Sat 2 Jan 2010
My wife happened to arrive at Wal-mart on the 31st to pick up some last minute items for a party (New Years) and she reported to me that it was a total mad house. She was waiting in line getting a bit frustrated when another cashier opened another check out line and signaled her to come over. My wife asked why it was so busy that day and inquired if it was due to the fact that it was New Years eve and people were buying stuff and the cashier said no that it was always like that on the 15th or 31st (or 1st) of the month because that’s either when people got paid or when the state released funds to the public on public assistance.
“Don’t ever come here on the 15th or 31st if you don’t have to” is what the cashier’s advice was for a more enjoyable store visit. The story sounded eeriely similar to my own experience of many years ago so I searched my archives and lo and behold! As soon as my wife told me this story I wondered if they’ve finally taken my advice from TWO YEARS AGO!
January 2nd, 2010 at 7:42 pm
Yeah, the 15th and 31st are typically days that people who work and earn an income get paid. So I guess the point is to avoid going there when people on welfare or people who have jobs go there? Makes sense, I guess. Makes more sense for me, as I am self-employed and don’t really shop on a payment schedule. My biggest deposits usually come in between the 22nd and 29th, though.
I avoid people by shopping at 2 or 3 in the morning. I’m on my own schedule and naturally a late-night or very early morning person.
In the old days when I was in one of those employee relationships, I always got paid on Fridays. So add that to the list. Avoid every Friday, most Thursdays ( some Friday checks come early), the 1st, 15th, 31st/last, every weekend, rush hour. Best time is around 4am on a Weds falling after the 15th but prior to the 31st/last. Not a typical pay day and a lot of people have run out of money and are waiting for their next check. Plus its a little late for the college students who walk around late at night and people who just stumbled out of bars. You will only see the overnight stockers. They will give you a look that says ” Who is this crazy guy shopping at 4am?” While you can think “Well, you are the ones working at Wal-mart overnight.”