The other day at work I had a rather.. disconcerting experience. I've worked at Maceys for just over two years and in that time I've had plenty of odd... guests come through. But this lady was probably one of the weirdest and most disturbing I've ever had come through my line.
First off... she rejected the offer of a bagger, more specifically a MALE bagger. I wasn't terribly worried. At first. She asked where canned chicken was. I told her, expecting her to run and grab it or at the least demand that a bagger go grab it for her. But she didn't. Then the weird stuff started to happen. She would randomly hand me and item to scan. And sometimes she wouldn't release it. I could tell that something mental was wrong but what was I supposed to do? I kept scanning.
She asked me for water.
"Bottled water?" I asked her, completely caught off guard. What was I supposed to be? Her waitress? I tried not to look annoyed.
"Will you get me some water?" She asked again as she handed me an item for me to scan.
I was unsure what to do. "I'm sorry, I don't know what you're trying to-"
"Scan that!" She demanded pushing some sour cream into my hand.
"Okay,"
"Do you have a girl bagger?" She asked me. I looked around to find that the one remaing female bagger had just gotten off. What luck.
"There aren't. I'll just bag for you." I quickly bagged some items before she could interupt with some kind of weird request.
Just as I was bagging, one of my supervisor came up to help bag. The lady insisted that he try to help me. He asked what I needed help with. I just shook my head and said I didn't need help. The lady was adamant that I needed help. He went to the end of the checkstand to start bagging. She freaked out! I ended up bagging the entire order for her as she insisted on the strangest things being bag together. And then, just when I thought it was over, she wanted her canned chicken. I tried to send my supervisor to go get it but the lady freaked out! She insisted, again, that I be the one to grab her Swanson brand canned chicken. I was starting to get freaked out. But I complied. While I got the chicken, my supervisor came down the aisle to... assist me, much to the ignorance of the psycho lady.
As I finished her order, a male guest went through the line behind me and she started to babble about how he was a boy. I was seriously freaked out. I just tried to make it through. She was CRAZY!
After she left I was reeling from the freaky experience. How does one deal with the mentally disturbed? I found out shortly thereafter that she'd been in several times before and acted similarly. It was freaky.
So, that's my exciting story about the psycho Schizo lady who came through my line a few days ago.
You should have a manager tell her she isn't welcome and to go someplace else to shop. Mentally ill or not, people don't have to put up with that.
ReplyDeleteCrazy! I don't know that I've ever had such an experience. I hope you don't have to see that one ever again.
ReplyDeleteWell, ma dear. You refer them to me in a few years!! Thanks for the clientele! hahahaha.
ReplyDeleteI usually meet their requests as far as I can within reason, and do a lot of laughing, while trying to move them along as quickly as possible. :) Or call the cops. haha! True story. I'll tell you more about it sometime. Ask me about Sept. 11 last year. (As in 2008, not 2009. I forget it's not 2009 anymore.. weird.)
No, but really, you CAN stand up to them and say, "I'm sorry ma'am, you'll need to get that yourself." Or clarify your job description, like "I only ring people up." lol. You DON'T have to put up with that. But you can still do your job. :) It always makes for a great story, too! Thanks for sharing. I much appreciated it. I don't think you'd like working at the library...
P.S. Happy New Year! :D ...Our roommate's engaged... Weird.
ok, from your description, I think that lady has come through my line before but only once! It was a terrible experience! She was there in my line forever!! Sorry you had to experience that!
ReplyDeleteAh ha!! She came through my line too, freak. She a little bit scared me.
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