I never got along with my family, but because I was living with my grandmother as kind of live-in help, I was at her mercy when it came to family get-togethers. None of us got along with each other, but we really had no choice in the matter, since my grandmother controlled pretty much everything, leading to a lifetime of resentment among several of us.

I worked at a convenience store at the time, and our manager was very considerate in scheduling around holidays. She had a system: you could be off on Thanksgiving OR you could be off on Christmas, but not both. Christmas was the one everyone wanted off, and it was the most stressful holiday for me, so I would volunteer to work Christmas every year. I had worked the last six by this point.

A couple of weeks before Christmas, I saw the schedule for that day and looked to see where I would be. To my absolute horror, I saw that I was off both Christmas Eve AND Day.

Me: “[Manager]! There’s a mistake on the schedule! You have me off on both Eve and Day! I volunteered to work both!”

Manager: “Oh, that’s just how availability worked out. [Coworker] was going out of town, but the plans got canceled, and she needed the extra money anyway.”

Me: “Can’t I come in anyway? Do we need a dedicated cleaner?”

Manager: “No, I’ve got all the slots filled.”

I was devastated. I knew trying to swap shifts wasn’t going to work, either, because everyone who signed up to work Christmas had no other plans and no reason to need it off.

Me: “But… but I was expecting to work on Christmas! [Manager], why? What did I ever do to you?”

Manager: “Cheer up, [My Name]! Look at it like this: now you get to spend time with your family for once!”

Me: “[Manager], you don’t understand. If I don’t work on Christmas, then I have to spend time with my family!”

I am sixteen, and it is my first day working at a tiny rural convenience store. My coworker is showing me the ropes.

Coworker: “Oh, since you’re here until the afternoon, you’ll get to meet Giles.”

Me: “Who is Giles?”

Coworker: “He’s the best customer ever! Can’t wait for you to meet him.”

Me: “Cool.”

My coworker is on lunch break, and I am manning the checkout. The manager of the store swings by; he’s not always there.

Manager: “Has Giles come by yet?”

Me: “I’m not actually sure.”

Manager: “Oh, you’d know if he did. He’s our favorite customer!”

Me: “So I’ve been told, but I don’t know what he looks like.”

Manager: “Trust me, you’d know. Well, I am glad I haven’t missed him. I’ll be in the office. Let me know when he comes by.”

I nod, but honestly, short of asking every customer if they happen to be Giles, I have no idea how to fulfill that request. Luckily, my coworker comes back from lunch and I get to go on mine. I come back and work until around mid-afternoon.

Suddenly, there’s a single bark from the front of the store. I see my coworker giddily rush around the checkout, rapping on the office door as he does so. Both my coworker and my manager head outside and are excitedly met by the happiest golden retriever I’ve ever seen. They give the little guy hugs and some small treats that seem to magically appear from their pockets.

My coworker then unzips a fanny pack wrapped around the dog and takes out some cash and a piece of paper. He then runs around the store, collects three or four small items, and places them into the fanny pack, zipping it back up.

After one more round of hugs and treats, the golden retriever knows it’s time to leave and happily trots off down the street.

Me: “Giles?”

Coworker & Manager: *Both beaming huge smiles* “Giles.”

It turned out that Giles’s owner was disabled and lived literally thirty seconds away, but even this was a challenge for her at times. She would send her support dog on small grocery runs on weekday afternoons while her carer made a daily visit, and then she’d come in for the bigger grocery run on the weekends.

Giles was quickly my favorite customer, too!

This story is part of our end-of-year Feel Good roundup for 2022!

Read the next Feel Good 2022 story!

Read the Feel Good 2022 roundup!

Living in Japan, you will see that most of the convenience stores have either Vietnamese staff or foreign workers from Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, etc. Service jobs are greatly understaffed there, so you will mostly see one Japanese worker and multiple foreign workers at the minimum-wage jobs.

I, an Indian, worked at a [Convenience Store] for three years part-time during university. In my third year there, I was made “leader of the night shift”, which meant running the whole store at night by myself. The night shift is very different from the day shift. Besides serving a large number of customers, you have to sort out the accounts, record and check the inventory, liaise with supply people, do deep cleaning of equipment, stock up, cook, etc.

