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Ever since starting my new job at the aquarium, I've had little time for well... anything! That, I've started going to a new workout group, for those who've heard of Crossfit. It's a little ridiculous with how busy I've been, given how I'm so used to being lazy. But I'm seeing results! I got my first paycheck (and since my pay is a little higher than minimum wage, it wasn't a bad chunk of change for a little over a week of work!), and I'm already seeing some results in my waist from my workouts!
But of course, this is posted in Sucky Customers, so naturally, I already have some stories to tell! And fair warning, it's a long list!
SC the First
My first day consisted of me standing in the gift shop (which you have to go through to get to the exit), asking people how their visit was andharassing asking them to answer our survey about things we did well and things we need to improve on. The comments we get on these are going to be a separate section all on their own, but don't worry, you'll get to see how brilliant some of my customers can be... Anyway onto the SC I got on my first day...
Eevie: "Hi, how are you guys? Did ya'll----"
SC: "SHUT THE
UP YOU STUPID !"
Eevie:
I guess he was having a bad day.... Although I'm still not sure how I deserved that...
I had another one of these idiots about two hours later.
Another from my first day
Not an SC but the guy was funny. Before my supervisor told me where I was supposed to go seeing as I didn't have any sort of training, I hung out with a coworker behind the retail register, making small talk with the customers.
This happened to the first man I talked to, he was with his family of 4-5.
Me: "Hello sir, how was your visit today?"
Man: "Expensive!"
Me: "Sir, I'm really not sure how to respond to that..."
Luckily every took it in good humor and my coworker saved it with, "Well, at long as you guys had fun, that's all that matters."
Under normal circumstances, I think I'd have been fine... But for my first customer to say that, it caught my a little off guard.
Survey Comments
"[Coworker's name] was a great help! we now love america!!!" (AMURICA!)
"no whales" (Note: Our aquarium is located in a freaking MALL. We DO NOT have room for whales!)
"needs bigger octopus and sharks" (Now the octopus I can understand, he's really small and being an octopus, can fit into the tiniest corners that you would have to crane your neck to see him. But once again, we don't have the room. Same issue with the sharks)
"needs more male employees" (Um... Kay...)
"the sea turtles were missing limbs. you guys need to take better care of your animals!" (We have a sea turtle rescue program. Our sea turtles came to us that way. And there are signs THAT COVER THE WALLS that detail the accidents they were in and the progress they've made since their accidents. Now, sometimes kids come up asking what's wrong with the sea turtles, that I don't mind, the kids are more likely to watch the turtles for a bit and move on to the next area, not stop and read the signs. But this comment actually came from a secret shopper, an ADULT. What pisses me off is we would've had a perfect score if not for that comment... And as for not taking care of the animals, these guys take better care of the animals better than I do my own pets, which is saying something.)
SC the Second
Another part of my job is taking and editing pictures. Usually not on the same day however, seeing as they are in completely different places. To edit the photos is a manual work, if a guest sees one picture, then looks at another one, and then asks to see the first one again, I have to recreate it, since the designs are not saved to the computer. It's a bit of a pain.
SC comes up to the photo editing counter.
Me: "Hi, how are you today ma'am?"
SC: "Fine, can I get [Pose 1] (We take two photos, one, a nice normal picture, and another of the guests looking up, acting scared, it's pretty funny!) with this background..." (By the way, I am working with a green screen if you couldn't tell)
Me: "No problem, ma'am!"
SC: "Hmmm... Now can I have it with this background?"
Me: "Sure, hold on just a second...." *edits picture"
SC: "Okay, now can I see [Pose 2] with this background?"
Me: "Sure thing!" *edits*
SC: (This was a funny one) "How cute! Can I see it with this background?"
Me: (noticing that the already long line is getting much longer) "Of course." *edits yet again*
SC:
"How funny! But I'm not going to get anything. Bye!"
Me: "......" (In head) Are you freaking serious, lady?!
Guy behind her: "Are you me?"
The line got so long behind her that some people actually ended up leaving...
