Observations
Item
Title
Observations
Description
April 2, 2020 - I walked to get some groceries this afternoon. It was a beautiful spring day and a couple in their 80's was out for a walk. As I approached them I moved out onto the roadway to give them some space. When I returned back down the street the elderly lady was stopped speaking to a neighbour in their late 60's. They were about 18" apart. I wondered why the younger of the two didn't think to step back and give her some space.
- As I crossed a parking lot I noticed a man putting groceries in the trunk of his car. He was standing very close to an elderly woman with a walker, so I hoped that they lived together. As I got closer I realized it was a cab driver putting things in a taxi. He helped the very fragile woman into the back seat. I realized then how taxi drivers put themselves at risk with every fare. And how seniors put themselves and others at risk trying to do the simplest of tasks.
-The Giant Tiger on Welland Avenue is one of the few places within walking distance for people to get groceries. As I entered I noticed a woman in her late 40's casually browsing the curtain rack and later carrying a tea towel. She didn't seem at all in a hurry and it didn't look like she was there to buy groceries. I wondered why she was putting herself, and possibly others at risk.
-The store recently installed plexiglass cough shields at the checkout. The shields are quite large and high. Oddly, they did not leave an opening at the bottom for hands to place items on the conveyor belt, or to pass money through. This means that all the customers have to walk to the end of the cough screen to speak to the cashier, hand money over etc. It completely defeats the purpose of the screen and may even be making the situation worse, by forcing everyone to a confined space at the end of the screen. When I mentioned it to the cashier, it was clear she was exasperated by the faulty logic of it all. (The cough guards have a built in opening at the bottom, but it was closed up.)
- As I crossed a parking lot I noticed a man putting groceries in the trunk of his car. He was standing very close to an elderly woman with a walker, so I hoped that they lived together. As I got closer I realized it was a cab driver putting things in a taxi. He helped the very fragile woman into the back seat. I realized then how taxi drivers put themselves at risk with every fare. And how seniors put themselves and others at risk trying to do the simplest of tasks.
-The Giant Tiger on Welland Avenue is one of the few places within walking distance for people to get groceries. As I entered I noticed a woman in her late 40's casually browsing the curtain rack and later carrying a tea towel. She didn't seem at all in a hurry and it didn't look like she was there to buy groceries. I wondered why she was putting herself, and possibly others at risk.
-The store recently installed plexiglass cough shields at the checkout. The shields are quite large and high. Oddly, they did not leave an opening at the bottom for hands to place items on the conveyor belt, or to pass money through. This means that all the customers have to walk to the end of the cough screen to speak to the cashier, hand money over etc. It completely defeats the purpose of the screen and may even be making the situation worse, by forcing everyone to a confined space at the end of the screen. When I mentioned it to the cashier, it was clear she was exasperated by the faulty logic of it all. (The cough guards have a built in opening at the bottom, but it was closed up.)
Spatial Coverage
St. Catharines
Item sets
Site pages
This item was submitted on April 2, 2020 by [anonymous user] using the form “Digital Submissions” on the site “Documenting COVID-19 in Niagara”: https://exhibits.library.brocku.ca/s/COVID-Niagara
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