During my freshman year in high school, my science teacher assigned us to interview people in the community about how they use science in their careers. Although I don’t remember most of the people I spoke with, I can tell you that I spent meaningful time with a local community pharmacist who changed my life.
What I saw was a man who loved his career and truly cared for his patients. In an instant, I knew that I wanted to become a pharmacist, and I never wavered from that goal throughout high school.
Knowing what you want to be when you grow up at age 14 is unusual, but it is very liberating. I simply had to work backwards to figure out how to achieve my goal of becoming a pharmacist.
After high school, I chose to attend Ohio Northern University (ONU) because it had a unique pharmacy program. Rather than attending college for 2 years and then applying to the pharmacy program, ONU students were admitted to the College of Pharmacy from day one.
Although it was expensive, being in pharmacy school from day one and avoiding the risk of rejection made it worthwhile for me.
In college, I spent a lot of time in the library. Although the classwork was difficult, I did well with one exception: organic chemistry.
I did fail organic chemistry—a notorious “weed out” course—but I successfully retook the class over the summer and graduated on time with the rest of my classmates. Failing a course is a difficult stumbling block, but I stood strong and persevered.
Today, I’m thankful for the wonderful pharmacy profession for so many reasons.
First, I’m thankful that community pharmacists are the health care professionals most accessible to the public. If my local pharmacist wasn’t accessible to me, then I likely would have taken a different career path.
Second, I’m proud of the work we pharmacists do, the diversity of our career options, and the relationships we share with our patients and fellow health care providers.
Pharmacy is a profession that makes a real difference in people’s lives. It certainly has made all the difference in mine.
Australia, Coworkers, Food & Drink, Health & Body, Jerk, Pharmacy, Smithton, Tasmania | Friendly | September 4, 2018
One of my colleagues is a naturopath and health nut. She’s noticed that I have a certain fondness for hot chips/fries and often buy them for lunch, and she’s taken to telling me how unhealthy, fatty, salty, etc. they are, in a vain attempt to improve my diet.
One day, just for a change, I decide to buy a sausage roll for lunch. My colleague notices this and proceeds to lecture me on how much worse this is for me, because of how many carbs are in the pastry and how much fat is in the meat.
The next day I buy chips again. I show them to my colleague and tell her that I went with the healthier option.
The horrified and appalled look on her face was priceless, and was well worth the earful she gave me!
Georgia, Jerk, Patients, Pharmacy, USA | Healthy | September 2, 2018
(I work in a retail pharmacy. One day a patient brings in a prescription for a blood pressure monitor. My coworker is taking prescriptions.)
Coworker: “I’m sorry, ma’am, but we can’t fill this. We sell them over the counter but we can’t bill them to insurance.” *tries to hand it back*
Patient: *upset* “Yes, you can fill them. I had one filled here a few years ago.”
Coworker: “We have never been able to fill blood pressure monitors; our company isn’t authorized to dispense medical equipment.”
Patient: *angry* “Then it must have been before you started here, but I had one filled at this store!”
Coworker: *getting frustrated* “I have worked at this store since it opened eleven years ago, and have been in the pharmacy for seven years, and we have never dispensed blood pressure monitors.”
Patient: “Yes, you have! The first time I brought a prescription in, the pharmacist showed me where they were, handed me one, and I walked out with it!”
Coworker: *shocked* “If you walked out with it, then you just walked out with it.”
Patient: “I am not a thief! I have never stolen anything in my life!” *stomps off*
(She called corporate on my coworker for “calling her a thief,” but we had already sent an email to our district manager detailing the incident, so nothing came of it.)
Children, England, Overheard, Pharmacy, UK, Upminster | Right | August 24, 2018
(I am at the pharmacy queuing at the checkout. A woman behind me is also queuing with what I presume are her grandchildren. They are screaming, asking for a DVD which said she no to. We go to separate checkouts at the same time, where I overhear this.)
Cashier: “Do you want bags with those?”
Women: “I want some alcohol. It’s the children’s school holiday.”
(It definitely made my being in a shop with screaming kids worth it.)
Jerk, Pharmacy, Strangers, USA | Friendly | August 19, 2018
(I have just left the doctor’s office and walked to the pharmacy to wait for a prescription to be sent over. The young girl at the register is on the phone, so I wait for her to acknowledge me.)