SC story from a coworker
We can't open the photo register unless there's a transaction. Unfortunately we have a souvenir penny machine right next to the desk and our change machine often breaks down for whatever the reason. So naturally people go to the nearest register for change. No problem there, I mean, I don't automatically assume that the register won't open without a purchase...
But my coworker told me about one woman who went utterly apeshit and she almost had to call police down.... Her quotes are as follows:
SC: "What do you mean you can't give me change?! Are you stupid?!
"You can't open the register unless there's a purchase? YOU! NOW I HAVE TO GIVE YOU IDIOTS EVEN MORE MONEY FOR MY DAMN PENNY!!!!! WHAT A STUPID RULE!!!1!11!11eleventy!!11!"
Coworker stayed quiet, but she needed her break soon after...
SC Kids!
So I had my first gift shop tantrum just the other day. It was pretty impressive... Our aquarium offers a free scratch off question and answer sheet for your visit. If you keep it until you reach the gift shop, you get a prize. It's aimed towards the kids, but I've given the prize, which is a little plastic medal, to adults and a few elderly visitors as well.
So in comes a little girl, no more than seven, with her mother, father, and little brother into the gift shop. The little brother is as happy as can be, while the little girl is already in a rotten mood, I'm not sure what caused it though... Dad comes to turn in her paper for her prize.
Little girl: "SAY YES! LET ME GO!!!!"
Dad: "Nope, sorry. We don't have time."
Me: "Hi, how are you guys? Would you like to turn in the sheet for your prize?"
Dad: "Sure!"
Me: "Cool. (a little quieter) Hopefully that'll calm things down a bit..."
Dad: "Hope so. *hands him the medal* Hey, look sweetie, you got a medal! Wanna put it on?"
Little Girl: "NO! NOT UNTIL YOU SAY YES!!!"
Dad: "Fine then, I guess I'll wear it then."
Me: "It looks excellent on you, sir."
Meanwhile the little girl screamed and pouted the entire time, the screaming getting louder and louder the more her parents ignored her.
After her brother picked out a toy, she sat down on the floor and continued to scream.
Little girl: "I'M NOT GETTING UP UNTIL YOU SAY YES!!!!!! SAY IT!!!!!!!!!!!"
Now take your pick on what awesome parents did in response to this:
A) Caved, said yes, all to make the screaming stop
B) Picked the girl up and carried her out, saying they'd go tomorrow, all while she's still screaming.
C) Did absolutely nothing in response aside from walking out the exit for the little girl to come chasing after them, still screaming, and still paid no attention to her behavior.
If you guessed C, correct! Hail to some awesome parenting to screaming kids!
Also, shout out to my own mother. 
Someone who would've (and has done many times) the exact same thing in the exact same scenario!
Non-Observant Kid the First
Kid: "Do you sell toys here?"
Me (at my gift shop post): "No, sorry buddy, the hordes of stuffed animals with price tags on them are just for show."
Kid: "That was a stupid question was it?"
Me: "Hey, you said it, not me!"
Hey, at least the kid had a sense of humor!
Non-Observant Kid the Second
Kid: "Hey lady, can you give us change? *holds up a five"
Me (at my gift shop greeting post with clearly no register anywhere nearby): "No guys, sorry. I can't make change, I don't have any money on me. But if you go around the corner to the cash register, they should be able to help you."
Really? If I had coin rolls on my belt, I could understand. But I didn't. Seriously guys, I'd be like our break room vending machine, I'd just take your money and give nothing in return.
Now I see what CS means when they say people don't read signs...
We have two exits, one that leads out into the rest of the mall, and the other is an emergency exit. And it has four different signs on it saying "STOP! EMERGENCY EXIT ONLY!"
In some cases, I can forgive not reading it. Like a poor mom who had spent four days with her kids and husband at a nearby hotel/ resort thing... Six floors of activities and naturally the kids were exhausted. But since they were on vacation, mom wanted to get more out of the area and took them to the aquarium.
The kids were fussy and clearly overwhelmed. I could even see it on the parents. All I had to ask was, "Long day?" and mom poured out with what had been happening over the week. Then went chasing the kids out the emergency exit.