Fast forward to a couple of years later. I am in the Japanese corporate world. I get an apartment in Azabujyuban, a posh, high-income district in Tokyo, famous for being populated by white ex-pats. It’s two in the morning, and I go to the nearby [Convenience Store].

It is a big store, and it’s full of irritated, drunk salarymen and rich brats. The only employee there (Japanese) is confused, panicking, and overworked. The supply truck guy is yelling. Salarymen are yelling. It’s mayhem.

The employee eyes me and yells:

Employee: “Hey, what took you so long?! Come and help me a bit.”

I almost lose my temper, but then I smile and think, “Let’s do this! Tomorrow’s Saturday, anyway.”

I first meet up with the annoyed supply guys. They have to bring their trucks to every store in Tokyo, so staying at one store for more than a couple of minutes will disrupt the whole schedule. I have the supply checked, dial in the records, get the Hanko from the usual place, stamp it, and finish the procedure.

Next, I call a taxi for some passed-out people and escort them to a safer place. Then, I take up a register, and in the next ten minutes, all the customers are served and the store is empty.

The employee gives a huge sigh of relief, closes his eyes, and gets on his knees. I quietly go to stock the ice cream supply in the cold cases. After a bit of a rest, my dude calls out:

Employee: “Thank you for the efficient help! By the way, you’re not wearing your [Convenience Store] jacket. Could you wear it, please? Otherwise, it would be super unprofessional.”

Me: “I don’t have a jacket. I don’t even work here.”

Employee: “What? Didn’t my manager send you as a replacement?”

Me: “Nope, I live in an apartment a block away and came here to shop. I used to work in a [Convenience Store] many years ago, so I’m familiar with the procedures.”

The employee was very, very embarrassed and said sorry and thank you in around twenty different phrases of polite Japanese.

Me: “Chill, man. I am gonna come here often so Yoroshiku ne.” (I am in your care.)

I felt good overall in the aftermath, and this reminded me that, as a senior guy in corporate headquarters, I must always be mindful of the mental and physical health of the people on the frontlines. They are the ones who represent the big company to the world and do the actual work.

When my boyfriend and I move to the city, I work for a big off-licence chain while I wait for my permanent placement to start. I have to cover several shifts in different shops.

The first night, this guy comes in.

Customer: “I bought a case of beer last night, and there was broken glass in it! My girlfriend cut her hand!”

He’s slightly pissed and getting angrier by the minute.

Me: “I can’t do anything for you in the shop; here is the customer service number.”

Customer: “No! I want a refund!”

Me: “I’m afraid I can’t give out any cash. You don’t have a receipt, so it’s something that the head office will have to take up with the supplier.”

He’s angry but he leaves.

Fast forward three nights. I’m working in another shop on the other side of the city. I’m out the back picking stock when I hear my inexperienced colleague about to offer a customer refund, so being the manager in charge, I head out to the shop floor.

Lo and behold, it’s the same guy with the same story! He doesn’t recognise me and tries to get another refund. Not wanting to let on so I can get CCTV evidence, I have the same conversation.

This time, I put out a conference message to all the other shops in the area. The very next night, I am working in yet another shop and this guy appears with the same story! Again, I happen to be out the back, but my colleague and I have already had a good laugh over the ridiculous attempt, so he sees what’s going on and plays along while I call the police.

It’s a quiet night, so the police turn up pretty quickly. From where I am standing out the back, I can see the police turn up, so I head out to the shop floor. This time, the guy recognizes me and tries to make a run for it — smack bang into the police coming in through the door!

Customer: “I need to return this.”

He hands me yesterday’s paper.

Me: “Why are you returning it?”

Customer: “So I can buy today’s paper.”

Me: “I can’t do that.”

Customer: “But that paper has expired. I need the new one!”

It wasn’t even that he was being a jerk about it or anything; he just seriously couldn’t comprehend why it was an issue.