... What?

[Imogene]

This has GOT to be a first. At least for me.

Had an older lady in my line tonight, she had a skein of yarn, and nothing else. I ring her up, tell her her total, and she hands me her gift card to pay. I swipe it, and she suddenly mentions she has a coupon. "Um... short of doing a return and resell, I can't take the coupon at this point, as I'm only waiting for your zip code, so I can get you a receipt."
"You went too fast!"
Huh? What? "I'm sorry?"
"You just want me out of here, don't you?"
"Ma'am, most customers who come through the store expect us to be fast."
"You didn't let me use my coupon."
You never mentioned a coupon. "Like I said, I can do a return and resell you the yarn, with your coupon, and put the difference on a store card for you."
"You went too fast!"
By now, she's got a line behind her, and FES T is the only other cashier around, and is trying to help me fix this as smoothly as possible.

Anyway, I get her sorted out, and she sits at the counter a few more minutes, taking up space while she organizes herself to go back out into the cold. Meanwhile, I was about to just work around her in what little space I had, and had turned to my next customer, and caught her rolling her eyes, I assume, at the woman. Ah well.

[Aggravated Associate]

I don't much care for your efficiency, you young whipper-snapper. I DEMAND MEDIOCRITY!

[marty]

I like the people that, after you've rung them up, taken their money, prepared their change and are in the process of giving them their stuff and receipt, say, "Oh! I have exact change!" They then glare at you when they realize they're too slow, as if it were your fault.

How dare we don't take five years ringing people up!

[bigjimaz]

You know that if you would have went at the speed she apparently thinks you should have went, she'd be whining that you were going too slow and that she was in a hurry. Farkin' Beach.

[aurelemsrealm]

Don't feel bad. I seem to deal with it frequently. I ring up the customer, take their payment, give them their change, and proceed to close the drawer. Suddenly, they manage to find exact change after I've already went to the trouble of counting their change. Sometimes, if it's busy, I simply pretend not to hear them and shut the drawer anyway because I get tired of it after a while. "Sorry (false sincerity, obviously, at that point), but I've already closed the drawer. I can't get back into the register." I can if I have to, but it's not going to happen. I swear, stupid people deserve to be treated like the nuissances they are to everyone else.

[powerboy]

Wow, I kinda feel stupid now. Because sometimes after I get rung out, I find the change. And If I have the change, I will mention that I have it. If the cashier is too stupid to hear it, then it is on them.

[Bagga]

powerboy said:

"If the cashier is too stupid to hear it, then it is on them"

... What?

Are you sure you are posting on the right website?

Even in the smallest shop I ever shop in, there is space between where I selected my items and where I pay for them. I always quickly estimate how much I have spent, grab slightly more notes or pound coins than I think I need, hold them in the same hand as my wallet, and select a decent amount of change to hold in my other hand - up to about a pound, if possible. If I can calculate the exact total, I try to make it before I get to the till.

I don't think this makes the cashier any less "stupid", but the practice might make me slightly less so, and it certainly makes me more polite and helpful. As a result, the cashiers at my local supermarket know me, and will point out bargains - and especially will advise me when there is a Ben & Jerry's promo on.

The sentence I quoted puts all the blame for your lack of forethought on the shoulders of the cashier, and the use of the phrase "too stupid" also carries the implication that it is a given that he or she is stupid, but in this case exceeds the norm.

[Slow-Jo]

Wow, I kinda feel stupid now. Because sometimes after I get rung out, I find the change. And If I have the change, I will mention that I have it. If the cashier is too stupid to hear it, then it is on them.

Im slightly deaf in my right ear. does that make me stupid?

[powerboy]

I never meant to insult anyone. I am only talking about the jerks that truly act like you are inconveniencing them, by saying that you have exact change. And plus, not everyone is stupid or sucky because they may take a couple of seconds more then, what you would take to get the change.

Slow-Jo, I am slightly deaf in my right ear also.

I will apologize for anyone, that I have insulted.

[marty]

powerboy: If someone says, "Hold on a second, I think I have change," as they're handing me their other bills then I will wait. If they hand me their bills and stare at me, then decide they want change after I've closed the register, well, I'm damn well not going to take it.

Because honestly, I'm bad at math and that's how some people try to pull off scams.

[gunsage]

"You went too fast!"

"OH - KAY ... HOW'S - THIS? ... AN - Y - BET - TER?"

[Slow-Jo]

I never meant to insult anyone. I am only talking about the jerks that truly act like you are inconveniencing them, by saying that you have exact change. And plus, not everyone is stupid or sucky because they may take a couple of seconds more then, what you would take to get the change.

Slow-Jo, I am slightly deaf in my right ear also.

I will apologize for anyone, that I have insulted.

that makes much more sense. your apology is accepted!

i always make a joke out of my lack of hearing, when one of the staff members asks me something and i cant hear them i always say "what?! talk into my good ear deary!"

ironically the reason why i have bad hearing in that ear is because of the drive-thru at work. people and their huge truck, not turning off the engine.

[powerboy]

Because honestly, I'm bad at math and that's how some people try to pull off scams.

I am bad at math also, and I do the samething.

that makes much more sense. your apology is accepted!

i always make a joke out of my lack of hearing, when one of the staff members asks me something and i cant hear them i always say "what?! talk into my good ear deary!"

ironically the reason why i have bad hearing in that ear is because of the drive-thru at work. people and their huge truck, not turning off the engine.

[aurelemsrealm]

Wow, I kinda feel stupid now. Because sometimes after I get rung out, I find the change. And If I have the change, I will mention that I have it. If the cashier is too stupid to hear it, then it is on them.

If you posted that in reference to my comment, I can understand customers who want to add change to the money they're using for payment in order to make their change less cumbersome. The thing is that it would be easier if they would mention their intention before I count their change back to them. Believe me, I'll wait in the interests of keeping things as simple as possible. Naturally, I'm one of those people who assumes the transaction is complete once I give customers their change. The ones who annoy me are the ones who dig for more change to give me after I've started counting their change back to them. Even though I can do the math in most cases, it's still one of those moments of feeling like a deer in the headlights, especially when the store is busy and I have a line of other impatient customers who want to move forward.

[marasbaras]

Normally, I'm watching the total. If I have exact change, I have it out immediate.

The cashiers I hate are the ones who will hand me back the coins I've specifically picked out and won't just type the amount I gave them into the register. I _am_ good at math, so, what I've handed is a nice even amount. And, I pick it out QUICKLY. If I can't, I just hand the cashier bills.

My total is $14.87? Here's $15.12 ... modern registers will do all the work.

I'm with the OP on the grannies who want to dig through their change purses. Oi!

There's a sign at a McDonald's drive-thru in Seattle, WA (Northgate one, for anyone who lives close) that says something to the effect of "Let us make change, we can do it faster than you can find exact change." Oh, I love that one.