mostly david ephgrave

There's nothing more pressured than trying to open a new plastic bag with a queue of shoppers waiting behind you. I may be exaggerating slightly; defusing a bomb might be a tiny bit more stressful. That said, wrestling with a plastic bag in front of an audience is definitely somewhere near the top of the list. I find it particularly difficult when the cashier is watching me. They open plastic bags for a living. Not only that, but they see other people doing it day in and day out; most of them no doubt successfully. Sometimes the cashier will give you a proverbial Get Out of Jail Free card and offer to pack your shopping for you. I never take them up on this. I’m far too proud. I’ll insist I’m fine – and then spend the next few minutes flailing helplessly amongst a pile of polythene. It’s hardest when the bags are still attached to each other, which is usually the case at the self-service checkout. For some unfathomable reason, i...