I seem to have this uncanny ability to draw store security to me like a magnet when I am shopping.
Seriously, do I really look like a shoplifter, Winona Ryder? No, I think it's my style of shopping.
I usually cover most of the store but concentrate on menswear that's on sale, electronics, DVDs, and toys. If I have a mental list of what I'm looking for, I sometimes forget what's on my list and stop in the middle of
the store and stare into space until I remember. Then there's the method of seeing what other goodies are in the store but standing on my tiptoes and craning my neck to see what I can see. This all must look suspicious.
I was in a Ross Dress for Less Department Store last night and was looking at clearance menswear then headed over to the toys. And wouldn't you know, store security followed me back there. I picked up something I wanted, a cool action figure from The Nightmare Before Christmas, and continued to look around the store for some more stuff I didn't need. The security guy kept popping up in aisles I was shopping in. I'm not paranoid, I'm being followed.
I think one of my favorite episodes was the security guy following me at Target, especially when I was spending a long time looking at discount stuff in the menswear section. He was really tall but trying to look inconspicuous by thinking he was hiding behind clothes racks. If the walkie-talkie wasn't a dead giveaway then him following me to the electronics section was. They look more suspicious than I do. When this happens to me, I enjoy taking the security person on a full tour of the store.
I worked in a number of department stores when I was younger and know the old 'tricks' security uses. Being obvious is not one of them. Carrying your walkie-talkie out in the open and talking on it in full view is also not one of them.
So take a tip from me, if you want to have fun in a store, try shopping. But no lifting; leave that to the celebrities.