In that case, I get it. My dad would do the exact same thing. Schedule a shit ton of stuff to cram into the week, and didn't think about if his young children could handle it all.
But most people paid no mind and just walked out. Had one lady who was halfway out the door before her husband stopped her and pointed out the sign. She even turned around and asked me if it was okay!
My only reply? "Well you're already halfway outside anyway..."
Retail Christening?
So for whatever the reason, the labels on our glass jellyfish ornaments have disappeared. Normally people just ask how much they are, simple enough.
But one woman who looked like she came out of "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" took one look at them turned to me and said, "Hey, since these have no price tag they must be free, right?! "
My first "Must be free!" joke? Didn't think my warm welcome into retail would come within a week...
And finally, last but absolutely not the least, the little girl that made my week... Or maybe even the rest of the month
My first day on photo admissions (where I take photos) I had a family of three come in and take pictures. The family consisted of a mom and her son and daughter. The daughter is the most adorable little girl I think I've ever seen, with big bouncy blonde curls and bright blue eyes, with a big pink bow in her hair. I take their pictures and wish them a wonderful time.
Later, my shift ends at photo admissions and I move to my gift shop greeting post. When I see the family a little later, they recognize me as the girl who took their pictures and we chat for a bit. They go back upstairs, out of the gift shop, and come back down with a bag from buying photos.
At this point, the kids are a little wild, screaming and running around, mom is clearly getting annoyed. Mom grabs her daughter and gives her a picture and says, with a low aggravated tone, "Tell her what you told me..."
By this point, with how mom is acting I'm thinking, "Oh shit, what did I do? Did I screw up their picture? On my very first day of taking them? Fuck...."
But no. The picture the girl held up so proudly was the one I took of the family smiling together. The photo desk had given the girl a mermaid tail and it looked really good!
But then I got the most adorable thing I think I've ever heard come out of a child..
Little girl: "Do you like it?! I love it! And someday I'll meet my prince and he'll see it and think I'm the prettiest mermaid princess ever! Thank you!"
And then she gave me a hug... It was all I could do to not start crying right there on the spot. I was smiling for the rest of my shift! I'm also thinking about submitting that story to Not Always Right... Think I should?
Well those are my stories from the new job so far. Between my own customers and my coworkers stories, I hope to have many more! Later!
But of course, this is posted in Sucky Customers, so naturally, I already have some stories to tell! And fair warning, it's a long list!
SC the First
My first day consisted of me standing in the gift shop (which you have to go through to get to the exit), asking people how their visit was and
Eevie: "Hi, how are you guys? Did ya'll----"
SC: "SHUT THE
UP YOU STUPID !"Eevie:
I guess he was having a bad day.... Although I'm still not sure how I deserved that...
I had another one of these idiots about two hours later.Another from my first day
Not an SC but the guy was funny. Before my supervisor told me where I was supposed to go seeing as I didn't have any sort of training, I hung out with a coworker behind the retail register, making small talk with the customers.
This happened to the first man I talked to, he was with his family of 4-5.
Me: "Hello sir, how was your visit today?"
Man: "Expensive!"
Me: "Sir, I'm really not sure how to respond to that..."
Luckily every took it in good humor and my coworker saved it with, "Well, at long as you guys had fun, that's all that matters."
Under normal circumstances, I think I'd have been fine... But for my first customer to say that, it caught my a little off guard.
Survey Comments
"[Coworker's name] was a great help! we now love america!!!" (AMURICA!)
"no whales" (Note: Our aquarium is located in a freaking MALL. We DO NOT have room for whales!)
"needs bigger octopus and sharks" (Now the octopus I can understand, he's really small and being an octopus, can fit into the tiniest corners that you would have to crane your neck to see him. But once again, we don't have the room. Same issue with the sharks)
"needs more male employees" (Um... Kay...)
