Wednesday, May 06, 2020

Where Andy Warhol comes grocery shopping with me

Yes, soup for you
London, ON
May 2020
This photo originally shared on Instagram
Let's be clear: Grocery shopping has become a stressful, frightening experience.

Some folks get the whole physical distancing thing, while others think nothing of walking right up to you so they can grab the last jar of Nutella off the shelf.

Store employees, bless them, have moved heaven and earth to reshape the in-store environment: Lineups outside to limit the number of shoppers at any one time. Taped lines on the floor to help keep folks sufficiently far apart. Guidance gates that lead you to the cash. One wonders if it'll ever look like it once did.

Probably not.

And I'm only in there for an hour or two. Employees work entire shifts, day after day. All for minimum wage and the added perk of maybe catching a scary disease from a stupid shopper. When you're looking for heroes, include these workers on the list, and be especially kind when you see them.

Which brings me to this, a random picture of a random skid of soup cans in the middle of the store.

The intensity of pandemic-era shopping means my fun-with-photography habit has been put on hold. The job is to get in, get my stuff, and get out - shooting pics of the inventory just isn't a priority.

And yet, the soup cans screamed Andy Warhol to me, and there was enough open floor around me that I wouldn't be inconveniencing anyone else in the process. I shot fast and smiled all the while.

Sometimes, you just have to let your inner creative out for a bit. Because photographic light always banishes the darkness.

And making store employees smile for a fleeting second is an added bonus. A small thank you for all they do to keep us fed.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #random #grocery #store #shopping #retail #soup #foryou #stilllife #photography #google #pixel2 #teampixel #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

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