Sunday, May 21, 2006

Working with Customers

Work is very interesting. I work at a home improvement store and I receive a number of strange customers. The other day I worked with a large, very femmi, italian man. He wore short shorts and knee high socks. He came up to me and asked where he could find a small cart. After deciphering his poor english, I figured out he was asking about wheelbarrows, and showed him where it was. I had to play the salesperson, so I had to maintain a straight face as a spoke with him. however, maintaining a straight face was one of the hardest things to do. He spoke like a girl, and proceeded to ask me why in the world the prices between the wheelbarrows were so different. I had to explain that it was because one was bigger than the other. It was a very complicated thing to understand. All the wheelbarrows were on display, and he had a hard time understanding that there would be a price difference when one would be two sizes larger than the other. It was so hard maintaining a straight face, that I could only release my laughter when he turned around to look at price tags on the boxes because he didn't believe me. The best part was when I wanted to know if he would like me to find him a flat cart. He said he wanted to find a light cart because he wasn't a man of the brawn, but that he survived on his brains! He didn't have enough upper body strength (with hand motions). What a character!

Why do customers ask stupid questions? "Why is this plant brown?" Answer: "I'm afraid it's dead, mam." Or "How much is this plant that I found on the 50% off cart?" Answer: "It is a little confusing mam, I'm sorry. You subtract 50%, or half, of the price tag, and that is how much you will have to pay." Or my personal favorite, "Which of these two trees do you think we should plant in our yard?" Answer, "It would probably be best to plant the alive one, sir." Haha. I love this job.