Lost Child (was apparently our fault)

[SongsOfDragons]

Munchkins are also people who everyone loves to hate in D&D.

Thankfully, I've only ever met one...

[BookstoreEscapee]

Munchkins are also people who everyone loves to hate in D&D.

Thankfully, I've only ever met one...

I thought munchkins represented the Lollipop Guild and the Lullaby League...

Back on topic:

I was in Target a few weeks ago and heard a woman yelling at her kid...I was 50 yards away at least. I heard her tell him to apologize to the employee who was looking for him. 3 minutes later she was still yelling at him because he kept trying to get away from her. Probably because she was yelling at him. I heard him trying to explain himself but he was whining so bad I couldn't understand most of what he said. I couldn't decide who was the worse-behaved, mom or kid.

[Ree]

I have edited the title, as it had nothing to do with the post, really.

As Night Angel mentioned, this issue has come up before, and we have already ruled that it's not the child's fault that the parents are sucky, so please do not use derogatory terms toward the child when the anger should be directed at the parent.

If the child really is a holy terror, then there are some less offensive terms that can be used, other than some of the ones used in this thread. (One or two of the terms used so far probably aren't so bad, but there were some that always anger me when I see them.)

The topic is parents who don't watch their children and then get pissy at us when we help them find their lost strays.

[blas]

And be nice to the munchkins!!!

I am a munchkin!!!

[SongsOfDragons]

Not when they're a rogue and constantly pickpocketing from the Lawful-Good paladin who's constantly saving our butts...

[ruffledbirdy]

What I love is when parents take their kids into our music department, and then the kid comes up to me to tell me how they need a snack, or the bathroom, or something else that their parent should be providing solutions for.

When the parents come back I usually let them know how angry I am with them in my flinty eyed stare of doom.

That and one time we couldn't find the manager and we called the police for child abandonment. That mom wasn't happy (she was across the street at the mall with her friends...)

Rb

[Becks]

That and one time we couldn't find the manager and we called the police for child abandonment. That mom wasn't happy (she was across the street at the mall with her friends...)

Good for you for doing that!!!!!

to the mom!

Oh, what the heck. She gets another turn.

[tintaglia]

Soo many people I wish I had called the police for abanding their children in the shop, but the worst one was the guy who dumped his (maybe 3 or 4 yr old) daughter and went to the pub. I only popped in to take a guinea pig to the vet, but the little girl had been there about a hour)

Then there was monday there and a woman came in with 5 kids. (I think one of them was hers) I am on lunch R is helping the woman with fishy stuff and all I can hear is the screaming children. I nip upstairs to the loo, and when I come back there is even louder screaming. R comes in looking for plasters as one kid has stuck a finger in a hamster cage and a hammie has gone a-munchin' (there was a lot of blood, which the girl was determindly squeezing out) so we went into 'first aid mode' keeping her calm and cleaning up, and the adult responsible for them all is tapping the counter impatiently wondering why she's not getting served!

Priorities people!

And there was one woman who left her child every week while she went shopping. We told him he'd have to leave (we were closed, he'd been there 45 mins and was quite rude) and he just said 'my mum said I could stay here'
Any time we saw her we just told her straight we were not babysitting (he was about 8 or 9, but I felt bad throwing him out, and his mum made my blood boil.Basically said as she'd told her son he could stay in the shop, I couldn't say otherwise)

It's not the first time we have had kids wandring around and we don't know who they are with, only for someone to amble in some ten mins later and casually ask if their child is here (sometimes they give us a clue, like what the kiddie is wearing) but they never seem worried about them. If the misssing child isn't with us, they try the charity shop next door or the sweet shop the other side but with NO urgency. There is a busy road right in front of us, which often has fire engines or other emergency vehicles, people have been knocked down by the buses on this road but these people just are not worried. Theres also a suspicious guy who wanders about this area as well (not a good part of town) This man is a known flasher and rumour says also a pedo


wow that was a rant and a half, sorry x

[zzapp the witch]

Boyfriend and I went to a toystore with my 3 kids...aged 3, 5, and 7. Normally they are fairly well behaved in any store, but this is the first time they had been in a store like this (I think it was called Elephant's Trunk, or some such). I rounded up my daughter (the 3 yr old), while the bf chased after the boys.

After much herding and rounding up, they had all picked out a toy and we were waiting in the check out line. While I was paying the lady, they must have run off again, cause I turned around, there's bf, holding bags, but no kids next to him where they had been a moment before.

I started calling for them and walking through the store while the bf stayed by the front entrance (it was in a mall). I couldn't find any of them, I'm between pissed and crying. SM was about to call a code adam, when the bf sighed heavily, set the bags down, clapped his hands in the air, and loudly commanded, "Minions, assemble!"

I shit you not, all 3 of my kids lined up in front of him, as if out of thin air, with all the store associates laughing with relief.

And I have not a clue as to how he does it.

I did thank the SM and give her a hug though.

[B&NGoddess]

"Minions, assemble!"

that's pretty fuckin funny right thurr.

and well shit, if i had known this wouldve spawned so many OTs i prolly wouldn't have used "carpet sharks." the more you know.

i've also seen parents drop their kids off and then go to work or wherever and leave their kids for eight hours at a damn bookstore. im getting paid and can hardly stand it. i can't imagine just being left with nothing to do.

of course, that's when they jack up the department and see who can throw a book the furthest.

[Luna]

That's unfortunately a very common bookstore occurance. If I had a nickel for every time I had to call the cops for child abandonment...*sigh*

Most of the time the kids were under the age of 7 also. Some parents threatened to sue me for calling the cops. They were then cuffed and taken away for getting in my face for "daring" to "embarrass" them simply b/c they left their toddler in the 25,000 square foot bookstore while they went to the supermarket.

Yes, I'm sooooo mean making people PARENT their children.

[GayleShy]

I had an SC leave her daughters (who were maybe 7 and 4) at McDonald's and then the oldest one came up to me, when they were done eating and tell me that her mother told them to stay with me while she shopped. The girls were very well behaved or I wouldn't have stood for it, but I did call a CSM and tell her what was was going on. She was pissed, as we could be in a lot of trouble if one of them got hurt, and paged the mother overhead. I'm guessing this had happened before, because the mother didn't come up until she was done shopping and blew off the CSM, who was telling her that we couldn't be responcable for her children.

[po'drph]

Zzap be careful, I was told to "tone it down" and "back off" by a MOD when I called kids crumb snatchers in my previous post. you never know who's going to get "offended". I personally think "minions assemble" is funny as hell.

[Rapscallion]

We've got no problems with people pointing out that people are sucky parents when they are. Young children are not old enough to know how to behave unless taught by a competent adult. Is it really a child's fault if they weren't told 'no'? Why insult them for something they are not responsible for?

I agree, "Assemble minions" is hilarious, especially with the results, but I'm baffled about something.

Back off? Tone it down? all this proves is that people in management, be it at a job, moderating a website, all go on powertrips, Don't worry about me I will NEVER post on this site again

That was your reply to one of the moderating team. Did you get turned about?

By the way, call us out in public and I have no problems about appearing unprofessional.

Rapscallion

[po'drph]

I just felt the need to warn a poster about the oversensitivity that apparently exists on this site