They say the 'customer is always right'...I have a feeling that almost anyone who has worked in customer service would disagree with this statement. And here are some things that customers do that make me seriously question that philosophy! Some of these are my own personal irrational pet peeves but I think some of these things would be enough to drive Mother Teresa or the Dali Lama crazy:
1. Asking for a plastic bag for a whole watermelon. 'Tis the season for watermelons. Can someone please explain to me why on earth you would need a bag for a watermelon? Some customers say it's easier to carry with a bag but the watermelon always rolls all over the place and then when you finally wrangle it into a bag the handles (inevitable) break (because plastic bags weren't really designed to hold watermelons), so you have to put the watermelon in a second plastic bag and most of the time the handles on that bag break--so it takes three plastic bags to hold one watermelon when it would be so much easier to just carry the damn thing!
2. People who talk to me like I'm an idiot. Please don't be condescending. A prime example of this is when people bring in their own insulated grocery bag and they shove the bag at you and say, 'Can you put all of the cold stuff together in this bag?' This (logically) happens a lot in the summer when people buy ice cream or other cold items that they want to keep cold on their way home. Now, wait a minute--do you mean to tell me that if I put the cold things all together in the insulated bag that will keep things cold longer? Is that why there is a picture of ice cubes on the side of the bag? Duh! Look, I'm certainly not a genius but I'm also not a total moron so please don't feel like you to explain the concept of keeping all the cold groceries together.
3. When a customer comes up to my line and says something like, "You looked bored so I thought I would give you something to do." Now, logically I know they are just trying to be friendly and make a little joke--and I always smile or laugh. But I recently started to realize that it bothered me a few Sundays ago. Generally, Sundays at the grocery store are a mob scene--everyone coming in to shop after church or coming in to shop before the work week or the school week starts. I had already worked 4 1/2 hours of a 6 hour shift. It was sort of late in the afternoon and things had slowed down for the first time all day--that lull when people are starting to get ready for dinner and before things pick up again alittle after dinner. It was the first chance all day I had to take a breather and a customer comes up with a smile on his face and says, "You look bored so I thought I'd give you something to do." I smiled and said hello. But what bothered me about the comment was that I had been on my feet all day, with lines of customers all day and I was tired...but here was this person who was standing there implying that I wasn't doing anything.
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