Cashier: “I’ll be right with you.”
Me: “Okay, thank you.”
(A few minutes pass.)
Cashier: “Okay, picking up?”
Me: “Yes, it was just sent over from [Doctor]. Last name, [Last name]. Born [birthday].”
Cashier: “Hmm, doesn’t look like it’s here yet. You can have a seat and wait, if you’d like.”
Me: “I’ll do that. Thank you.”
(I take a seat and begin scrolling through Facebook while I wait. The phone rings again. A woman comes in and goes right to the register.)
Cashier: “I’ll be right with you, ma’am.”
Woman: “I just left [Doctor], and she sent a medicine order over for me.”
Cashier: *nods, covers phone receiver* “Just a moment.”
Woman: “It’s under [Woman].”
Cashier: *nods, holds up one finger* “As soon as I’m done on the phone, ma’am.”
Woman: “It should be ready.”
Cashier: *nods*
Woman: “Ugh.” *turns to me* “Can you believe this service?”
Me: “I can.”
Woman: “What?”
Me: “Well, she’s clearly busy, and you were told many times that she would be with you after her phone call.”
Woman: “Why don’t you mind your own business?”
Me: “You asked.”
Woman: “The youth of today are so disrespectful! If you were my daughter, I’d have you over my knee for talking to me like that!”
Me: “Guess I’m lucky you’re irrelevant.”
Woman: “How dare you?!”
(I return to my Facebook browsing. The woman sits directly beside me, continuing her rant about disrespectful youth and poor customer service. The cashier hangs up and takes the woman’s information. Of course, it isn’t ready. She resumes her rant, pacing in front of the register.)
Cashier: “[My Name], your order is ready.”
Woman: “Where is mine?”
Cashier: “I’ll let you know as soon as yours is ready.”
Woman: “I’ve half a mind to take my business elsewhere!”
Me: “Don’t use it all in one place.”
Cashier: *trying to keep a straight face* “No copay, [My Name]. Have a good day.”
No matter what job you hold in pharmacy, you’re likely to run into some funny situations.
Recently, I was reminiscing about my time as a pharmacy intern and student on PharmD rotations. Here are some of my favorite stories.
Price Check
As an intern at a retail pharmacy chain, I often spent time price matching prescription drugs at other stores.
One time, a customer brought in more than 10 prescriptions and asked me to price match every possible competitor for each drug. I think it took me about 90 minutes to make all the calls.
I was checking the customer out at the register when he suddenly flew into a rage. He angrily shouted, “This is 25 cents more than last time!”
I interrupted the man’s rant with, “Are you really going to hassle me over 25 cents?” I then reached into my pocket and handed the man a quarter.
Itchy Leg Aid
Another time as an intern, a man asked me to help him pick out some cream for an itchy insect bite.
We were in the OTC aisle looking at hydrocortisone cream when he rolled up his pant leg and revealed a red, swollen leg with red streaking in the vein from his ankle all the way up past where I could see. The patient obviously had an advanced case of cellulitis.
I told him, “There’s no OTC cream that can fix that,” and then I quickly walked him out of the pharmacy, pointed to an urgent care center across the street, and said, “If you want to keep that leg, you’ll go seek medical treatment right now.”
Thankfully, he took my advice.
Inappropriate Exam
As a Pharm D student, I spent a month working with an internal medicine physician. This physician believed that students should be actively involved, so I ended up participating in patient care rather than observing it.
One day, a patient came in with classic symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Without warning or asking me to leave the room, the physician had the patient drop his pants for a digital rectal examination.
After the test was completed, the physician asked if I would like to feel the enlarged prostate. I quickly declined, saying, “If you go to a pharmacy that does that, you're in the wrong pharmacy.” It was the only time I ever saw the physician laugh.
Jailhouse Script
Here’s a bonus story courtesy of my wife, who is also a pharmacist.
As an intern, my wife was working at a retail store when a man pulled up to the drive-thru window. He presented a script for Percocet and said, “I need this in a hurry because I’m on my way to jail.”
The pharmacist overheard him and said, “I don’t think they’re going to let you take those pills with you to jail!”
Mel Seabright, PharmD, MBA
Mel Seabright, PharmD, MBA
Mel Seabright, PharmD, MBA, is a clinical pharmacist specializing in pharmacy benefits management and managed care. He has extensive experience in utilization management, medical writing and drug information.
