I RUINED CHRISTMAS!!

[Slave to the Phone]

Back to the subject...I just witnessed a 16 year old girl ruin a Christmas at the local c-store.

Its important to remember that our mom and pop c-store is locally owned and run in a very small community. We are country and have a lot of patience with outsiders, but we know and protect our own.

For reasons unknown someone stopping for gas had ignored the handy trash bins at the pumps to walk across the parking lot to throw her trash over the locked gate onto the dumpster. Unfortunately, she also had her keys in her hand and they went into the rather full dumpster as well.

She came running in and demanded that the only clerk working stopped ringing people up so she could go out and open the dumpster. She was begging and in a hurry, so we all nodded and kinda ambled to the door to watch the clerk unlock the gate.

Once the gate was opened we could clearly tell that the customer expected the clerk to go dumpster diving after the keys. I'm pretty gimpy these days so I didn't get there fast enough to hear what was being said but the other 2 customers ran over and pretty much told the lady that she was the idiot who threw her keys in the dumpster, she was the one who was going into the dumpster after them.

As we all started walking away, clerk included, the woman started screaming that the clerk and everyone in this hick town had totally ruined her Christmas and that she was going to get us all fired.

I know I don't get a Ruined Christmas point for that, but could I get a percentage of one?

[wolfie]

Stockholm Syndrome, quite common with cat owners.

My cats assure me that this is not the case ...

Of course your cats assure you that this is not the case. It's quite common with cat servants - cats don't have owners.

[Mike Taylor]

I did tell hear the disappointment in a customer's voice when told the Mavic would likely be here in Jan at the earliest...

Not the same. It lacks the frothing rage and dawning cosmic horror of a "Ruined Christmas".

[eltf177]

Dogs have owners - cats have staff...

Slave to the Phone - Did this idiot really expect someone else to retrieve her keys? You threw them in there, YOU find 'em!

[Captain Neon]

I have yet to ruin anyone's Christmas yet, but my next scheduled shifts are 12/23 and I close on Christmas Eve. There's bound to be some clueless bimbo wanting a Christmas gift for the love of her life that she met just last night rattling the front door minutes after I lock up at 5PM and stating that we are supposed to be open until 9PM on Saturdays.

[KuariKaydrith]

It's very hard for me to ruin somebody's Christmas unless I screw up on any of the craft commissions I took on this year (finished the last one today!), but I've got visions of somebody coming to bang on my work building's front door, demanding that we do something to credit their cable/phone/internet bill in some way only to be told to go elsewhere...and promptly be told that I ruined their Christmas. Or something.

I'll just stay in my warm lobby area and make faces at them through the bullet-resistant glass.

[Slave to the Phone]

Slave to the Phone - Did this idiot really expect someone else to retrieve her keys? You threw them in there, YOU find 'em!

Not only did she expect someone else to go dumpster diving for her keys, she was totally outraged that she was told "No" by a mere store clerk and then again by a couple of hicks. (They weren't hicks until they told her that they weren't jumping into the dumpster either, then hicks was the nicest thing she called them.)

When I left around 10 minutes later (buying milk was fast, it was the gabfest that ate up the time), she was screaming into her phone. She must be a joy to live with.

I didn't ruin anyone's Christmas today.

My cube neighbor did. We use headsets, so I only heard CN's side of the conversation but it started by her customer calling CN a racist and telling her that its none of her business how much she makes by selling tamales because its part of the Mexican culture for the women to make pocket money that way. (While it indeed a delicious part of their culture, money made that way is considered to be income by the American food stamp rules.)

Things went downhill after that. CN tried her best to finish her case, but with the customer refusing to give her any way to verify any of the questionable factors, she had to pend the case and have the customer sign some forms. As she was walking out, the customer stormed out the door whist yelling VERY bad words at the top of her lungs.

When I spoke to witnesses, the SFW translation is that NC is a racist, heartless female dog who ruined their Christmas and her children are going to starve.

I gave her a piece of chocolate afterwards, I'm sure she won't mind if I get her Ruined Christmas point.

[Slave to the Phone]

I did it! Finally!!! AND I'm a Grinch

And it wasn't at work which is even better.

I'm done with my Christmas shopping, but I still have a list of stores to visit on a regular rotation so I can shut their display of singing dancing monstrosities off. At lunch today, I was at the other drug store, moving around the table, shutting those abominations off and reversing the batteries when a woman with 2 young children asked me what I was doing. Its important to note that said children looked to me to be in the 1 to 3 year range. The younger was sleeping in the carrier thingy and the bigger one was happily eating a candy cane.


When I told her that I was shutting them off so the workers didn't have to hear them, she freaked out because I had ruined the entire Christmas experience for her children. When I apologized and told her that I didn't know that anyone took their children to a drugstore for a Christmas experience, she told me that I didn't know what it was like because I didn't have children and she flounced off to get me fired or the stupid electronic money wasters turned back on or whatever.

I couldn't resist poking the bear one more time as I shut the last one off. "I'm sorry I ruined your Christmas, I hope you have a better one next year."

[notalwaysright]

The younger was sleeping in the carrier thingy and the bigger one was happily eating a candy cane.

