I’m working at a ski center at the “family lift”, which is meant for families with little kids; the slope is small compared to the rest so that everyone in the family can ride together. There is a fence between this lift and the “sledding slope,” which is for people who just want to come sledding. That slope is free, meaning you don’t need a ski pass to enter. Every lift has a snowmobile, and I have mine parked next to the lift so I can have somewhere to sit if I want to.

I am helping a young girl onto the lift, with my back to the snowmobile. I hear a noise behind me and turn to see two kids, around five or six, trying to start the snowmobile!

Me: “Hey! What on earth do you think you’re doing?!”

Kid #1: “We want to drive the snowmobile!”

Kid #2: “Yeah! We’re going to drive it up the slope!”

Me: “No, you can’t do that. You are not old enough, and you can’t drive this unless you work here.”

Kid #2: “But Mum said we could!”

Me: “I don’t care what your mum says; you are not allowed on it. I need you to lea—”

Mother: “WHY ARE YOU TALKING TO MY BABIES?!”

Me: “Ma’am, are these your children?”

Mother: “Yes! Now tell me why you are talking to them!”

Me: “They were on the snowmobile and trying to start it to take it for a joyride.”

Mother: “Sooooo? I told them they could!”

Me: “Ma’am, they can’t do that. They’re not old enough, they don’t work here, and they haven’t been trained on how to operate it!”

Mother: “Oh, stop being so rude! Just teach them how to operate it now.”

Me: “I can’t. They’re not old enough, and unless you work here, you are not allowed not drive it.”

Kid #1: “MUUUUUUUUUUUUUM! I WANNA DRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVE!”

Kid #2: “Tell him to staaaaaaaaaaart it!”

Mother: “Now look at what you´ve done! You made them sad! I demand you start the snowmobile and let them ride!”

A former coworker and regular visitor comes up to the lift and gives me a look.

Former Coworker: “You need help, son?”

Me: “Oh, hi, [Former Coworker]. Tell [Boss] I said hello.”

We have all been told that if we are in a situation where we need the owner and we don’t want to say it out loud, for one reason or another, to tell someone who works or has worked there to tell the owner I said hello and the boss will come down if possible.

My former coworker understands, and he goes up with the lift and down the slope toward the office.

While I talk to my former coworker, the mother climbs the fence and joins her kids at the snowmobile to get it started. And then I notice that none of them is in ski gear — no helmets, ski boots, skis, or anything — and the woman has left two sleds behind the fence.

Me: *Somehow still polite* “Ma’am, why aren’t any of you in ski gear?”

Mother: “Because we decided to just go sledding.”

Me: “Umm, you can’t be on this side of the gate if you aren’t planning to ski.”

Mother: “Yes, we can; we are paying customers! We ate inside the restaurant!”

Me: “It doesn’t matter; you can’t be here unless you are going to ski.”

Mother: “SHUT UP, YOU LITTLE IDIOT! WE ARE PAYING CUSTOMERS AND THAT MEANS WE HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE HERE AND THE RIGHT TO RIDE THE SNOWMOBILE!”

I lose it and decide to use my army voice.

Me: *Commandingly* “Okay, that’s it. Get off the snowmobile now!”

They all look shocked.

Mother: “H-how dare you talk to me like that?! You need to show your elders some res—”

Me: *Cutting her off* “I have tried to be polite and to tell you kindly to leave the snowmobile, and yet you have refused! Do you realize that your kids could die, get injured, or kill or injure someone if they drove this thing?! You and your kids need to leave, as you clearly have no right nor deserve the right to be here!”

She tries to play the victim card as a family of six come to the lift.

Mother: “HELP! HELP! This boy is harassing me and my babies!”

Luckily for me, the family doesn’t believe her when I explain the situation and I assure them that I don’t need help.

Now, the mother decides to play the infamous “I know the owner” card.

Mother: *With a smug face* “You know I know the owner, so unless you want to lose your job, I suggest you start this snowmobile!”

Me: “OOOOOOH you know the owner?”

Mother: “Yes.”

The owner is walking toward us as the regular sent him. I wave at him.

Me: “Well, here is your chance to explain to him why I should get fired.”

I can see the mother start to worry a little, but she quickly shakes it off.

Owner: “So, what is the problem here, then?”

Mother: *Flying into a rant* “Your employee has been so rude toward me and my kids and refused to let my babies ride the snowmobile even though I know we are allowed to do so as paying customers!”

Owner: “No, you are not allowed to because it is dangerous and wasteful. Also, I can see that none of you are dressed to be on this side of the fence and thus I can assume you have not paid to be here.”

Mother: “Well, what about him?!” *Points at me* “He is not dressed for skiing, either!”

Owner: “That is because he works here and he should not be dressed for skiing.”

Slowly realizing she is fighting a losing battle, the mother decides to go for the harassment claim.

Mother: “He harassed me and my babies and I demand he is fired for his behaviour!”

