Pray You Never Get Invited To Her “Party”

Anyone who has worked retail that sells alcohol knows that when someone looks under a certain age, you have to card them. If there’s a group of people, policies vary from store to store. The drug store chain I work for requires anyone holding alcohol to be carded and anyone in the group that we suspect will consume alcohol be carded. Most of the time, people pull out their cards.

I’m a shift manager. My front cashier calls for a backup due to the line being long, so I come to help him. Toward the end of the line comes a woman and a man in a wheelchair. The woman is carrying a large can of beer.

Me: “Can I see your ID, please?”

She hands over the man’s ID.

Woman: “I’m his caretaker. I’m twenty-three.”

Me: “Because you’re holding the beer, I have to see your ID, as well.”

She scoffs and walks off. I see her a minute later; this time, the man is holding the beer.

Me: “I saw you holding the beer earlier, so I still have to see your ID.”

This time she snaps, in a louder, angrier voice.

Woman: “He has cerebral palsy and I’m his caretaker! The alcohol is for him!”

Me: “Ma’am, because you held the beer and you’re the one handing me the money, I have to see your ID.”

I do not doubt the beer is for the man, but at the same time, I get that gut feeling she is buying this beer for herself. The whole time I see the man, he does not say a word and barely moves.

Woman: “I demand to speak to a manager!”

Me: “I am the manager.”

Woman: “Then I want to see your signage that says you have to card me.”

I point to a sign that says we have the right to card all members of a party.

Woman: *Yelling* “We’re not a ‘party’. I’m his caretaker!”

Me: “You’re a group of two shopping together; you’re a party.”

Woman: “Do you have to card kids who are shopping with their parents?”

Me: “If the child is holding the beer, yes. That is why we advise parents to not let their children hold alcohol.”

Woman: “We’re not a party!”

Me: “Just show me your ID and this will all be over.”

Woman: “You’re just discriminating against us because he’s disabled and I’m black!”

Me: “The reason why you’re both being carded is that you both touched the beer. You claim he’s drinking it but you’re handing me the money, so you’re buying it. And you’re both under forty.”

This goes on for ten minutes. She finally demands corporate’s number and takes a picture of the sign. My manager never talked to me about a call from corporate, so I’m assuming corporate told her the same thing I did.

Had she just showed me her ID, someone would have gotten their beer, and everyone would have been happy.