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Alabama, Awesome Workers, Criminal & Illegal, Pharmacy, USA | Legal | September 14, 2018
(I am 17, and a cashier at a big pharmacy store. I work at the front registers, while the pharmacy and pharmacy registers are in the back of the store, out of view. If people are purchasing items in the store and also picking up a prescription, then the pharmacy is allowed to ring up their purchases, as well, with the exception of alcohol. A man walks from the back of the store carrying two large cases of beer. I start to move away from the door and head to a register to ring him up; however, before I even make it two steps, I stop, as the guy is still walking straight towards me. Without thinking, I put out my hand and stop him; it seems to surprise him that a small girl would physically stop him, especially as he is more than twice my size. Instead of faltering or backing down, I stand firm.)
Me: “Sir, I’m sorry, but I have to get you to go over to the register to check you out before I can allow you to leave with that.”
Man: “Oh, don’t worry, little lady; I already paid for this in the pharmacy.”
Me: “Sir, if that is the case, then I do apologize, but I will need to look at your receipt just to verify. I hope you understand.”
Man: “Well, I don’t have my receipt; I told them they could keep it.”
(I’ve already broken one rule by physically touching the man, but I’m not going to break another by outright accusing him of theft.)
Me: “In that case, please let me walk back there with you so that we can clear this up with them. You see, it’s against store policy to ever ring up alcohol back at the pharmacy, so I really need to know who rang you up so that they can be dealt with appropriately. If you are still unwilling to do this, then I am going to have to ask you to either let me ring you up for a second time, or you can leave the beer here, but without actual proof of purchase I cannot allow you to leave the store with the beer.”
(The man just kind of looks at me for about twenty seconds and then glances over to my supervisor, who is still standing next to the door. However, she is in her 60s, and I’m sure this man could probably overpower both of us. Luckily, things end rather well. The man looks back at me and sits both cases of beer on the floor.)
Man: “All right, here you go. I’ll go ahead and leave now.”
(With that, the man actually just walks out of the store. After he is gone, my supervisor turns to me with the most shocked expression on her face, and I can feel my heart about to explode out of my chest.)
Me: “Oh, no. Did I actually just physically stop a man and then keep him from shoplifting?! I can’t believe that just happened.”
Supervisor: “Yeah, I’ve never seen something like that before, but please, next time, just let him walk out of the store. It’s not worth your life trying to stop someone from getting a couple of cases of beer. You never know if someone is crazy, or drunk, or just doesn’t care.”
Australia, Coworkers, Food & Drink, Health & Body, Jerk, Pharmacy, Smithton, Tasmania | Friendly | September 4, 2018
One of my colleagues is a naturopath and health nut. She’s noticed that I have a certain fondness for hot chips/fries and often buy them for lunch, and she’s taken to telling me how unhealthy, fatty, salty, etc. they are, in a vain attempt to improve my diet.
One day, just for a change, I decide to buy a sausage roll for lunch. My colleague notices this and proceeds to lecture me on how much worse this is for me, because of how many carbs are in the pastry and how much fat is in the meat.
The next day I buy chips again. I show them to my colleague and tell her that I went with the healthier option.
The horrified and appalled look on her face was priceless, and was well worth the earful she gave me!
Georgia, Jerk, Patients, Pharmacy, USA | Healthy | September 2, 2018
(I work in a retail pharmacy. One day a patient brings in a prescription for a blood pressure monitor. My coworker is taking prescriptions.)
Coworker: “I’m sorry, ma’am, but we can’t fill this. We sell them over the counter but we can’t bill them to insurance.” *tries to hand it back*
Patient: *upset* “Yes, you can fill them. I had one filled here a few years ago.”
Coworker: “We have never been able to fill blood pressure monitors; our company isn’t authorized to dispense medical equipment.”
Patient: *angry* “Then it must have been before you started here, but I had one filled at this store!”
Coworker: *getting frustrated* “I have worked at this store since it opened eleven years ago, and have been in the pharmacy for seven years, and we have never dispensed blood pressure monitors.”
Patient: “Yes, you have! The first time I brought a prescription in, the pharmacist showed me where they were, handed me one, and I walked out with it!”
Coworker: *shocked* “If you walked out with it, then you just walked out with it.”