"the sea turtles were missing limbs. you guys need to take better care of your animals!" (We have a sea turtle rescue program. Our sea turtles came to us that way. And there are signs THAT COVER THE WALLS that detail the accidents they were in and the progress they've made since their accidents. Now, sometimes kids come up asking what's wrong with the sea turtles, that I don't mind, the kids are more likely to watch the turtles for a bit and move on to the next area, not stop and read the signs. But this comment actually came from a secret shopper, an ADULT. What pisses me off is we would've had a perfect score if not for that comment... And as for not taking care of the animals, these guys take better care of the animals better than I do my own pets, which is saying something.)
SC the Second
Another part of my job is taking and editing pictures. Usually not on the same day however, seeing as they are in completely different places. To edit the photos is a manual work, if a guest sees one picture, then looks at another one, and then asks to see the first one again, I have to recreate it, since the designs are not saved to the computer. It's a bit of a pain.
SC comes up to the photo editing counter.
Me: "Hi, how are you today ma'am?"
SC: "Fine, can I get [Pose 1] (We take two photos, one, a nice normal picture, and another of the guests looking up, acting scared, it's pretty funny!) with this background..." (By the way, I am working with a green screen if you couldn't tell)
Me: "No problem, ma'am!"
SC: "Hmmm... Now can I have it with this background?"
Me: "Sure, hold on just a second...." *edits picture"
SC: "Okay, now can I see [Pose 2] with this background?"
Me: "Sure thing!" *edits*
SC:
(This was a funny one) "How cute! Can I see it with this background?"Me: (noticing that the already long line is getting much longer) "Of course." *edits yet again*
SC:
"How funny! But I'm not going to get anything. Bye!"Me: "......" (In head) Are you freaking serious, lady?!
Guy behind her: "Are you
me?"The line got so long behind her that some people actually ended up leaving...
SC story from a coworker
We can't open the photo register unless there's a transaction. Unfortunately we have a souvenir penny machine right next to the desk and our change machine often breaks down for whatever the reason. So naturally people go to the nearest register for change. No problem there, I mean, I don't automatically assume that the register won't open without a purchase...
But my coworker told me about one woman who went utterly apeshit and she almost had to call police down.... Her quotes are as follows:
SC: "What do you mean you can't give me change?! Are you stupid?!
"You can't open the register unless there's a purchase?
YOU! NOW I HAVE TO GIVE YOU IDIOTS EVEN MORE MONEY FOR MY DAMN PENNY!!!!! WHAT A STUPID RULE!!!1!11!11eleventy!!11!"Coworker stayed quiet, but she needed her break soon after...
SC Kids!
So I had my first gift shop tantrum just the other day. It was pretty impressive... Our aquarium offers a free scratch off question and answer sheet for your visit. If you keep it until you reach the gift shop, you get a prize. It's aimed towards the kids, but I've given the prize, which is a little plastic medal, to adults and a few elderly visitors as well.
So in comes a little girl, no more than seven, with her mother, father, and little brother into the gift shop. The little brother is as happy as can be, while the little girl is already in a rotten mood, I'm not sure what caused it though... Dad comes to turn in her paper for her prize.
Little girl: "SAY YES! LET ME GO!!!!"
Dad: "Nope, sorry. We don't have time."
Me: "Hi, how are you guys? Would you like to turn in the sheet for your prize?"
Dad: "Sure!"
Me: "Cool. (a little quieter) Hopefully that'll calm things down a bit..."
Dad: "Hope so. *hands him the medal* Hey, look sweetie, you got a medal! Wanna put it on?"
Little Girl: "NO! NOT UNTIL YOU SAY YES!!!"
Dad: "Fine then, I guess I'll wear it then."
Me: "It looks excellent on you, sir."
Meanwhile the little girl screamed and pouted the entire time, the screaming getting louder and louder the more her parents ignored her.
After her brother picked out a toy, she sat down on the floor and continued to scream.
Little girl: "I'M NOT GETTING UP UNTIL YOU SAY YES!!!!!! SAY IT!!!!!!!!!!!"
Now take your pick on what awesome parents did in response to this:
A) Caved, said yes, all to make the screaming stop
B) Picked the girl up and carried her out, saying they'd go tomorrow, all while she's still screaming.
C) Did absolutely nothing in response aside from walking out the exit for the little girl to come chasing after them, still screaming, and still paid no attention to her behavior.
