(I’m legally blind, and it’s obvious that I am. I’m still an avid reader, and frequent this particular bookstore quite often. An obviously new clerk is working.)

Me: “Could you show me Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? I need a present for my niece.”

Clerk: “I don’t think we have the large print addition in stock, but we can order it for you.”

Me: “Well, I don’t need the large print edition. I’m buying this for my niece.”

Clerk: “But you’re bli—visually impaired, right? Don’t you need large print?”

Me: “Yes, but this isn’t for me; it’s for my niece. She isn’t blind. I am.”

Clerk: “Oh. But you do need large print, right?”

Me: “Yeah. But I need a book for my niece today.”

(The clerk grabs my hand—something that you never do with a blind person, they take yours.)

Clerk: “We have all sorts of other large print books! I’m sure we can find something you’ll like…”

(I work in the toy department of a fairly large bookstore. For the past few weeks, we’ve been finding empty boxes of large Lego kits tucked away on the shelves. I notice a woman crouched down behind a display in the back corner, a large backpack at her feet, and a Lego box in her hands that she’s trying to open.)

Me: “Hi there! Are you finding everything all right today?”

Woman: “Oh, uh, yeah.”

(The woman shuffles to her feet and I start “tidying up” a nearby display. She puts the box of Legos down and grabs her backpack. She wanders off to the teen section, and I keep a discreet eye on her as she grabs a book and sits down to read. I find my manager and tell him what happened. He approaches the customer, who is still reading.)

Manager: “Hey there, I hear you like Legos.”

Woman: “Uh…?”

Manager: “My kid really likes Legos, too. But he’s really disappointed when he opens the box and the pieces are all missing.”

Woman: “Um…”

Manager: “So, here’s what we’re going to do. You’re going to leave my store and not come back. If you do, I’ll have to call the police.”

(The woman left the store, still flustered. We never saw her again. Mysteriously, the Legos stopped disappearing, too.)

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(I work in a bookstore. I notice a woman listening to her iPod and mouthing the words, as she looks through the teen fiction section. I read her lips, go over, and tap her on the shoulder. She turns around, pausing the song.)

Woman: “Oh, I’m sorry; do you want me to turn it down?”

Me: “No, I just… are you listening to You’re Gonna Go Far, Kid?”

Woman: “… yes?”

Me: “I love that song.”

(She immediately beams, and unzips her jacket to reveal an Offspring shirt.)

Woman: “Me, too!”

Me: “That’s…”

(She holds out the book in her hands; a fairly popular horror novel.)

Woman: “I don’t suppose you like Kendare Blake?”

Me: “… so, I get off in half an hour. I don’t suppose you would want to go get coffee?

Woman: “As long as I can pay.”

(That was a year ago. I proposed to her last week.)

Me: “Hi, what can I help you find today?”

Student: “I need a book for my class.”

Me: “Okay, do you know the course number?”

Student: “No.”

Me: “Do you know who your professor is?”

Student: “No.”

Me: “Do you know what department the class is in?”

Student: “No.”

Me: “Do you know the name of the book? Or the author?”

Student: “No.”

Me: “Okay… do you know anything at all about what you’re looking for? Do you know what the book looks like?”

Student: “No.”

Me: “Well, I don’t think there’s anything else I can do to help you.”

Student: *heavy sigh* “FINE.” *eye roll* “I guess I’ll go find my syllabus and come back.”

(Believe it or not, this kind of interaction happens ALL the time!)

(I have just moved to Colorado from Massachusetts and am buying a book at a national chain. My rewards card is therefore still under my Massachusetts address.)

Clerk: “Could I have your zip code?”

Me: “01463.”

Clerk: “No. Your ZIP CODE. As in 8-0-something-something-something.”

Me: “01463”

Clerk: “That isn’t a Colorado zip code!”

Me: “Correct, it’s a Massachusetts zip code. It’s my home zip code and it’s the zip code I have my rewards card under, seeing as I just moved to Colorado this week.”

Clerk: “Fine! But it won’t work!”

Me: “Just try it!”

(It worked.)