Patient: “I am not a thief! I have never stolen anything in my life!” *stomps off*
(She called corporate on my coworker for “calling her a thief,” but we had already sent an email to our district manager detailing the incident, so nothing came of it.)
Children, England, Overheard, Pharmacy, UK, Upminster | Right | August 24, 2018
(I am at the pharmacy queuing at the checkout. A woman behind me is also queuing with what I presume are her grandchildren. They are screaming, asking for a DVD which said she no to. We go to separate checkouts at the same time, where I overhear this.)
Cashier: “Do you want bags with those?”
Women: “I want some alcohol. It’s the children’s school holiday.”
(It definitely made my being in a shop with screaming kids worth it.)
Jerk, Pharmacy, Strangers, USA | Friendly | August 19, 2018
(I have just left the doctor’s office and walked to the pharmacy to wait for a prescription to be sent over. The young girl at the register is on the phone, so I wait for her to acknowledge me.)
Cashier: “I’ll be right with you.”
Me: “Okay, thank you.”
(A few minutes pass.)
Cashier: “Okay, picking up?”
Me: “Yes, it was just sent over from [Doctor]. Last name, [Last name]. Born [birthday].”
Cashier: “Hmm, doesn’t look like it’s here yet. You can have a seat and wait, if you’d like.”
Me: “I’ll do that. Thank you.”
(I take a seat and begin scrolling through Facebook while I wait. The phone rings again. A woman comes in and goes right to the register.)
Cashier: “I’ll be right with you, ma’am.”
Woman: “I just left [Doctor], and she sent a medicine order over for me.”
Cashier: *nods, covers phone receiver* “Just a moment.”
Woman: “It’s under [Woman].”
Cashier: *nods, holds up one finger* “As soon as I’m done on the phone, ma’am.”
Woman: “It should be ready.”
Cashier: *nods*
Woman: “Ugh.” *turns to me* “Can you believe this service?”
Me: “I can.”
Woman: “What?”
Me: “Well, she’s clearly busy, and you were told many times that she would be with you after her phone call.”
Woman: “Why don’t you mind your own business?”
Me: “You asked.”
Woman: “The youth of today are so disrespectful! If you were my daughter, I’d have you over my knee for talking to me like that!”
Me: “Guess I’m lucky you’re irrelevant.”
Woman: “How dare you?!”
(I return to my Facebook browsing. The woman sits directly beside me, continuing her rant about disrespectful youth and poor customer service. The cashier hangs up and takes the woman’s information. Of course, it isn’t ready. She resumes her rant, pacing in front of the register.)
Cashier: “[My Name], your order is ready.”
Woman: “Where is mine?”
Cashier: “I’ll let you know as soon as yours is ready.”
Woman: “I’ve half a mind to take my business elsewhere!”
Me: “Don’t use it all in one place.”
Cashier: *trying to keep a straight face* “No copay, [My Name]. Have a good day.”
Australia, Awesome Customers, Health & Body, Melbourne, Pharmacy, Victoria | Right | August 14, 2018
(I’m working the front register at a large pharmacy when a woman comes up from the pharmacist’s desk with her items. She looks like a zombie with bleary, watering eyes and a red nose. I try to speak gently.)
Me: “Hello there.”
Customer: *clearly super congested* “Ngehh.”
(She dumps painkillers, nasal decongestants, cough medicine, and an inhaler on the counter, and then sniffles and gives me a glum look.)
Me: “Not feeling well today? I’m sorry.”
Customer: “Mrrr..”
Me: “Hopefully some of these will help you feel better!”
Customer: *coughs and whimpers*
(She pays, and then picks up and cuddles the bag of medicine.)
Customer: *sniffle* “Egh.” *sniffle* “Ehh… thangks. Have a dice day.”
Coworker: *to me* “Wow. So, her manners were the only thing not broken? What a nice change.”
Crazy Requests, Money, Pennsylvania, Pharmacy, Pittsburgh, USA | Right | August 14, 2018
(I am working a morning shift behind my register when a disheveled man walks in and approaches the counter. He mumbles and slurs his words together when he talks, making him very difficult to understand.)
Customer: “I need a—” *incomprehensible*
Me: “Sorry, what was that?”
Customer: “I said I need a dollar!”