If you guessed C, correct! Hail to some awesome parenting to screaming kids!
Also, shout out to my own mother. Someone who would've (and has done many times) the exact same thing in the exact same scenario!Non-Observant Kid the First
Kid: "Do you sell toys here?"
Me (at my gift shop post): "No, sorry buddy, the hordes of stuffed animals with price tags on them are just for show."
Kid:
"That was a stupid question was it?"Me: "Hey, you said it, not me!"
Hey, at least the kid had a sense of humor!
Non-Observant Kid the Second
Kid: "Hey lady, can you give us change? *holds up a five"
Me (at my gift shop greeting post with clearly no register anywhere nearby): "No guys, sorry. I can't make change, I don't have any money on me. But if you go around the corner to the cash register, they should be able to help you."
Really? If I had coin rolls on my belt, I could understand. But I didn't. Seriously guys, I'd be like our break room vending machine, I'd just take your money and give nothing in return.
Now I see what CS means when they say people don't read signs...
We have two exits, one that leads out into the rest of the mall, and the other is an emergency exit. And it has four different signs on it saying "STOP! EMERGENCY EXIT ONLY!"
In some cases, I can forgive not reading it. Like a poor mom who had spent four days with her kids and husband at a nearby hotel/ resort thing... Six floors of activities and naturally the kids were exhausted. But since they were on vacation, mom wanted to get more out of the area and took them to the aquarium.
The kids were fussy and clearly overwhelmed. I could even see it on the parents. All I had to ask was, "Long day?" and mom poured out with what had been happening over the week. Then went chasing the kids out the emergency exit.
In that case, I get it. My dad would do the exact same thing. Schedule a shit ton of stuff to cram into the week, and didn't think about if his young children could handle it all.
But most people paid no mind and just walked out. Had one lady who was halfway out the door before her husband stopped her and pointed out the sign. She even turned around and asked me if it was okay!
My only reply? "Well you're already halfway outside anyway..."
Retail Christening?
So for whatever the reason, the labels on our glass jellyfish ornaments have disappeared. Normally people just ask how much they are, simple enough.
But one woman who looked like she came out of "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" took one look at them turned to me and said, "Hey, since these have no price tag they must be free, right?!
"My first "Must be free!" joke? Didn't think my warm welcome into retail would come within a week...
And finally, last but absolutely not the least, the little girl that made my week... Or maybe even the rest of the month
My first day on photo admissions (where I take photos) I had a family of three come in and take pictures. The family consisted of a mom and her son and daughter. The daughter is the most adorable little girl I think I've ever seen, with big bouncy blonde curls and bright blue eyes, with a big pink bow in her hair. I take their pictures and wish them a wonderful time.
Later, my shift ends at photo admissions and I move to my gift shop greeting post. When I see the family a little later, they recognize me as the girl who took their pictures and we chat for a bit. They go back upstairs, out of the gift shop, and come back down with a bag from buying photos.
At this point, the kids are a little wild, screaming and running around, mom is clearly getting annoyed. Mom grabs her daughter and gives her a picture and says, with a low aggravated tone, "Tell her what you told me..."
By this point, with how mom is acting I'm thinking, "Oh shit, what did I do? Did I screw up their picture? On my very first day of taking them? Fuck...."
But no. The picture the girl held up so proudly was the one I took of the family smiling together. The photo desk had given the girl a mermaid tail and it looked really good!
But then I got the most adorable thing I think I've ever heard come out of a child..
Little girl: "Do you like it?! I love it! And someday I'll meet my prince and he'll see it and think I'm the prettiest mermaid princess ever! Thank you!"
And then she gave me a hug... It was all I could do to not start crying right there on the spot. I was smiling for the rest of my shift! I'm also thinking about submitting that story to Not Always Right... Think I should?
Well those are my stories from the new job so far. Between my own customers and my coworkers stories, I hope to have many more! Later!
Most places anymore can't open the cash register except for a sale! It's to protect against sticky-fingered thieves. Sure, you may be honest, but not everyone is.
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