Every time my daughter has a choir concert, the director decides that in addition to the choir uniforms, there will be one special number requiring a different set of clothing. He assures us that he chooses clothing that all students will already have in their closets. Of course, my daughter never has the clothing in her closet or dresser or under her bed or even on her floor. So on Saturday we headed over to Target for the required Converse shoes for this week's concert.
When we got there, we took a cart because everyone knows you can't walk out of Target with just one thing.
Seventeen hours later while waiting in the check-out line, I noticed the couple in front of us. The husband seemed to speak civilly to his wife, but each of her responses was curt and then grew to snippy and finally to rude. The husband, who had at first been gracious to the cashier, appeared to take his frustrations with his wife out on the cashier. The more the wife snapped at the husband, the more the husband began to snap at the cashier. That's when karma, justice, or whatever you want to call it happened.
Each time the husband snapped, criticized, or complained, the cashier began to work slower. Not only would she painstakingly slowly scan the product, but she then would struggle to get it into a bag, and then would have to decide if she wanted to tie the bag or not, and then would deliberate putting the bag on the counter or not. That hesitation would cause the husband to snap at her again, and her speed would again slow down.
The decrease in speed happened incrementally, but after twenty or so items, the cashier was working at a rate of near paralysis.
I enjoyed the cashier's solution and would have thought it was greatly humorous had I not been next in line.
Good things come to those who wait, however. As we FINALLY prepared to leave the store, the Starbucks barista gave us the cutest little samples of a berries and creme frappe. The couple in front of me? Well, they paid $10 for frappes only slightly larger than our FREE samples.
And my daughter and I lived happily ever after.
9 comments:
That is what I do at work when I get a rude customer. Not that I want them in front of me longer, I just want them to learn patience. Then I always go overboard to be nice to the next person I encounter to wash the bad customer out of my mind.
The last time I encountered a similar situation I made a point to write to the store and RAVE about the cashier. She in turn called me back personally and told me how I had made her day for giving her such high praise after such a crappy experience.
A sample from Starbuck's sounds wonderful! I've never been so lucky. You were in the right place at the right time!
love it and i so WANT one of those itty starbucks drinks lol ... love love love it.
people.....
why am I never in Target or at a Starbucks when they are giving out samples? Looks delicious! Interesting experiment with the cashier moving slowly with the way she was being talked to/treated. Makes one think she has developed that technique over the years.....
LOL about never having what the teachers want; goes like that, doesn't it?
betty
I am sure there is a story here, but I could not get past the:
"When we got there, we took a cart because everyone knows you can't walk out of Target with just one thing.
Seventeen hours later while waiting in the check-out line"....
17 hours in Target? Heavenly. :-)
You're very observant! (and patient, of course)
You weren't behind me were you? My husband and I get that way every so often, but probably not that bad. :) I jest.
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