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Play the Race Card for free babysitting! (long)
I had an interesting situation last night that I think I handled rather well.
I work in a rather small game store in a strip center located in a rather large southern city. It's about 8:45 at night, fifteen minutes to closing when this kid, maybe 5-6 years old comes in, just sort of wandering around. I asked if he had a parent with him and he tole me, "Yeah."
Hmm, I thought, where could they be?
When I asked the kid where they were, he told me they were down at the pizza place at the opposite end of the strip center, waiting on a pizza and sent him down here to QUOTE: "Keep out of their hair!"
Well now. Nice parenting on this one. I told the kid that after sundown he needed to have a parent with them to be in the store. He nodded at me and left.
Cue LARGE, ANGRY woman storming into my store with child in tow, SCREAMING at me about throwing her son out of the store and I couldn't do that, saying that I was a racist for throwing her boy out into the dark of night.
Excuse me? I'm not the one who had him wandering around the font of a strip-mall after dark in the first place!
I could feel the anger welling up inside of me. If there's one thing I CANNOT stand, it is being called a racist. That is one type of person I hate with a passion. Something must have showed in my face as I stood up and leaned over the counter. Maybe a very displeased employee standing 6'2" and weighing almost 300 lbs might be a little intimidating, I dunno.
Anyway, I sort of loomed over her like the Ghost of Christmas yet to Come from Dickens' tale and slowly pointed through the front glass to the LED sign at a nearby Walgreen's.
"Ma'am?" I asked, "Do you see that sign?"
Starting to get her courage back a bit, she snapped at me, "Yes? What's that got to do with anything?"
"I may have no right to tell you how to raise your child or what you should or should not do. But earlier today, that sign held an amber alert. A child was kidnapped right in front of that store in broad daylight not 5 hours ago. This is the reason that our store does not allow children into our store without a parent after dark as neither I nor my company will be held responsible if something were to happen."
It just took a moment for the woman to digest everything I'd said, realize what an ass she had been and mumble out a muffled apology before hustling her child out of the store.
As a soon-to-be father myself, I just don't understand how parents can do things like this. I just hope that my words actually sunk in and she won't be letting her kid wander alone, otherwise they me be "keeping out of her hair" for far longer than she realizes.
I work in a rather small game store in a strip center located in a rather large southern city. It's about 8:45 at night, fifteen minutes to closing when this kid, maybe 5-6 years old comes in, just sort of wandering around. I asked if he had a parent with him and he tole me, "Yeah."
Hmm, I thought, where could they be?
When I asked the kid where they were, he told me they were down at the pizza place at the opposite end of the strip center, waiting on a pizza and sent him down here to QUOTE: "Keep out of their hair!"
Well now. Nice parenting on this one. I told the kid that after sundown he needed to have a parent with them to be in the store. He nodded at me and left.
Cue LARGE, ANGRY woman storming into my store with child in tow, SCREAMING at me about throwing her son out of the store and I couldn't do that, saying that I was a racist for throwing her boy out into the dark of night.
Excuse me? I'm not the one who had him wandering around the font of a strip-mall after dark in the first place!
I could feel the anger welling up inside of me. If there's one thing I CANNOT stand, it is being called a racist. That is one type of person I hate with a passion. Something must have showed in my face as I stood up and leaned over the counter. Maybe a very displeased employee standing 6'2" and weighing almost 300 lbs might be a little intimidating, I dunno.
Anyway, I sort of loomed over her like the Ghost of Christmas yet to Come from Dickens' tale and slowly pointed through the front glass to the LED sign at a nearby Walgreen's.
"Ma'am?" I asked, "Do you see that sign?"
Starting to get her courage back a bit, she snapped at me, "Yes? What's that got to do with anything?"
"I may have no right to tell you how to raise your child or what you should or should not do. But earlier today, that sign held an amber alert. A child was kidnapped right in front of that store in broad daylight not 5 hours ago. This is the reason that our store does not allow children into our store without a parent after dark as neither I nor my company will be held responsible if something were to happen."
It just took a moment for the woman to digest everything I'd said, realize what an ass she had been and mumble out a muffled apology before hustling her child out of the store.
As a soon-to-be father myself, I just don't understand how parents can do things like this. I just hope that my words actually sunk in and she won't be letting her kid wander alone, otherwise they me be "keeping out of her hair" for far longer than she realizes.
you? 
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