Me: *thinking he needs to exchange some bills or coins* “Okay, what do you have on you? And how would you like that?”
Customer: “Nooo, I need a dollar.”
Me: *now thinking he might need cash back* “Okay, you just have you buy something small, like a pack of gum or something. I can’t give out money directly from the register.”
Customer: *growing more frustrated* “NO! You see, I have four dollars. And I need five dollars. So, I need a dollar.”
Me: “Sir, I can’t just give out money from the register.”
Customer: *stares at me with a mixture of anger and confusion*
Me: “I can give you cash back or exchange money, but I can’t just give you a dollar. I’m sorry.”
Customer: “Why not?”
Me: “I can’t give you money out of my register.”
Customer: *stares at me again and finally leaves*
(I’m not sure why that dollar was so important, or why it’s so hard to understand that stores don’t just give money out to people who ask.)
Extra Stupid, Jerk, Non-Dialogue, Pharmacy, USA, Vermont | Working | August 13, 2018
I work in a pharmacy and we have the store divided into sections: Front Store and Pharmacy. When you give us a call, the prompts will tell you to press one number to talk to Pharmacy, and to press another number for general store questions.
I have just finished helping a customer find an item, and my coworker is on break, which means that I’m all alone up front, and that’s when I get a line of customers and the phone starts ringing.
I pick up the phone while one customer is paying and ask if it’s all right if I put them on hold for a moment. The customer yells, “No, you cannot! I’ve been waiting twenty minutes for my prescription and that is unacceptable!”
The woman tries to keep ranting at me, but I firmly interrupt her to tell her that she’s called the front part of the store and that I’ll have to transfer her to the Pharmacy.
Later, I catch one of the Pharmacy techs and apologize for sending the irate customer their way. The tech looks at me and laughs, and tells me that the woman on the phone wasn’t even in our system, and that her friend who dropped off her prescription dropped it off at another pharmacy altogether.
So, not only did that woman reach the wrong part of the store, but also she didn’t even get the right store!
Jerk, Minnesota, Pharmacy, USA | Healthy | August 9, 2018
(It’s Memorial Day, and my pharmacy is one of the few within a 20-mile radius that is open. My coworker is on break and I am managing the front of the pharmacy.)
Me: “Hi, sir, how I can help you today?”
Customer: “I’m here to pick up two prescriptions for [Customer].”
Me: “All right, sir, it looks like I have one prescription ready for you, but the other prescription — your [Prescription] — we’re still waiting to hear back from your doctor for more refills.”
Customer: “WHAT DO YOU MEAN, THEY’RE NOT DONE?!”
Me: “There is one prescription done and ready for you to pick up, sir. The other prescription you requested, your [Prescription], isn’t, because we haven’t heard back from your doctor yet.”
Customer: “I HATE THIS PLACE! YOU GUYS NEVER HAVE ANYTHING DONE! I BROUGHT TWO PRESCRIPTIONS IN ON FRIDAY, AND YOU’RE TELLING ME THEY’RE STILL NOT DONE?!”
Me: “Sir, I have one prescription ready for you right now.” *pause* “The other one is still waiting on your doctor for approval, and since it’s Memorial Day, we may not hear back from your doctor until tomorrow.”
Customer: “You guys are horrible! You never have anything done for me! I hate it here!” *walks off*
(After he walked away, I looked back at the screen to see when he brought in the prescriptions. And turns out, he brought them in yesterday, not Friday. But either way, we still had one he could have taken home with him.)
Crazy Requests, New York, Pharmacy, Staten Island, USA | Right | August 2, 2018
(A customer comes up through my pharmacy drive-thru and hands me a script for Oxycontin, 30mg, which we do not carry.)
Customer: “I’d like to fill this script here.”
Me: “I’m sorry, sir, but we don’t carry this particular medication.”
Customer: “But I want it.”
Me: “We don’t carry this, though. There’s a pharmacy a few blocks from here that does carry this; have you tried filling there?”
Customer: “I don’t want to fill it there. I want it here. You know what? I’m not going to argue with you morons. I’ll come back in an hour to pick it up.”
(I have had no chance to verify any information for this patient — no date of birth, no phone number. The patient comes back in about twenty minutes
Customer: “Is it ready yet?”
Me: “No, and we don’t carry this medication.”
Customer: “But I want it now! You had a whole hour to figure it out! Let me speak to your manager!”
