We were walking around Athens’s shopping district, popping by all sorts of tourist shops that sold postcards, decorative mugs, and other knickknacks. I came across this little shop selling chess sets, and I noticed some metal cast chess pieces that looked very nice. I’ve always wanted a set like that, so I went in.

The pieces were made in “Alexander vs. Persians” style and weren’t too pricey, but I wasn’t quite sure about the level of quality.

Me: “Are these sturdy? Do they break easily?”

Shop Owner: “Here, I’ll show you.”

The owner took a piece off the shelf and threw it down HARD onto the stone tile floor. Then he picked up the piece and gave it to me. It didn’t have a scratch on it.

Me: “I’ll take it!”

Now that’s quality testing!

Related:
Sales Past Breaking Point

We’re having an exam in a computer lab. After we’re all finished, the examiner sits with each of us individually to see what we’ve done, and then we can go, but the grade will be revealed later. The classmate he’s currently with has taken this class at least once before.

Classmate: *Jokingly* “Sir, if I fail the class again, I’m going to jump out the window.”

Examiner: “Okay, I’ll keep that in mind. Let’s see.”

They spend a couple of minutes looking through his work.

Examiner: “All right, you can go.”

Classmate: “Through the door or the window?”

Examiner: “…The door.”

I work at a tourist shop in Greece. Amongst other things, we sell helmets — like ancient Greek ones; tourists eat these up — that are 10€. This guy comes, obviously stoned, and asks in a slurry voice:

Customer: “How much for the helmet?”

Me: “Ten euros, sir.”

Customer: “Do you have another one?”

Me: “No, sir, this is the last one.”

His friend, who is even more stoned, comes in then.

Friend: “Do you have three?”

Me: “No, sir. As I told your friend, this is my last one.”

Then he starts to… bargain.

Friend: “Well, how about three for 20€?”

Me: “Sir, I only have one and it’s ten euros; I can’t go lower.”

Friend: “Two for 20€.”

Me: “Sir, I only have one.”

Friend: “Fine, then, one for 10€.”

Me: “Sure, it’s yours!”

(Our bathrooms are out of order, due to something deep in the pipes. Toilets, sinks, water fountain, all out. All are located in a short hallway near the front door, which we block with a bench. We then post “OUT OF ORDER” signs all over the bench, the walls, etc. And yet, as I work the register just outside the hall, I get someone walking up, looking at the signs, asking me, every ten minutes or so, “Are the bathrooms out of order?” Finally, I can’t take it anymore…)

Customer: *walks up, looks at signs, turns to me* “Hey, are the bathrooms out of order?”

Me: “No. It was a test. I’m sorry, but you failed.”

Customer: *looks at me, looks at signs again* “Oh. Okay.”

(And then, he literally hung his head and wandered away.)

(I am sitting at a cafe with some friends when a guy we don’t know approaches us. He’s holding a box with a slot on it.)

Guy: “Hello. Excuse me for bothering you, but I’m raising a fund for two friends of mine. They had a motorcycle accident and both of them are near death. My other friends and I are trying to get enough money to pay for the surgery they need. Can you spare any?”

(We all smell a scam easily and say, “No, thank you.” After trying to change our minds for a couple of minutes, he moves on to other tables. Over the next several years, I occasionally still see him in cafes in different parts of the city, but he never speaks to me again until one day, four years after the first time, at a very different place.)

Guy: “Hello. Excuse me for bothering you, but my friends had a motorcycle accident and are fighting for their lives in the hospital. Can you spare us some money for the surgery they need?”

Me: “Wow! They’re still fighting for their lives, four years later?”

Guy: *suddenly looks lost for words, begins to stammer* “Uh, I mean, it was a really bad accident. The doctors have been trying hard to keep them alive.”

(He stared at us for a few seconds and we stared back, and then he left without saying anything more. I kept seeing him here and there for a while, but that was our last interaction. I was kind of impressed that he still tried to explain his story.)