People have been kind of spacey and tired this week, what with the time change. Me, too. We’re all just kind of…off. Whether we’re springing forward or falling back, it’s a royal pain in the patootie! It’s amazing what screwing around with our sleep schedules can do, right? I mean, it’s just one hour. It shouldn’t make that much difference. But it does. I saw a report on the news that there’s more car accidents and problems at work, even more heart issues. Down to the A&P, me and my fellow cashiers made more voids on the register this week than normal, that’s for sure. No one got hurt, but I gotta say perhaps our …

Last Thursday, I’m standing at my register down to the A&P, when who do I see in the produce section but James Brown. Not James Brown, the Godfather of Soul. No, I’m talking about James Brown, CPA, Mahoosuc Mills’ best accoutant. Well, since his father retired, he’s our only accountant. James may be sharp with numbers, but grocery shopping, not so much. “There are too many variables,” he told me once. James married a gal he met at Dartmouth, Courtney Van Buren. The two of them worked in Boston until they were ready to start a family, then they decided to settle here in Mahoosuc Mills. Courtney works for a company in Bangor (something to …

Down to the A&P, thing are hopping, as you’d expect. Busy, busy, busy! We’re selling poinsettias and wreaths up the yin-yang. There was one small spot of gloominess on Friday. My co-worker Courtney was all shook up because she’d started getting Christmas cards from some of the customers. She’s in her early twenties, and still in the process of figuring out what she wants to do with her life. “What’s wrong with getting cards from customers?” I ask her. “Don’t take this personal, Ida,” Courtney replies, all mopey-faced, “but I think it means I’ve been working here too long.” “No offense taken, Courtney. But you know, there might be another way of looking at it. …

You know how we tend to confide in our hairdresser or bartender? As a cashier down to the A&P, folks tend to confide in me, too, even if they don’t always know they’re doing it. Because checking out a person’s groceries is more intimate than you image. You know who’s drinking a little too much, who has a Doritos habit and who’s addicted to the National Inquirer. You see the same folks once a week, minimum, and you can kind of sense whether they’re feeling their oats or not. So I’m working register 3 per usual, cashing out Roberta “Bobbie” Robbins, making conversation, like you do. “How’s that cute little dog of yours? Blah, blah. …

 I know I probably shouldn’t be complaining about this. I mean, just look at the temperatures in other parts of the country. Still, I can’t remember ever being this cranky hot. We’re in Maine for God sakes! It’s not supposed to be this hot for this long. We’re not equipped to handle it. It’s like when some place down south gets an inch of snow, and it puts a monkey wrench in everything. That’s what it feels like here in Mahoosuc Mills. Everybody’s discombobulated. Charlie and me have air-conditioning in our bedroom, of course, but the rest of the house never really cools down. And humid! My makeup seems to slide around on my face. …

So, I’m working checkout at the A&P, right? When I hear this conversation out of the corner of my ear: two women, voices lowered, talking fast in an urgent sort way. I mean, who wouldn’t listen in? “He wakes me up every morning at 5:00.” “Every morning?” “Like clockwork. I don’t mind it so much on weekdays. I have to be up for work, anyways. But, it’s the weekends, too.” “You think he’d let you sleep in at least one morning.” “Nope. He just won’t give it a rest. At first I thought it was kind of cute, you know? But frankly, it’s wearing me down!” “I don’t blame you. Not every morning.” Well, my …

Aren’t the daffodils are just gorgeous right now? There’s something about that green and yellow that’s just so darn hopeful. And the flowering trees are doing their thing. Wow! Puts a bounce in my step. The older I get, the more I appreciate spring. Well, all the season’s really, but especially spring. It’s hard to complain, though some folks manage. And they always seem to come to my register down to the A&P with a full cart, I might add, and coupons! I try to keep it light, but it’s challenging. There’s Claudia Peavey, okay? She a “yeah, but” kind of gal. Don’t matter what you say, she’ll “yeah, but” you. You know the type. …

You know how you can look at things but not really see ‘em? This happens to me sometimes when I look in the mirror. I know how to stand so I look pretty good most of the time. Then I see a photo of me, and I’m thinking, “What happened to my neck? Who took that? Guess I’m not as cute as I thought I was.” Well, I was walking with my sister, Irene, the other day. We were strolling around the neighborhood. It’s my usual route, one I walk most every day. Anyhoo, Irene stops and goes, “Look at that sign.” “Yup,” I says. “They have an invisible fence for their dog.” “And what’s …

We’re closing in on the first of the year, and none too soon, huh? Boy, workin’ down to the A&P, I’ve seen some mighty stressed out people, let me tell you! No need to name names. You know who you are. And if you’re not one of ‘em, you’ve seen ‘em, too, I’m sure. Men on a mission, running in to get that one last thing their wife forgot. With the eye of the tiger and no time for hellos, they dash into the produce section or down an aisle only to appear at the express lane five or ten or sometimes fifteen minutes later, deer in the headlights, sweat on their upper lip. You …

Here’s the last installment, folks. Need to get up to speed? Check out Part One and Part Two. Once I graduated high school and married Charlie, I had a decision to make. I mean, I loved my job at the A&P, but shouldn’t I want more outta life? I’ve always been good with numbers, so I decided to get an Accounting Certificate at the Community College in Bangor. Couldn’t go full time, of course. Charlie and me were just starting out and we couldn’t swing that. So, I continued on at the A&P and took courses at night. It was slow and tough at times, but I stuck it out. About halfway through, I realized …