After leaving work one night after a run of three exhausting shifts in a hospital, I find that my brand-new mountain bike has had the lock cut through and been stolen. Understandably, I am furious.

I report it as stolen, put in an insurance claim, and wait, other than posting on various social media pages on the off chance anyone saw anything. Obviously, this reaches more than my immediate friends on social media; a few days later, I get a message from a complete stranger saying he has a bike he wants to give me after hearing what has happened!

Faith in humanity restored!

This story is part of our Feel Good roundup for March 2021!

Read the next Feel Good roundup for March 2021 story!

Read the Feel Good roundup for March 2021!

I’ve worked in a British supermarket for around five years now. One time, a customer comes in with her teen daughter to pick up her shopping. I work in the home shopping department, where you order online and go to the store to pick it up, so I go down to meet her to give her her shopping.

As soon as I arrive, she immediately begins to tell me:

Customer: “I’ve waited twenty-five f****** minutes for my shopping. Where the h*** is it?!”

Me: *Politely* “Can you please not swear? There are children around.”

The customer continued to swear at me, and when the security guard came over to assess the situation, she swore at him, too! After we told her that we weren’t allowed to load her car, as she wasn’t disabled or otherwise unable to do so herself, she and her daughter stormed out of the shop. She didn’t even take her shopping!

My friend sets me up on a blind date with a friend of hers. She describes her as a good match for me so I agree to go.

On the date, the girl is distant. When she actually speaks, she is very disagreeable, announcing her opinion rather than making a discussion. We end the date with general pleasantries, and I pay and leave with no mention of going any further.

I don’t see my friend for a few days, but when I do, the first thing she wants to know is:

Friend: “How did it go?”

Me: “She seemed nice, but no spark.”

Friend: “Really? She was saying that she had an amazing time and hopes to see you again.”

Me: “She spent our whole date on her phone and wouldn’t make any conversation, at all.”

Friend: “She can be shy at times, but she really seemed to like you. She has struggled to find a guy she gets on with. Give her another chance.”

Me: “Yeah, I’m not sure.”

Friend: “Come on! She has even picked out a restaurant. I might have mentioned that you have been wanting to go to [Steakhouse] for ages.”

Me: “Well, that is true.”

Friend: “Great! I will tell her you’re free.”

I’m not sure if I agree because I want to go, because I want steak, or because my friend pushes me into it. But a week or so later, I meet the girl again at the steakhouse.

Again, she spends pretty much the whole date on her phone or eating in silence. I make conversation where I can and ask about her hobbies, holidays, and ambitions, but I get one- or two-word replies, and she doesn’t ask anything of me.

She only seems to smile when she drinks her champagne. 

Fed up, I eat my meal and go to the bar to order drinks.

Me: “Can I pay for my meal here?”

Bartender: “Sure, that one over there?”

Me: “Yeah, but can I just pay for my half?”

Bartender: “Bad date?”

Me: “You have no idea. I will let her know.”

Bartender: “Probably best if you let us handle it. She has been in here before. She often throws her drink at the guy; sometimes it’s still in the glass. Back door is that way.”

I thanked him and disappeared. My friend swore she didn’t know when she set me up. But I still haven’t been on a blind date since.

This story is part of our Best Of March 2021 roundup!

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Read the Best Of March 2021 roundup!

My wife and I are thinking of moving home. We spot a new build area in a good location, so we arrange a viewing of the show home. We get the tour. The size is great, and the layout and garden are, too, but the kitchen and bathrooms are decorated in a really dark and unpleasant colour.

Normally, if you buy new, you can choose all of this as it isn’t fitted yet. But the sales rep starts to push the show home.

Sales Rep: “You know, this plot is available. As you can see, it is ready to move in.”

Me: “Not really for us, thanks.”

Sales Rep: “Are you sure? It would be a few months until the others are ready, plus you would have to go through the whole long process of picking out tiles.”

Wife: “Actually, we quite like that bit.”

Me: “Could we have a moment to look around again?”

Sales Rep: “Sure. I will head back to the office.”

We chat and look around, and we both agree we like the house but hate the kitchen and bathrooms. We would be happier to wait and get something that works for us. We head back to the sales rep.

Sales Rep: “Hi, you two. Good news! I spoke to my manager and he has cleared a discount on the show home. It’s [a few hundred off]. What do you think? Shall I put your names down for a deposit?”

Me: “We have talked and would like to wait for the new builds.”

Sales Rep: “Are you sure? We get a lot of interest in that show home. You don’t want to miss out.”

Wife: “We are sure.”

Sales Rep: “Well, okay, then. I will add you to the contact list when they become available.”

We ended up buying one of the new homes when they became available, but not before being contacted three more times about that show home. It dropped very little in value and was one of the last properties to sell on the lot.

I had a minor car accident earlier this year. Despite the relatively low speed, it has left me with ongoing pain and discomfort. Unfortunately, some people can’t see past the end of their nose and they make ignorant assumptions.

Coworker: “What’s that thing?”

Me: “A back support. It attaches to my chair and just makes it more comfortable.”

Coworker: “Why do you need that?”

Me: “Someone rear-ended my car a few months ago. Still a bit sore.”

Coworker: “Pff, a young guy like you? You should be fine; just take an aspirin if you have to.”

Me: “Yeah, it’s a bit beyond that now. I’m going to see someone to take a look at it.”

Coworker: “Back in my day, we would just get on with things, not go to a doctor for every scrape.”

Me: “It’s not a scrape; I was hit by a car.”

Coworker: *Sarcastically* “Oh, well, I am sorry. Go see your doctor friend.”

It did make me smile when he had to take nearly a week off for a cold a few weeks back. I asked him why he didn’t just take an aspirin. He sulked about that and ignored me for ages.