About this location
A few stories people tell about this place
1. It was an unusually quiet Sunday morning in the small town of Lakeland when a delivery driver pulled up to Publix. The sun had barely risen, and the parking lot was empty except for one old pickup truck. As he unloaded crates of fresh produce, he heard it—a soft humming coming from inside the store. Curious, the driver peered through the window and saw an elderly gentleman gently dusting the shelves with a feather duster. ‘Morning,’ said the man cheerfully without turning around. ‘Just making sure everything’s nice and tidy before opening.’ Turning finally, he smiled warmly and added, “Publix runs better on a clean slate.” And so, the legend of the ghostly grocery store attendant continued, becoming a local joke among shoppers.
2. It was an unseasonably chilly Thursday afternoon in the usually bustling Publix parking lot when a delivery driver noticed something peculiar. As he approached the back door, the driver heard a faint voice calling for help from inside one of the refrigerated sections. Peering around the corner, he saw only a box of slightly bruised bananas waving feebly. ‘I’ll take that as a yes,’ he laughed, deciding to make a banana smoothie out of them later.
3. It was a humdrum Tuesday night in the Publix parking lot when a regular noticed something peculiar. As he walked towards his car, a faint, yet unmistakable scent of freshly baked bread wafted through the air—only it wasn’t coming from inside the store. Curious, the man followed the aroma around the corner and found an elderly delivery driver, merrily unwrapping a baguette with a satisfied smile. ‘I sneaked one out,’ he confessed sheepishly. The regular laughed, shook his head, and went back to his car—a new friend, and the smell of fresh bread now a weekly tradition.
4. It was a typical Saturday morning in the Publix parking lot when a little girl pointed excitedly at something on the ground and whispered, ‘Mom, look! Is that really a ghost?’ Her mom bent down curiously, only to notice it was just an old shopping cart. But before she could explain, a delivery driver walked by, glanced at them oddly, then muttered under his breath, ‘Ghost or not, I’ve seen weirder things here.’ The family laughed it off, realizing sometimes even supermarkets can be spooky places.