Who the heck knew I had one?
Maybe The East Coast is rubbing off on me....and I am feeling less inhibited with blunt verbal communication.....
Maybe my mom's southern background of "if you can't say anything nice...." or " you can get more bees with honey"....got a wu-tang kick to the tush by the "just spit it out" "say what you mean" alter ego of mine.....Vanessa...(you know the one with the pink hair from a few posts ago)
Let me paint you a picture....
I am one that goes to the same grocery store for every trip...mainly because of prices.....not for atmosphere...or easy parking...or I like their musac better.....
However...I've begun noticing a trend with regards to a particular check out lady....who if I can put it nicely....is a Bisnatch.....going through her line makes you feel as if you are inconviencing her...and she has NO problems being rude...and short....and abrupt....
after the 6th or so time of this...I'm thinking...she must just really hate her job....and who cares...it's the grocery store...not like I have to have a conversation with her....
So imagine my surprise the other day ...when as I'm in her line (for some reason hers is always the shortest....can you think of a reason...I can) I notice how pleasant she is to the woman ahead of me....they are chatting...and OMG...she is actually smiling....and I think...wow...maybe she has had a change of heart...or got a raise....or (I won't tell you what my husband said)....
this could be a good experience...yeah me!....Yeah hold up shorty...not so fast!
As she bids the customer ahead of me a fond farewell...she turns to look at me....and her nice attitude left right with her...."price plus card"...."coupons".......
Now...I'm thinking....okay this has to be personal....she just doesn't like ME....and for what reason... I have NO idea....I have never done anything more than use her line to purchase my groceries....so I have no idea why she has some sort of beef with me!
Now today...she was even nastier than usual...and had me sooo flustered I accidently ripped my coupon right down the middle of the barcode...sending her into a series of well coreographed eye rolls....Well I Had, HAD IT!!!
So Vanessa pushed me out of the way...and said "move over miss nicey-nice, it's my turn" and suddenly out of my mouth popped:
"Excuse me, but have I done something to offend you?"....which she abruptly stopped ringing, looked up at me and responded with a curt"Maam I'm just trying to ring up your groceries"
but I had her....I brought it to her attention....
"Well I saw how pleasant you were with the lady ahead of me...and every time I come in your line you are extremely unpleasant towards me...and I just expect the same treatment as you gave her!"
Which she responded with it was my opinion...and her opinion was different....Well that may be so....but all I want...is to not feel like the person across from me views me as an evil, nasty, pain in her rumpus....because I'm really not.....vanessa maybe....but definitely not me....
WELL ....I can tell you my opinion walked right over to the manager on duty and relayed itself again....heck...I was a manager for 5 years...at a company that prides itself on Customer service...so I've had plenty of customers approach me in my day....so I was very nice...and just told him....(down Vanessa, Down)....that I felt like I deserved to be treated with at least a morsel of respect when I go through the line....and that after the 6th or 7th time of her being so rude...that I was starting to take it personal!
and I tell you...I walked out of there feeling pretty good....Good that even though it was only the checkout lady at my local store...and really I don't have to go through her line ever again....I stood up for myself....without being a Bisnatch about it...
I felt like Kathy Bates and Tawanda in Friend Green Tomatoes.....Vanessa the Avenger!!
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5 comments:
You rock! Good for you! Don't let that meanie step all over you!!
Towanda!!!!
Sorry you had such a rough time with her. She shouldn't have said what she did. Though I can say, having worked customer service for nearly 5 years and Hubby working in grocery (though not as a cashier), that it probably wasn't personal at all.
Odds are the person in line in front of you this time was a friend, relative, or coworker....and sometimes in the sea of a terrible, underpaid day it's nice to take it easy with someone you know-easier than it is to relax when a bunch of strangers who seem to just be waiting to be rude to you.
She is one rude person out of your day, but that lady probably sees about 100 customers a day-most of whom look down on her and treat her like an idiot drone/slave.
It's hard to keep a chipper attitude when you're getting beat down by what is essentially a small mob of people over the course of an entire day, only to go home at the end of the day and realize you aren't even making ends meet-most of the checkers in my husband's store make $250 a paycheck.
I'm not saying that she should have been rude, I'm just saying that maybe she was having her own Towanda moment, and it just happened to be you standing at her register when it happened.
Was her name Nancy?
Sounds just like the older lady I worked with at Stop N Shop a few years ago. I mean exactly!
I tried to be nice to everyone when I cashiered but sometimes I just got to the point. Never nasty, it was usually the end of my shift.
Tell me, really, was her name Nancy? About 60ish?
Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! I have a Mean Grocery Store Lady (that is her actual name as far as I am concerned) too!!! She eyes me down every time she sees me, even if I'm just walking by her. Ugh! Good for you for telling her manager what's up!
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