I work as a grocery cashier. A customer tries to hand me a coupon that is FIVE YEARS out of date! To her credit, she isn’t belligerent or rude about it, just confused about why I won’t take it.

Customer: *Politely.* “May I speak to a manager?”

Manager: “Ma’am, we can’t take a coupon that expired five years ago.”

The icing on the cake was when she did seem surprised when the manager wouldn’t give her the coupon back, and she actually got a little upset when he threw it out – on my side of the till, so she couldn’t just reach over and grab it out of his hand.

Related:
The Couponator 33: The Double Cross
The Couponator 32: Attack Of The Rulebreaker
The Couponator 31: Saved By The Next Generation
The Couponator 30: Managerial Override
The Couponator 29: A Cents-less Tragedy

I work in a natural history museum. An elderly woman (maskless) is berating a coworker, so I get closer to see why.

Old Lady: “Why do you sell bugs in candy?”

Coworker: “We have a vending machine that has scorpion pops, chocolate crickets, and other candied insects because they’re good for the environment and tasty.”

Old Lady: “But don’t you know that the Jews are making people eat bugs to turn the world flat?”

Me: “…”

My anniversary with my husband fell on a weekday this year, and we decided to celebrate it over the weekend rather than try to plan something on a work night. However, on the day of our anniversary, he wanted to surprise me with flowers, so he called the florist the morning of to place an order to be picked up on his way home from work. This is the conversation that occurred as he relayed to me.

Florist: “Hello, how can I help you?”

Husband: “Hello, I’d like to order a bouquet to be picked up today.”

Florist: “Sure. What kind of bouquet do you need?”

Husband: “One with roses and stargazer lilies, please.”

Florist: “No, I mean what level of bouquet? What kind of bouquet do you need?”

My husband is confused, unsure what she means.

Husband: “Um, a nice one? It’s for my wife.”

Florist: “Yes, but what is the bouquet for?”

Husband: “It’s for our anniversary?”

Florist: “Did you forget it?”

Suddenly, it clicks in his mind that the florist thinks he’s in trouble and the flowers are meant to be an apology, and he starts laughing.

Husband: “Oh, no, it’s today; I’m surprising her with flowers.”

Florist: “Oh! Okay, great! Usually, when someone places a rush order, it’s because they’re in trouble. So, you said roses and stargazer lilies?”

The bouquet was gorgeous, and I was very surprised when my husband came home with flowers, but I almost laughed myself to tears at the story that came along with it.

I work for a fairly large company. Typically, once a year, we have a regional leadership meeting, and management from each location has two or three people attend. These meetings are usually Tuesday to Thursday and are held at a fairly nice resort-type hotel. However, the meeting schedules do not allow for much enjoyment of the facilities. They have always been scheduled so that there is a “travel day” on Monday, though, so that if folks want to bring spouses or families for the weekend, they can have a little relaxation prior to the meetings.

A few years ago, the meeting was changed and we were flown to California so we could visit the company headquarters. Fewer people took advantage of the extra days due to the expense of paying for flights for family members, but there were a few. My co-manager and I were friends and decided to fly out early and do some sightseeing. As typical, we booked our own reservation for the “extra” days since that part is not covered by the company.

Imagine my surprise when an email went out to the group that advised that they did not want us staying at the host hotel for personal stays prior to the meeting because they were worried about possible billing errors. Sadly, several people actually changed their hotels because of this.

I sent an email reply and advised that I was an adult and I would not let the company dictate my choices as it was my money and my time off to do as I wished. I suggested that the hotel probably wouldn’t appreciate them actively discouraging us from spending additional days there. I also pointed out that if the hotel was so poorly run that they didn’t think they were capable of keeping our separate personal stays separate from their large corporate event, maybe we should consider holding the event at a different facility.

I did, however, offer that if they wanted to reimburse me for the extra time — at double pay since it would be on my scheduled time off — and expense it would take for me to repack my belongings, switch hotels, and unpack again, I would consider it.

I got a reply email that simply said that it was fine for me to keep my reservation as it was. But I still shake my head that they somehow thought they could dictate how I spent my time off just because I chose the same venue as the event.

My cat’s name is Dinner; my boyfriend, who is Vietnamese American, named him. He hasn’t been feeling well (the cat), and the vet told me to bring in a fecal sample.

They are still doing business by car, so when I pull up and the vet tech comes out, I hand over the bag of poop.

Me: “This is for Dinner.”

Vet Tech: *Stammering* “Thank you?”

Then, I come to my senses.

Me: *Laughing* “It’s a sample from my cat, Dinner. The vet needs it.”

She was so professional and so polite, in spite of her “WTF” face.