(I’m the manager on duty. A couple of young women are filling out applications, not eating or drinking, and two of their friends come in to eat. The friends pay, get their food off the buffet, and sit at a table by themselves. The two applicants get up to go sit with them. After a while, I come around a corner and see one of the applicants walk from the front register area carrying a paper cup which we give out only for a purchased soft drink. Suspicious, I ask the cashier:)

Me: “Did you ring up that girl for a drink?”  

Cashier: “No, I wasn’t near the register. You didn’t, either?”

Me: “No.”

(I walk over to the table as the two applicants are about to rush out.)

Me: “Excuse me, did you get someone to ring you up for that drink?”

Girl: “Umm…” *nods her head*

Me: “Who? The cashier says she didn’t and it wasn’t me, either.”

Girl: *smiles and shrugs*

Me: “What makes you think you can get free drinks here?”

Girl: “…”

(I took the drink out of her hand and threw it in the trash while her friends burst out laughing. She walked out like nothing had happened. Normally, I would have made her pay, but I just wanted her gone. And I threw out her application.)

(A woman has stood a little off the registers staring at the menu boards. We’ve just left her to decide, assuming she will step forward when she is ready. She finally does.)

Me: “Hi! What can I get you?”

Customer: “Where’s my food?”

Me: “Did you order already?”

Customer: “Yes.”

Me: “What did you order?”

Customer: “Do I really have to say it again?!”

Me: “Sorry, it’s just that I have been here the entire time, and all you’ve done is stand there for ten minutes and then come to me.”

Customer: “Well, I’m not leaving without my food. I want it for free, as well. The service here stinks!”

(I call a manager and try to explain, but she persists that she did order and that I’m just being rude and lazy. The manager goes into the office just off to the side of the registers and checks the camera footage.)

Manager: “Sorry, I have just checked the last half hour. You came in, stood a metre back from where you are, and stared at the menu. That’s all you did. You haven’t ordered.”

(The woman’s eyes lose focus temporarily and then snap back.)

Customer: “Oh, I guess I was daydreaming.”

(She then left without another word.)

Patron: “Is this tomato? I’m allergic.”

Me: “No.”

Patron: “How can you be so sure?!”

Me: “We don’t serve tomato with ice cream.”

(It’s my last summer working at an ice cream store where I’ve been working for seven years now, and I’m working this closing shift with the other senior member of staff. This year we’ve had a troublesome customer, and every time she’s been in I’ve had to serve her, which has resulted in me witnessing a very personal fight between her and her boyfriend while trying to make her a banana split, as well as being hit on by said boyfriend. When she comes in on this particular shift, I decide that this is a good time for a bathroom break, as I know full well that my coworker can handle her. When I get back from the bathroom, she tells me all she made her was a small cone, which is unusual because usually, her orders are much more intricate. Maybe fifteen minutes later, we’re serving a large family when she comes back in. She’s holding her ice cream cone up in the air, and the look on her face is concerning. Of course, this time I get stuck with her.)

Me: “I’m sorry, I’m serving this group right now. I’ll be with you in a minute.”

Customer #2: “Oh, no, it’s fine. [Coworker] can finish helping us!”

Customer #1: “I need a refund for this ice cream.”

(It has been an incredibly hot summer. It’s around 9:00 pm now, but it’s still very hot outside. Her small ice cream has melted all down her arm.)

Me: “I can’t give you a refund for a cone you’ve partially eaten.”

Customer #1: “But it melted.”

Me: “Um…”

Customer #1: “And besides, it was disgusting. You shouldn’t serve this flavour to anyone. And especially not me, because I’m pregnant.”

Me: “You could have asked for a sample.”

Customer #1: “Well, I didn’t know you did that! I need a refund for this cone! I want to talk to your manager!”

Me: “I can’t give you a refund; my manager has gone home, but I can give you the card with our number and you can call tomorrow afternoon?”

(I gave her the card, and she left, still complaining about the flavour of the ice cream — which happens to be one of our most popular flavours. I texted my manager to warn him about what had happened, and he let me know that if she came in again or called to complain she’d be banned from the shop because of that and previous incidents. She never called, and we never saw her again. We weren’t very disappointed.)

It’s time for the January roundup! Our editors have decided among themselves which stories in January deserve the extra attention, regardless of the number of thumbs-ups they received. Out of the 862 stories we posted in the month, we’ve singled out fifteen.

If there are any stories from the last month you feel we should have included, please let us know in the comments!

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite stories in the poll below! Note: You can choose up to three*. The winner of the previous roundup poll was You Can’t Dismiss The Karma On This One, from the Working category!

That Free Meal Cost Dearly – This will be our best spineless manager story of 2019.

An Alarming Lack Of Overstock – When there is no back room but they don’t believe you, then show them!

Needs To Reorient Their Detective Skills – Some people are married to more than just the job.

Leaning On Management To Improve – Nothing tastes better than their own medicine.

When The Customer Is Not Always Right, Everything Else Is – When new management doesn’t take BS from customers, it’s time to get some popcorn and watch the entitlement implosion!

Run-Ons Have Run On For Too Long – A teacher who actually teaches is a real teaching moment.

Good Decisions Save Lives, And Money! – Best driving policy ever!

Put Your Money Where Your Thoughts And Prayers Are – Funny how those that claim to know what God wants always say He wants what they want.

See How Nice It Is When The Customer Isn’t Always Right? – When the boss calls out the customers’ entitlement… well… we hope you still have some popcorn left!

She Has To Live Somewhere Else, But At Least She Will Be Living – Anti-Vaxxers should get the “Extra Stupid” tag but that would be too obvious.

Hot Enough To Burn – When those comebacks you think of later are perfectly timed.

Don’t Freeze Under Lack Of Management – When time is money is you need to make time to manage.

Hasn’t Done Math Since The Fifties, Or Changed His Attitude, Either – Calculate how out of touch these people are.

Not A Defective Loophole – If you have a stupid policy, expect someone to come up with a clever loophole.

Parental Advice Is Always Welcome But Not Always Up To Date – These days “pounding the pavement” means pounding the keyboard.

[poll id=”21″]

*Not Always Hopeless stories are not included in the poll. This is because often they are so lovely they win by default. 

We’ve decided to separate our favorite ‘Hopeless’ story of the month from the section above, since it’s not part of the poll:

The Cat Is Gone In A Creampuff – Some cats have nine lives, others make just the one really special.