(I bring my manager over, and she tells him the exact same thing.)
Customer: “Oh, really? I didn’t know that. Maybe your employee should have told me that before wasting my time.”
No Spoonful Of Sugar Is Helping This Medicine Go Down
Bad Behavior, Florida, Jerk, Patients, Pharmacy, USA |
Healthy | July 31, 2018
(When you come to pick up a prescription, I have to make sure it’s going to the right person or I get written up and, if I get written up enough times, lose my job. This particular pharmacy asks that we verify the address on file, but if they don’t know it, I’ll usually take some other manner of verification if necessary. It’s late, and there’s an hour and a half left to go of a seven-hour day, and all I want to do is go home, so I admit I’m a bit tired. A guy comes up who couldn’t be more than 22, I’d guess, and I smile and go to the register, asking him who he’s picking up for.)
Guy: “My girlfriend.”
Me: “Okay. What’s her name?”
Guy: “[First Name].”
(I need a last name in particular to search, and unfortunately most of the younger crowd usually never give their last name unless prompted. I have no idea why.)
Me: “What’s her last name?”
Guy: “[Last Name].”
(I go over to get it, which doesn’t take long, and return.)
Me: “And what’s her address, please?”
(He gives me this look like I’ve told him that the sky is green or that he’s standing on his head.)
Guy: “I’ve picked up before and they’ve never, ever asked me for her address before.”
(Then he clearly hasn’t picked up for her before at this pharmacy, because we always ask for the address. I say it so often that even when I’m doing things that don’t require it, I sometimes end up saying the words. Sometimes I end up asking them their address before I ask their name, before I can stop myself.)
Me: “Um… We always ask for the address.”
Guy: “No one has ever asked me before!”
Me: “Well, sometimes if you don’t know it, we’ll try another way to verify. Do you know it?”
Guy: “No!”
Me: “Okay, what’s her date of birth?”
(That, he knows. He tells that to me and I’m assured that I have the right person. A new law was passed in July that on certain types and classes of medicines, I now have to ask for a form of ID and enter it into the computer. What he’s picking up falls into that class.)
Me: “I need to see your ID, please.”
Guy: “Why?”
Me: “It’s the law as of the first of July. I have to have an ID.”
Guy: “Does that mean I have to get hers from the car?”
Me: “No, I need yours, since you’re picking it up.”
Guy: “But… does that mean I have to get hers?”
Me: “Um… No. I need yours.”
Guy: “I don’t have mine.”
Me: “Then she has to come in and pick it up.”
Guy: “Why can’t I just go get hers and give it to you?”
(Now I can understand his hesitancy. There’s a big storm that has been going on all day, but neither weather nor annoying teenagers are going to make me break the law.)
Me: “Because it’s her license. Whatever license I have has to be for the person picking up. It’s the law.”
(We go back and forth about this for another minute, to the point that my pharmacist has to come over and back me up, telling him that we have to follow all rules and regulations, and if it’s her license, it has be her. He finally goes out to get her and comes back in. I think this is a wonderful opportunity to do my job right now that she’s here.)
Me: “What’s your address?”
Girl: *throws her ID on the counter* “On file.”
Me: *blink*
(I’ve never had a customer refuse to give their address. Sometimes they’ll pretend to give me a hard time or forget some of the numbers, but I’ve never had someone give me a smart a** remark about it being “on file,” because most have the intelligence to realize that there’s a reason I’m asking for it and it’s most certainly not to hear myself talk. I want to keep my job.)
Me: “I’m sorry; we ask that for verification. If you don’t know yo—”
Girl: *interrupts snottily* “I know my address. It’s [address].”
(She picked up her license from the counter and proceeded to throw it again. I decided I’d had enough of dealing with the twat that was clearly just too lazy to come in and sent her boyfriend in for her, since I could see no legitimate reason for her not to come in besides the rain. And part of me wanted a little bit of revenge for these people half my age giving me a hard time, so I took my time, every bit of it that I could, prolonging the transaction just because they were antsy. As they left, she shot me a glare, snatched up her prescription, and then went to the industrial scale nearby that people use to measure weight and proceeded to jump up and down on it once or twice before leaving.)