I know this isn't the point of your post, but I've seen several kids sucking on candy canes in the past few days. Yet another completely unnecessary sticky mess that will inevitably be found later on the floor, or stuck between two bolts of fabric...

Back to the point, those poor kids if the mom thinks tacky singing Santas (or whatever they were) is the Christmas experience. Some parents love to whip out the "you don't know, you don't have kids!" accusation don't they? How do they know you don't have kids?

[WishfulSpirit]

I guess stores don't enforce "no food or drink" anymore. I remember having to finish my mall DQ ice cream before we went in JC Penny's because food or beverages weren't allowed in there.

[RealUnimportant]

... selling tamales ... her children are going to starve.

Maybe she should keep back a few tamales for them to eat?

[mhkohne]

Some parents love to whip out the "you don't know, you don't have kids!" accusation don't they? How do they know you don't have kids?

You know, a good response (if you're not and employee, because it'll probably get you fired) is to yell 'What do you mean I don't have children? What have you done with them?' Then run out of the aisle yelling 'Johnny! Where are you!'

With luck that'll prod the SC into moving along.

[flyonthewall]

*Store name*, ruining Christmases since *year established*.



I remember a few years ago one of my buddies and I were working the floor and it was Christmas Eve Day and we were closing in a few hours, so legit end of the end. And we were out of fucking everything! My buddy is the sweetest lady ever. She's the loving grandmother type. Some bitch went ballistic on her for everything being out of stock. My bud was trying to find something still in stock for her to buy but the woman wouldn't stop focusing on the five or so "it" presents that sold out like a month before she walked into the store. I was pissed that anyone could treat such a sweet person who genuinely was trying to help so badly. The bitch was like, "You're useless, blah blah blah." Christmas eve shoppers are fucking insane.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Back to the point, those poor kids if the mom thinks tacky singing Santas (or whatever they were) is the Christmas experience.

"But I don't have tiiimmmeee to take the kids to go to the mall to see Santa!" wails the SC, as she whips out her phone to update her Facebook.

Reminds me of the people who used to come into the pet store with their kids after picking them up from school to "look at the animals". This used to get on my nerves for two reasons; one, the pet store is not a zoo, two, they'd come in when I was trying to clean out the animals' cages and keep getting in my way as I was doing so. Some even had the nerve to complain about me blocking their kids' view of the cages with my cleaning trolley or the smell of the mess. Seriously, tight parents, either buy a pet or pay to take your kids to the zoo!

Also, to keep this on topic, I ruined several Christmases while working at the pet store for many reasons.

1. Insisting that the pet in question that is destined as a Christmas present is paid for in full beforehand. Many SCs screamed that it was unfair. Um, how? If you pay for it, then I know you're going to come and collect the damn thing on Christmas Eve. Otherwise, I'm holding a pet for you for no reason if you do not come to collect, and therefore, missing out on a possible sale.

2. See above paragraph. While I allowed this on regular days, on Christmas Eve I was run off my feet (especially the year when half the staff of the entire garden centre were off with flu and I was alone in the pet store, trying to do everything myself) and disallowed parents to bring their kids to look at the animals unless they were planning on buying one. Apparently, some parents consider a Christmas treat for their kids to be going to the pet store and looking at the animals there. I shooed out half a dozen in the first hour alone, which ruined their Christmases.

3. Refusing to sell a Netherland Dwarf rabbit to a couple who wanted it for a Christmas present for their kid. Reason being that said rabbit had already been reserved and paid for by someone else the week before. The SC couple flounced out, declaring loudly that they were going to our rival garden centre for a rabbit. I had the last laugh, however, as they came crawling back within the hour cuz our rivals had sold out of rabbits.

4. Refusing to sell our pet white chipmunk to a woman and her spoilt daughter, cuz the daughter really really really wanted him for her own. Tough beans, dear, we don't always get what we want. When the woman realised that no matter how much she offered, the white chipmunk was not for sale, she screamed that I had ruined Christmas and her daughter shrieked all the way out of the store.

4. Finally, closing at five sharp and turning off all the lights. Once five pm arrived, I cashed up, checked the pets once more and went to go to the front of the store to act as a bouncer on the front door for half an hour. Cue an SC turning up and demanding that I sell her a hamster. I told her I was closed and not making any more sales today. She threw a massive tantrum and flounced out, cuz I had ruined her son's Christmas... rather than her, who left it to the last minute to go out and get the pet.

[freeatlast]

When I worked in the Call Center from Hell I took great pride in how many Christmases I ruined. The CD club used to include a flyer in our mailings that offered non-recorded merchandise. Mostly junk, but as Playstations became popular, they were included in the flyer - at about twice what they would cost in a store. Of course, all of those people who didn't have the money or the credit to go buy one in a store would try to order them through our club. The club had shipping limitations, based on the customer's purchase history - how much they had purchased and how promptly it was paid for.

I often had customers who had spent maybe $30 to $40 so far with the club call in to order Playstations for each of their 5 or 6 kids and come unglued when I advised them that they would have to prepay to have them shipped Because we all know that once they were received they would not be paid for.

You see, this club had a reputation for allowing people who had previous unpaid memberships that were sent to a collection agency to re-enroll under a new account. Repeatedly. Anybody want to wager a guess as to why they are no longer in business.

So I probably hold the record for ruining Christmas - and am damned proud of it