The owner is a chill guy and has a great sense of humour. He does not take BS from anyone and he sees that he has an amazing chance to strike down this entitled woman.

Owner: “Well, then, should we see what audio the cameras have recorded?”

Mother: “N-no that is not necessary, but I demand he be fired for his behav—”

Owner: *Cutting her off* “And I guess I should also tell my daughter that her boyfriend is a horrible person for harassing a mother and her children, right? Oh, how devastated she will be!”

Now, the mother realized that her battle was lost and started shrieking about how she would leave a horrible Facebook review, how the police would hear about this, how she would never come back because we are so horrible to customers, etc.

After she left, the owner started laughing and said he would save the security footage because he wanted to keep this as an “entitlement takedown trophy.”

I work as a supervisor for roadside assistance. I get an escalation sent to me because a lady wants us to use her membership to give her husband service, which is not covered. I see that she has been a member with us since 1989, so I grant a one-time exception to allow her husband to receive service.

Me: “May I have his first and last name, as well as a number to keep in contact with him in case the driver needs to talk to him? All your husband needs to do is be present when the driver arrives and have his photo ID ready.”

At first, the caller is very happy and grateful for me helping her.

Me: “If your husband needs service through us again, he will have to become a member to use the road service.”

Caller: *Suddenly offended* “How dare you?! How dare you assume that my husband needed the service?! It’s my card and my car; what makes you think he needed the service?!”

Me: “Ma’am, it’s part of the policy that you agreed to when you became a member that you must be present at the time of service. All I was saying was that if you need service, you must be present. If your husband does, he would have to be a member.”

Caller: *Yelling* “How dare you repeat yourself?! I was the one needing service, not my husband. You people do nothing to help me, ever! Why do I even deal with this?!”

Me: “I did just grant you an exception for a service that isn’t covered.”

She goes quiet for about five seconds.

Caller: “Oh, f*** you.” *Click*

A few hours later, I receive another escalation from the same lady asking why her call was canceled. It turns out that the driver arrived and her husband was nowhere to be found. They tried to call him, and he answered and told the driver:

Caller’s Husband: “Oh, I didn’t know I needed to be there.”

When I tell her what happened, she just mumbles:

Caller: “I married a f****** idiot.”

Then she hung up on me again!

I’m working a closing shift. I’m finally able to get my fifteen-minute break around 10:30 pm, thirty minutes before we close. I’ve been there since 2:00 pm. During my breaks, I usually go to my car and sit in silence away from everyone.

Me: “Hey, [Coworker], I’m gonna take my break. I’ll be back in a few!”

I walk out the door to my car, unlock it, open my door, sit in my driver’s seat, and shut my door. I don’t even turn my car on before my car is struck and pushed a few feet sideways. My driver-side door is crushed in and pressed against my side. I let out the loudest, most aggravated sigh. I crawl out my passenger side and walk to the SUV’s driver side.

A girl around twelve years old gets out of the vehicle, crying.

Girl: “I’M SO SORRY! I WAS JUST TRYING TO ROLL DOWN THE WINDOW! IT WAS SO HOT!”

Me: “Are your parents inside? Anyone else in the car?”

Girl: “Yes, Mom is in the store shopping and told me to stay outside with my little sister.”

I move her to the side and jump in the vehicle, putting it in park. I look over my shoulder to see a baby sleeping in their car seat. I angrily text my other coworker who’s working security to come to the parking lot and watch the infant and her older sister while I go inside to make an announcement after I call the police.

Me: *Over intercom* “If you have a [color] [Vehicle], please come to customer service.”

A customer comes up with a very aggressive attitude.

Customer: “What did you do to my car?”

Me: “Your daughter was trying to roll down the windows because it’s 89 degrees outside, probably almost suffocating both your children. She somehow shifted it into gear and smashed into my car.”

Customer: “What? No. You had to run into my car. My daughter knows better.”

I just motion her to come outside. She does so after a coworker says we’ll hold her items so she can come back inside and purchase them.

Customer: “I TOLD YOU, YOU RAN INTO MY CAR!”

The police officer has already pulled up and is talking to my coworker while taking pictures of the accident.

Me: “Ma’am, your car is rammed into my driver’s side; cars do not move sideways.”

Customer: “HOW DARE YOU GO AGAINST ME?! I’LL HAVE YOUR JOB!”

Me: “This doesn’t have anything to do with my job; we’ve had an accident.”

Police Officer: *Talking to the customer* “Ma’am, you do realize I could write you a ticket for child endangerment? Your car has obviously run into her car. Just settle down and we will get this sorted out.”

The customer’s attitude completely changes.

Customer: *Talking to me* “Oh, honey, don’t worry about a thing. I’m older and have good insurance; I’ll have to pay for this and it will be okay.”

Me: “I know. It wasn’t my fault.”

Customer: *Talking low* “It was your fault, but I can’t do anything about it right now.”

