Don’t Salute Their Efforts To Get Free Groceries

(My coworker has a habit of waving to customers as he greets them. He does this with his arm in an L-shape, the upper arm parallel to the floor, the forearm pointing straight up, and waving with his palm facing the customer.)

Coworker: *waving* “Hi! Can I help you?”

Customer: “OH, MY GOD! Are you doing the Hitler salute?!”

Coworker: *thunderstruck* “Uh…”

Customer: “What the f*** is this, some kind of Nazi Mart?! Do you have any idea how offensive it is when I come up here to get some meat like a normal person and to have someone go, ‘HEIL HITLER!’ out of the f****** blue?!”

Coworker: “Wait, you mean this?” *points to the waving hand with the other hand*

Customer: “OH, MY GOD, you just did it again!”

Coworker: “No, no, that’s not the Hitler salute. This is what the Hitler salute looks like.”

Me: “[Coworker], don’t!”

(Too late. He gives the Hitler salute, with his arm fully extended and slightly raised, palm down. Quick as lightning, the customer whips out her phone and takes a picture of him.)

Customer: “HA! I got you! You just wait until I show this to your boss, you f****** a**hole!”

(She went to the customer service desk and demanded to see the store manager. We couldn’t hear the conversation that followed, but we could hear the woman getting progressively louder and angrier, until the manager slammed his hands down on the counter and violently gestured for her to leave the store. She stomped out in a rage. Later on, the manager told us that she had demanded all her groceries for free or she’d take the picture to the local news and get us permanently branded as “Nazi Mart.” He didn’t even need to hear my coworker’s side of the story.)