After years of exhaustive research I believe I have discovered the epitome of laziness. That classic example we can all immediately associate as the ultimate act of simply being lazy. I have to admit this study has not been totally objective, as I have fended off for many years having that label attached to me.

With that said, let me direct your attention to the parking lot of any large grocery store and take notice of the carts shoved into snow banks or left strewn about the lot precisely where the patron emptied it.

Grocery stores have gone to great lengths to provide and place carriage corrals at convenient locations throughout their respective lots, a fact not lost on this assessment. Apparently this is not good enough for many patrons who choose to care little for the employees responsible for retrieving the carts or for fellow shoppers forced to avoid them. I must admit this revelation is not without a small sense of bias as I have had family members employed by these establishments who have been tasked with shagging carts for return to the store.

Not only is this pure laziness but also contributes to the frustration finding open parking spaces. Just when you find that ideal spot and make the turn, you are stymied by the presence of a shopping cart left sitting just to one side of the space preventing you from pulling in. You either have to back out and look for another space or exit your car partially in the space to move the stray carriage.

I can almost sympathize with those forced to park acres away from the store with no carriage corral in sight or have children in tow. Clearly the worst offenders are those who empty and leave the carts within feet of the corral.

Is this transgression likely to make the news? Hardly. But for those offenders who think nothing of leaving your empty cart mere feet from the corral; congratulations. You take the title.

Steven Edmondson
Topsham