(I manage a small music store that’s one of nearly 150 locations nationwide. I’m standing next to one of my coworkers as he takes this call, and can hear most of what the caller is saying. My coworker fills me in in the rest afterward.)

Coworker: “Good afternoon. [Music Store]. This is [Coworker].”

Caller: “Can I talk to the owner?”

Coworker: “Uh, my manager’s here, if you want to talk to her.”

Caller: “Put me through to the owner.”

Coworker: “We’re one store in a large corporation. I can give you the number for our corporate office, but I can’t get you the owner directly.”

Caller: “Well, who’s in charge of your sign?”

Coworker: “Our… sign?”

Caller: “On your door. I was driving by and saw your sign, and I don’t like it. You’d get more business if you had a more regular sign.”

Coworker: “Um… Okay. Is there anything else I can help you out with? Something I can put aside for you?”

Caller: “No, I was just calling about your sign.”

(Our business is primarily geared toward music students, so our logo uses a fun, jazzy font. The sign on my store is black and red on white, backlit, and similar in size and brightness to all the other stores in our shopping center. I have yet to figure out what makes it stand out, or what this caller even meant by “regular.”)

(I am a woman, and I have long, red hair. A dirty, bedraggled customer, carrying an autoharp in a case that looks to consist entirely of duct tape, approaches me.)

Customer: “Hello. I need a string.”

Me: “Sure! No problem. Which one?”

Customer: *puts autoharp on counter, points out string*

Me: “Great!” *gets string* “Here you are!”

Customer: *as I’m ringing him up* “You have beautiful hair. I’d love to put your head on a pike and carry it around with me.”

Me: *so shocked I can’t think of a single thing to say* “Your total is [total].”

Customer: “It would just be so pretty.”

Me: *finally thinking* “Yeah, I definitely prefer my head attached to my body. Have a nice day.”

(I am at a music store at the mall on a Sunday afternoon, looking to buy some new music with a bonus I got a few days ago. I have probably been in there about an hour and a half and have about ten CDs in my hands. Suddenly, Semisonic’s “Closing Time” starts blasting over the store’s speakers, loud enough to make me jump and almost drop all of my music. Looking at my watch, I see it is about thirty seconds after 5:00 pm. I make my way up to the cash register with the stack.)

Sales Associate: *yelling over the music* “Ready to check out?”

Me: *yelling back* “I was!”

(I dumped everything on her counter and walked out. The place closed about six months later, I’m assuming because sales and customers weren’t their first priority.)

(I am a high school student and I just got my first job ever in a music and movie store. It is my first day and all I have done so far is read the employee manuals. The next step in my training is to watch some training videos. I am doing this at a station with a little computer near the back of the store, because that is the only spot we have to do this. I am standing there with headphones on, watching the videos, when a customer comes up to me.)

Customer: “Excuse me. Can you tell me where the country CDs are?”

Me: “I’m sorry; I just got hired. I am still in the middle of training.”

Customer: “Well, can you show me where the CDs are?”

Me: “I don’t know where anything is. I can’t help you.”

Customer: *getting angry and raising her voice* “Just show me where the CDs are.”

Me: “I don’t know. Maybe another employee can help you.”

(She then storms off and I go back to watching the videos. I don’t think much of it until some time later when the same customer comes back with my manager. She is angrier than before and yelling the whole time.)

Customer: “This is the employee who refused to help me and was rude to me. “

Manager: “Why didn’t you help her?”

Me: “I’m sorry, but like I said, I am still in training and don’t know where anything is yet. That’s why I said someone else would have been better able to help you.”  

Customer: “Well, you were the only employee I saw, so you should have helped me.”

Me: “Again, I’m sorry. I just wouldn’t have been much help.”

Customer: “That doesn’t matter. I am the customer and it is your job to help me. You won’t last long in this place.”

Manager: *to customer trying to calm her down* “I am sorry about this. I will make sure [My Name] doesn’t do something like this again. We’ve already helped you find your CD, so why don’t we go ring your things up? I will talk to [My Name].”

(The customer continued to yell about how I was a bad employee and didn’t deserve this job. She refused to calm down. The manager got her away from me as quickly as possible, and as soon as I was out of her sight she got calmer. Because of this, my manager didn’t kick her out, but let her purchase her things first before escorting her out of the store. Later my manager came over to me and apologized for my having to deal with such a customer on my first day. She also talked to me about how to better handle situations like that and told me to not take it personally. Thankfully, that one customer didn’t deter me from working there, and I had a great year and a half in that job until I left for college.)

(My family is vacationing in the Ozarks, and we drive past a music store. My brother asks my dad to stop, as he is in the market for a new pedal for one of his guitars. There is only one man working there when we walk in. My brother asks him if he has a certain pedal in stock, or at least one that can do the effect he is looking for.)

Man: “Hmm. I’m not sure. I’ve never heard of anything like that. Hang on one second.”

(The owner walks around the desk, picks up the phone, and makes a call. I assume he is calling his boss or their guitar part supplier. NOPE! He orders a pizza! After his food has been ordered, he walks away and starts straightening up. My family just stands there, looking perplexed. After a few seconds, he notices my family is still there and looks surprised.)

Man: “Oh, did you need something else?”

Brother: “Apparently not.”