Canada, Employees, Grocery Store, Jerk, Ontario, Pets & Animals, Pharmacy, Revolting | Working | July 31, 2018
(I’m at common, nationwide pharmacy and grocery store when I see a woman walking a small dog down one of the aisles. While the woman is distracted, I watch the dog pee on a shelf filled with cereal boxes. The woman never seems to notice, so as I am heading to the cash, anyway, I decide to tell the cashiers about the dog. There are two cashiers and a supervisor at the front when I get up there.)
Me: “Hi, do you guys know you have a lady in here walking around with a dog?”
Supervisor: “Yeah, it’s fine.”
Me: “Really? So, I can bring my dog in with me next time?”
(Pointing at my dog sitting outside the glass window watching for me.)
Supervisor: “Ah, no. She’s just a friend, so it’s okay.”
Me: “Not really. Your company policy says no dogs except service dogs, so I should be allowed to bring my dog in if that woman can; it’s clearly not a service dog.”
Supervisor: “No, but it’s a really good dog! So, it’s okay for her, but uh, your dog can’t come in. “
(I see nothing wrong with dogs in stores as long as the owners are responsible, clean up if there’s an accident, and carefully watch them. I also have this view of parents with kids. My dog loves her pet store and hardware store walking trips, but this attitude annoyed me. Guess what I didn’t tell them?)
Extra Stupid, Lebanon, Math & Science, Pennsylvania, Pharmacy, USA | Right | July 30, 2018
Customer: “Excuse me, can you help me with this photo machine?”
Me: “Yes, what’s the problem?”
Customer: “It printed all of my photos, but it’s telling me to bring the receipt to the counter, and it’s not printing a receipt.”
(Our kiosk’s receipt printer hasn’t worked in years, so we frequently have to give this explanation.)
Me: “The summary it printed after the last photo is what we use. It tells you how many pictures were in the order, and we can figure the price out from that.”
Customer: “But I don’t know how much photos cost!”
Me: “Well, they’re 29 cents each, and it says here there were 13 photos, so with that—”
Customer: “But it doesn’t tell me how much it’ll cost, or how many photos there are!”
(She begins counting the photos by hand, so I grab the calculator and work out the cost.)
Customer: “…twelve, thirteen. Now to get the cost. Thirteen times 29 cents…”
Me: “It’ll be $3.77 before tax, ma’am.”
(The customer ignores me and continues to write out the multiplication.)
Customer: “Okay, it’s $3.77! By the way, you don’t sell photo postcards here, do you? Or any of the stores in this square?”
Me: “I’m afraid we don’t; if anyone here does, it would probably be [Other Store], so I’d check there first.”
Customer: “Thank you. I’ll do that!”
(The customer immediately turns from the counter and starts toward the exit.)
Me: “Ma’am, you need to— Ma’am, you need to pay for those!”
Customer: “I did!”
Me: “No… you didn’t.”
Customer: “I paid it right over there, you can check my balance and see!”
(Fearful that she might have tried jamming her card into a slot on the kiosk, I rush around… only to find her pointing at the ATM next to it.)
Customer: “I slid it right here, and it says here you can check my balance to see.”
Me: “This is the store’s ATM, not part of the photo machine.”
Customer: “Well, can I check my balance?”
Me: “Uh… Yes?”
(With another customer waiting, I leave to ring them up while keeping the first customer in earshot while she uses the ATM.)
Customer: “It wants a PIN? It’s never asked for that before!”
(I finish checking the second customer out, right as the first customer walks back up to the counter.)
Customer: “Since when does it want a PIN for anything? Anyway, I guess I’ll trust that I still need to pay for these. But I’m using cash this time, not a card!”
Me: “All right, after tax, that’ll be four dollars even!”
(The customer pulls out a small wad of bills with a twenty and three ones visible. She returns to her purse, and I assume she’s getting a fourth dollar bill.)
Customer: “Feels like it’s been forever since I paid with cash!”
(She does pull out another wad of cash with another dollar bill, only to drop it and continue digging for two more handfuls. By the time she stops, I can see a five, a ten, a twenty, and far more ones than needed to pay for the pictures.)
Me: “Ma’am, you… have enough to pay for this…”
(Paying no attention to me, she begins straightening out some of the ones, the five, and the twenty. After she’s stacked twelve of them up, she sighs and slides me the ten.)
Customer: “Oh, just take it out of the ten, then.”
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