Perhaps you’ve noticed the sorry state of peaches lately. They’re terrible.

You would think supermarkets would reject these mealy globs of disappointment.  But instead, they sell ‘em at $1.79 a pound with a straight face.

I’d like to spy on the produce manager when he decides what to foist on an unsuspecting public.

“Sure, I’ll sell these things,” he muses. “They look like peaches. They have the same color and texture as peaches. They taste like dental plaster, but we won’t offer in-store samples.”

If I had a spine, I’d bring the desiccated peaches to the market and present them indignantly to the woman (it’s always a woman) at the customer service desk. She’d give me my money back, but I’d walk out of there feeling like one of those cranky 85-year-olds.

I’m not quite there yet.

____________________ 

Morey Stettner writes The Young Curmudgeon blog for portsmouthnh.com. He’s the author of five books including SKILLS FOR NEW MANAGERS (McGraw-Hill) and THE ART OF WINNING CONVERSATION (Prentice Hall) and the editor of the popular newsletter Managing People at Work (www.managingpeopleatwork.com).