The day after, they wouldn’t answer my phone call or the insurance claims’ phone call. They proceeded to go through their insurance and, because of the damage that included electronics, new door, new mirror, etc., I ended up in a rental car paid for by them for a month.

My spouse and I rent out our basement suite to a tenant. When the tenant moves in, they have an adult female cat and two of her kittens. The tenant says they will be getting them all fixed and giving away the two kittens.

Since you have to get through two doors to get to the downstairs suite, I know the cats are never let outside. I also see all three cats the few times I go downstairs to fix something. And, sometimes, we hear some very, very loud meowing from the otherwise pretty insulated suite. Fast forward several months and the tenant texts me, informing me that her cat has, yet again, had kittens. 

Me: “Oh, how did that happen?”

Tenant: “No idea.”

No, the tenant did not get their now nearly-adult male cats fixed — or give them away — nor was the adult female fixed. Now we have nine cats downstairs. Irresponsible pet owners drive me crazy.

I work at an airport, and I often deal with kids traveling without parents. This is a paid service called “Unaccompanied Minors,” available to everyone under eighteen but mandatory for kids under the age of twelve who travel alone. The rule is that the parent or guardian or whoever escorts the kid has to stay at the airport until the plane is in the air. This is in case the flight is canceled, because the paid service does not cover anyone staying with the kid until the next flight. The most extreme case would be that there’d be no flight available that day anymore, in which case the kid would have to go home and come back the next day. Obviously, most parents are fine with going to the gate with their kids and staying until the very last minute.

A dad comes to the business counter with his child, which is already a big no-no, as checking in unsupervised kids takes longer than average and the business counter is supposed to be a fast lane for business class and high-tier passengers. The dad shows his own gold card, so I bite back my annoyance and ask the person next to me to check in my queue until I am done. I give the dad all the forms he has to fill, which annoys him. The kid is obviously under ten and seems very sweet. She looks relaxed and I assume she has done this plenty of times.

Dad: *Giving me back the forms* “So, where do I leave her?”

Me: *Confused* “You have to stay at the airport until the plane is in the air.”

Dad: “What? No! I paid for her to be accompanied!”

Me: “Well, yeah, from the gate to the plane and from the plane to arrivals.”

Dad: “I have a meeting in [Town three hours away]. I can’t stay with her!”

Me: “Sir, what if the flight was canceled? We’d have to call you back.”

Dad: “She’d stay here with you, wouldn’t she?”

Me: “That’s not a possibility. Sir, you agree to the terms when you pay.”

Dad: “I didn’t pay for this; her mother did, and she told me I could just leave the kid with you!”

Kid: *Starting to cry* “Daddy, please, come with me!”

Dad: “Don’t start! You like flying, don’t you?”

Kid: “Mom always comes with me.”

Dad: “I don’t care. I don’t have the time! I want to speak to your manager!”

While we wait for my supervisor, we hear an announcement through the loudspeakers about a car in the no-parking zone.

Dad: “S***!”

He runs away, leaving his daughter at my counter. She starts crying in earnest, and I panic, thinking that the dad is taking this opportunity to bail. My supervisor comes and we close my counter completely (the queue is almost empty) and take the kid aside to talk over our options, hoping that the dad will come back.

Five minutes and no dad later, we try to call him. No answer. Then, we try the mom, whose contact information is also on the papers.

Mom: “I’ll call [Dad]. Is there any way you can take [Kid] to the gate if he doesn’t show up, if I promise to be there in about thirty minutes?”

Supervisor: “There is still plenty of time before the flight leaves, and you can skip the security queue, so we can make a little exception and wait for you at the check-in with [Kid], but we won’t let her go to the gate without a parent.”

Mom: “Okay, thank you. Either [Dad] or I will be there soon.”

A few minutes later, the dad does come back, arguing over the phone with who we assume is the mom. He yanks the daughter by her arm and takes her through security. We feel bad but think that is that.

No.

I go back to my counter to finish the check-in and then get a call from the gate.

Gate Employee: “[Kid]’s father has just left her here with us. We’re very busy and we can’t really look after her. Could you try to catch him and tell him to come back?

I don’t manage to spot him.

Supervisor: “Go sit with the kid while I call her mom again.”

My shift is about to end so I don’t have to hurry anywhere except home, and I agree to work a little overtime, sitting with the teary-eyed child. While my supervisor calls the mom, the shift manager calls the airline.

Shift Manager: “Can we allow a child onto the flight if there is no parent present when the flight leaves?”

We are a ground handling company and do not directly work for any airline.

Airline Employee: “No. That is not allowed.”

Fortunately, the mom then arrives. The kid and I go back to check-in, and the mom signs new forms and escorts the kid through security again. The kid makes the flight fine and it leaves on time. The mom is so embarrassed and upset about the whole incident.

Mom: “Thank you so much for all your help. This is the first and last time [Dad] will ever escort [Kid].”

I had to stay a while longer to write an incident report, and I went home absolutely exhausted.