Nightmare on Safeway Street

I had to go on a major grocery shopping trip after work last night.  I drove to Safeway and got there right about 6:45pm.  Had to restock on a ton of stuff - cat litter, coffee, toothpaste, cereal, paper towels (has to be Viva!) plus all the groceries for producing dinners the rest of the week.  So I had a pretty full cart when I got to the checkout.  After all my items had been scanned and bagged and my Safeway Club Card run through (total savings:  $21!)  I realized that I had left my Bank of the West debit card on my desk at work.  My total was $128.00.  So I have my Amazon card that I purposefully carry with me because the limit is $400.  I know I charged some stuff over vacation, so I am not sure I can fit $128 on that card.  And I was right.  DECLINED.  So I have one other card that I keep in my wallet for emergencies only.  I pull ilt out and it is declined as well.  EXPIRED IN FEBRUARY.  I have no other cards because I cut them all up so I would not use them.  By now everyone in line behind me is sighing and huffing and puffing.  So I tell the checker that I have to go home and get a check.  He says they will put my cart in the back area and to come see him when I get back.  So I drive back home, get 1 check and drive back to Safeway.  As I am entering the store, I run into Jonathan, my checker leaving.  He says to go to checkstand 5 and my cart is sitting right next to that checkstand and the checker who took over for him "knows all about it."   So I get in line at checkstand five, and when it gets to my turn, I point to my cart and say "that's my cart."  Which elicits absolutely no recognition.  I tell him I had to go home to get a check, but that everything was already rung up.  I pull the cart over and hand him the reciept.  He asks the manager to come over because he is not sure how to proces the payment.  The manager, of course, tells him he has to ring everything up again.  So I unload all the bags, and he takes the items out, one by one, rings them up, then puts them back in the bags.  Total comes to $128 again.  I write a check.  DECLINED.  Now I know I have way more than $128 in my bank account.  He calls the manager over again.  People in line behind me are restless and making threatening noises again.  "Is this the first time you've written a check to Safeway?" she asks.  Yes.  Your first seven checks have to be for less than $100.  So since I only brought one check and no cash, the cart goes back into cold storage while I return home AGAIN to get a check and some cash.  This is not my night.

I am tired of typing this depressing story.  Anyway, I got back with check and $40, but now since it was after 8, the number of checkers on duty had gone down from 6 to 3, and two of those were express, so there was a LONG ASS line in the non-express lane.  I eventually got out of there with my groceries.  But what should have been a 45 minute job had turned into nearly 3 hours.  And why are the employees at Safeway always arguing with the managers about their breaks, their shifts, etc. in front of all the customers?  I've noticed this in the past, but since I spent so much time in line last night, I really noticed a constant level of loud complaining from the checkers.