Animal-Hating, Manner-less And Bigoted, Oh My

(I’m helping a couple of regulars with finding ingredients for a new recipe. One of them is blind, and has his guide dog with him. Another customer stomps up to us while I am showing them different spices.)

Customer #1: “Excuse me! I need your help.”

Me: “Okay, ma’am, but you’ll have to wait until I’m done helping these gentlemen.”

Customer #1: “No, I need help now!”

Me: “Then if you’d like, I can call one of my coworkers over and they can help you.”

Customer #1: “I don’t want you to call someone else.”

Me: “Then you will have to wait.”

(I turn back to the regulars. The rude customer shoves her way between me and them, stepping on the guide dog’s tail in the process. The dog gives a shrill yelp.)

Me: “Ma’am, please! You could have seriously hurt his dog!”

(Customer #1 shoves the dog aside with her foot.)

Customer #1: “I’m the customer! You have to serve me!”

Regular Customer: “Miss, she has explained to you that she’s busy, and has offered to call someone else to help you. Don’t shout at her, and please don’t abuse my husband’s guide dog.”

(Customer #1 turns to him. The regular customer has an obvious Italian accent, but he isn’t difficult to understand.)

Customer #1: “Get out of here, you d*** foreigner! Don’t come back until you learn some f****** English!”

Me: “Ma’am, he is speaking perfect English. Now if you don’t calm down, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

(Customer #1 shoves me. I lose my balance, and fall. Immediately, the regular customer, who is a well-known boxer in the local area and quite strong, literally picks up customer #1 and carries her out of the store. She screams profanities and slurs at him the whole way. His partner helps me up, and I pay for their spices myself. I also get the guide dog a large steak bone, for when she is out of her harness. The best part? We found out later that the rude customer was wanted for armed robbery, and that she was arrested that day!)