The thoughts &^%!& dancing through a sales associates head...

[Pembroke_Corgi]

Oh gosh people can be so awful. My very first job was at kmart, and it was a struggle to deal with some people even when it wasn't the holidays. People can be so rude and just terrible.

Once, a man came through my line and bought an item for $1.99. I rang him up, bagged the item and gave him the receipt. The receipt wrote the item slightly differently than on the package- it was the same item, but it was written minimally different. The man looked at the receipt, said "This isn't what I paid for," and THREW the item towards me and said "Take this a shove it." It was horrible, it was all I could do not to cry.

I have no idea why he was so horrible to me, but I know from working in retail that I should always always always be very nice and understanding to cashiers.

[K9karen]

*Sigh* Donna..Been there..Done That.

I worked xtra jobs in a department store and a discount beauty supply place. Man o Man! Either people are fantastic and sweet or they're from he**. I always tried to be nice but one lady got under my skin, trying to test me about a return so I quit shortly after. I knew I'd freak out sooner or later. Once at Christmas, only I and an elderly saleclerk showed up, had to open 5 registers (!), customers wound up at MY register, at least 50 in line at one time. It was so hot and I was starving and thirsty. One couple was so fantastic and sympathtic they came back later with a soda and a sandwich!! I ate it at the counter even though I wasn't allowed. At midnight, the manager wanted to leave, was questioning why it took me so long to close 5 registers (on my own-forget the other cashier). So..since I didn't get help ALL day, I closed my register, grabbed my purse and left and told the manager to do it since she sat around all day and wanted to leave. She did, cause I was gone. Not another word was said to me.

[Jods]

I worked at walmat at the customer service desk a few yrs ago and these ppl were nuts!!! Honeslty were do they come from this one woman asked to speak to a manager cuz I wouldn't return her item (no receipt and it was ruined by her) He came and refused also kindly tho and she took off her shoe and threw it at him and hit him in the head

[jackmilliesmom]

Ok remind me never to move to the States to become a retail person - oooohhh wow what a life. But even in my job I get snide ignorant and over the top people. I remember this one client who came in to see one of the Solicitors in the office where I worked and when she came in she was told that he was on holiday and when the principle of the firm came down to speak with her she told him she did not want to deal with him and would sit there until the other solicitor returned. We kinda had to laugh at that one as he had only begun a two week holiday in France...... So she would have been sitting there for 14 days and nights in a cold office as it was winter and the heating system was broke. so the principle (my boss/owner) told her go ahead but we would not be sitting with her or entertaining her during her two week stay and she looked at him and said what do you mean 2 week stay and he again explained that Mr. D. had gone on holiday for 2 weeks and would not be back before Christmas but she was more than welcome to stay in an uncomfortable chair and cold office for 2 weeks, she soon left.

[Blue_Frog]

Try a little more than a week. Can you say RETURNS???

Oh man... I hear ya on that one. I worked in a Toy store for 5 years (part of the old Learning World chain in the states, Kids are Worth It up here in Canada before the whole thing went belly-up in like '96) and worked Christmas eve every year. We'd be open till like 5, and about 4:30 we'd get the inrush of Dads trying to get last minute things for their kids. The conversations usually went :

me: Well, how old / many kids are we getting things for?
them: *ages / sexes*
me: what kinds of things are they into? we have all kinds of stuff.
them: urrr... *clearly didn't have a clue*

So, I'd help them pick things out that were age apropriate, and after the 3rd year i'd start keeping a record of receipt numbers ... sure enough, the next available return day, the mother would be back in returning the gifts. It always made me kind of sad, since the father clearly had no idea what his kids were into, and were going through the motions