon identifying it. This would be a unique number for each coupon. I would address that if they assume your 4 copies are identical.
Unless of course it’s a PDF
That is exactly why I started going to all the websites and blogs – tremendous amount of savings I can have. WTG Collin, you diehard couponer!
Amen! Love it!
I figure that while it’s my turn, it’s my turn, and I’ll take as long as I need, within reason. The other day, I thought a girl behind me was annoyed – she was staring bug-eyed at all my coupons. However, out in the parking lot, she stopped me and asked where I got them all! For every annoyed customer or cashier, there is another that’s fascinated and may become a coupon convert themself!
Thats exactly right! I work at Wal-Mart and whenever I have a customer that looks concerned about the attitude of the people in line behind them, I simply say “Theyll expect my full attention when theyre up here, so right now its directed to you.” I then hold to the same principal when Im the customer, whether the person in front of me is being slow or Im the one holding up the line
So funny! I think that’s how all us couponers feel. I always feel bad for the person behind me. , I always tell the person behind me, that I have a lot of coupons. Sometimes, they move to another check out stand and sometimes they stay. If they only have a few items, I always let them go ahead of me. I’m glad I’m not alone 🙂
AWESOME!! I think I would have turned around slightly & gave the woman behind you a little smirk… LOL!
Love it! I can’t wait till my couponing becomes as grand as yours! I’m new to this and get nervous every time, almost as if I’m doing something wrong! Thanks to your site, my last Walgreens trip was $9 and I saved over $20. Thanks for such a wonderful site, Collin. And very cute picture by the way!
I totally get this post! The fear of choosing the wrong cashier, the dread of dealing with those behind you in line, the shock of cashiers at the new total and finally the grand sense of victory. Couponing is one crazy adrenaline ride!!! 🙂
Haha, i know all about the sweaty hands (and the somewhat creepy checking out of the cashiers).
To avoid any impatience behind me, I always put my coupon stack on the band, behind my groceries, right by the divider – so everyone potentially lining up behind me can SEE that I have coupons.
Good idea!
Love it!
I can so relate to ur story even after doing for ten years myself and watching my mom do it growing up!
Love it and totally can relate to every bit!!!!
Hi…thanks for posting the Swagbucks Netflix deal the other day. Can you please tell me how soon can I expect the code from Swagbucks?
You are welcome Swati!
It should credit immediately or at least with in couple of hrs. Mine credited instantly and lot of others got theirs with in minutes!
Hi, I totally put it the wrong way but I was wondering how soon can I expect my amazon gift card code after redeeming my swagbucks. Sorry for the confusion.
Once you order your gift card and verify them, it takes 10-14 business days to get your gift card posted on swagbucks account.
Thanks for replying.
I am so glad you wrote this I thought I was the only one that started that silly idle chat like I was doing something wrong and if i just talk to them it will be ok..Oh and boy i sure picked the wrong 20’s dude the other day he called the manager for EVERY single questions at Walgreens I finally had to pull out their printed off coupon policy UGH!
Never thought about the handing them the coupons one at a time great idea there are times when the coupons stick together and i don’t want to go in to explain where is my 50c after i have save $50 and paid $2.00 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to post this….
This was great Colin, however i have to add that when i finally get in my car and close the door, i let out a “victory squeal!” yay for amazing deals! you have saved my family so much $!!!! 🙂 THANKS!!!!!!!
I do that too! (the squeal)..sometimes I do it again, if I can get a hold of my mom, my sister, or my hubby on the phone…lol
haha, glad to know i’m not the only one Nikki! I’ve been embarrassed a couple of times though when i didn’t realize my window was down and i startled a passerby with the “victory squeal” 🙂
lol..I haven’t startled anyone…but I sure have had some crazy looks! I don’t mind it though, I’m the girl you see at the redlights…singing and dancing in my seat…LOL 🙂
I even try to let others go in front of me if I know I will be there awhile with a bunch of coupons. It seems like people are in such a hurry all the time, sorry but I’m trying to save money.
I do the same thing! I worry more about a line building up behind me than having to deal with a nasty cashier. I dread turning around with my purchases to see all those eyes staring at me wondering what on earth I’m doing that is holding everything up.
I thought I was the only one who went “cashier hunting”… I will stand in a much longer line so that I can get the cashier that I think will give me the least amount of hassle with my coupons. It drives my husband crazy, but it is so reassuring to know I am not alone!!
That’s great! Would love to know what store you were at and what all you were able to get. I have not been able to have a savings like that yet.
HOW do you save so much money!? I dont get it, the closest ive came was $18 off $35 at Wags…thats the best ive done!
I love it !! I am the same way!!