Yesterday I tried to play tennis but with a bruised hand I couldn't actually hold the racquet, a somewhat important requirement when playing tennis, so I gave up. On the way back I dropped into the newly refurbished supermarket in the village.
I selected six or seven items and put them on the counter. The girl serving weighed the apples then went to the display to find out how much they were. She returned and wrote the price on a piece of paper under the heading 'fruit' (well in French obviously). The next item was a bag of onions. Once again she trotted off to see how much they were and came back and wrote down the amount. She did this with every item. I glanced behind me and there was a queue of about six people, some of whom were workmen just wanting to buy their lunch. When the assistant had laboriously repeated this searching, writing method for each item she picked up a calculator and added it up. I wouldn't have been surprised if she had grabbed an abacus. I paid up and asked for a receipt. I may well have asked for a trip to the moon such was her puzzled look. 'No', she said looking around the counter where lay dozens of bits of paper.
I drove home doing a bit of time and motion calculation. The shop shuts at 7.00pm. It must take the rest of the evening working out how much money she had taken in that day, and then there is stock control, ordering. When I was a child the grocer had a ledger in which he entered every transaction but even in that era it was unusual. That is why tills were invented.
I selected six or seven items and put them on the counter. The girl serving weighed the apples then went to the display to find out how much they were. She returned and wrote the price on a piece of paper under the heading 'fruit' (well in French obviously). The next item was a bag of onions. Once again she trotted off to see how much they were and came back and wrote down the amount. She did this with every item. I glanced behind me and there was a queue of about six people, some of whom were workmen just wanting to buy their lunch. When the assistant had laboriously repeated this searching, writing method for each item she picked up a calculator and added it up. I wouldn't have been surprised if she had grabbed an abacus. I paid up and asked for a receipt. I may well have asked for a trip to the moon such was her puzzled look. 'No', she said looking around the counter where lay dozens of bits of paper.
I drove home doing a bit of time and motion calculation. The shop shuts at 7.00pm. It must take the rest of the evening working out how much money she had taken in that day, and then there is stock control, ordering. When I was a child the grocer had a ledger in which he entered every transaction but even in that era it was unusual. That is why tills were invented.
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