Today could be the best day of my life.

I’ve just been to my local Sainsbury’s which – until today – seemed behind the times when it came to point of sale technology. The Tesco by my office has them. The giant Sainsbury’s down the road has them. But today, for the first time, I was able to use self-service checkout machines at my local supermarket.

They’re brilliant. I mean, they’re awful if there’s an unexpected item in the bagging area, if you can’t find your un-barcoded item in the menus, if you’re trying to buy alcohol and there’s no-one around to authorise it, or if they’re just set REALLY LOUD – but they’re brilliant. Scan. Pack. Scan. Pack. Scan. Pack. Pay.

No-one asking how many of my own bags I’ve brought along. (One.) No-one asking if I have a Nectar card. (No. So bringing my own bag was entirely motivated by envirosmuggery.) No-one criticising my choice of toilet roll. (Yes, that happened.)

Even shopping online involves some human interaction as you have to get the stuff delivered. Self-service checkouts save my having to communicate with another human being entirely, and I still get the shopping immediately.

This is the day that I longed for.

I have a nagging feeling that this technological advance might result in fewer jobs at the store… But let’s assume the checkout staff have just been reassigned to other duties.

And anyway, this is about me.

Via MediaWatchWatch comes the news from The Independent (update: link now pay-to-view) that Woolworths and Sainsbury’s have withdrawn from sale our old friend Jerry Springer: The Opera on DVD due to "customer concerns".

Sainsbury has admitted it received just 10 complaints.

Tim was written to both expressing his disappointment. Time for a seasonal, free speech boycott of Woolies and Sainsbury’s? A pledge, perhaps? Or a nice sidebar button?

Either way, I won’t be shopping at either for the rest of 2005. That’ll learn ’em.