Customers that make you puke!

[greensinestro]

This story is told from the point of view of an employee as well as a customer's point of view. When I worked for Publix, we had a lady who would come in at least once a week, dressed in black, arriving in a beat up all-black Ford Torino station wagon. She was well known for shoplifting, and every time she came in, a manager would have couple of employees follow her around and make sure she did not stuff anything into her black coat, the same black coat she would wear in 100 degree Florida heat.

Not only did this woman shoplift, but it was obvious to all of us that she did not bathe on a regular basis. One day when she went to check out, I was bagging her groceries, and it got to where the cashier had to run off to puke in the ladies room. The manager actually had to finish ringing up this lady's order, and it was all the both of us could do to keep from gagging being this woman smelled so bad. It made me wonder if this lady was actually a corpse brought back to life after it had rotted for a while.

We had another guy who came in every Saturday night to buy Lotto tickets, at least $200 worth every week. This man's hygiene was God-awful, almost always wore the same T-shirt, jeans, and shoes, let alone had yellowish hair from heavy smoking, but always had money to buy lottery tickets. One night this man checked out and I bagged his groceries. I nearly fainted from the smell of this guy, and this was another episode where the cashier had to leave and go puke in the ladies room.

Eighteen years later, it's good to know these two individuals are still alive and well and still looking like they should be sent to a sanitation center. At least, this is what my brother tells me being this was in Jacksonville, and I now live in West Palm Beach. Once in a while, he shops in that same store and will occasionally see these two people, still wearing the same outfits!

[BookstoreEscapee]

18 years ago I was 13...I have 1 shirt that is that old...it's the 8th grade class shirt where we all signed the logo and they had it transferred to t-shirts. I couldn't wear it even if I wanted to (or if I could find it ). I only hung onto it for sentimental reasons...what they are I don't know cuz I hated middle school, but that's neither here nor there....

[greensinestro]

OK, I should rephrase that last part. I do have clothing that old, but I do not wear it. And, I only keep it for sentimental reasons.

[Demonoid Phenomenon]

I recall a lovely man from my Dollar Tree days.
He had long hair, looked completely ratty and never (I mean NEVER) wore a shirt that covered his quite expansive belly (even in the winter). Apparently, he had trimmed off the bottom of all his T-shirts so that he bared his stomach on purpose.
Now, I'm a bit overweight, but I can't imagine advertising my gut to the general public like that.
Oddly enough, he didn't stink, but then again, I rarely went anywhere close enough to know that for sure.

Then there was the entire family of stinkoids who, thankfully, didn't come in on a regular basis. We'd have to walk the entire store with a can of air freshener after they left.

Then there was the lady who talked to the merchandise and smelled of fecal matter, but I've told that one before and didn't exactly savor the memory then, so we'll just act like I never said anything.

[friendofjimmyk]

Hmm...I have a couple shirts that I've had since I was 18. I am 32 now...that makes them pretty old. One of them, I will wear when at home. They both have autographs from members of the band Guns N' Roses. That's why I still have them.

I had a black leather fringe jacket up until I got married at age 27. My husband (now ex) made me give it away. I was holding on to it for purely sentimental reasons.

[Chrysantha]

we had one who'se dentures never stayed in place and smelled like he lived in a dumpster. He'd be standing there all greasy hitting on you simply because you were female...all the while every word his teeth were shifting. Eventually I learned the "clean and hide" technique of pretending I needed to go clean up a spill outside and dump him off to the new cashiers lol.

[Sofar]

I've got a trench coat from the Truman administration and waistcoat from The Summer of Love, but they've been washed a few times since then. Well, the waistcoat hasn't. But it's leather.

[greensinestro]

Just so everyone is aware, because it seems like my last sentence offended a few visitors to this site, I have omitted the part about those who might have clothing that is 18 years or older. I should have stated that these two same individuals are still wearing what appear to be the same outfits they wore all those years ago that I worked there.

[Sofar]

Oh, I was just chiming in. =) I was about to apologize for the thread-jack, actually.

[Lace Neil Singer]

*also chiming in* I still wear band t-shirts I bought back in my teen days. Cept now, from washings, they're charcoal grey rather than black.

The only customer who made me feel sick was Cologne Bathing Man, described in the Stinky Customers thread. Oh, and Snotty Nosed Man who had nasal drip that made me want to rush off and vomit, but I waited til he'd gone before I ran to the back room and gagged. This was at the garden centre, Colongne Bathing Man was at the supermarket.

[Boozy]

The Mold Lady!
She wore this really old pair of boots that had mold growing on them, which stinks. And she sat down at one of our tables until my boss asked her to leave. He was worried that someone with a mold allergy would come in and go into shock. It was that bad.

[myswtghst]

I'd complain about mine, but I suppose it would be unfair, as they all happened when I worked at the ER as a valet. We got the occasional car-to-be-parked with big ol fresh blood or puke stains, and you just had to pull out a plastic bag, cover it up, and go. Generally speaking, they only staffed those of us with strong stomachs at the ER, given what you might be dealing with.

[Antisocial_Worker]

I've told the story before of the little girl in the bookstore who took a dump in the kids books and then jumped up and down in it. So, moving on, we'll talk about the tampon lady.

A lady and her daughter checked in, went to their room, then came right back up to complain that they didn't like the way it smelled and that they wanted a new one. That wasn't a problem, so we moved them to another room and my boss sent me down to the first room to check it out and see if it really did stink.

As I recall, the room just needed some fresh air blown into it, as it as summer and it smelled a little shut up. What I remember most vividly though was that because the room just needed some air, I might as well straighten it up in case we needed it.

The room didn't need much attention. They'd used the bathroom and washed their hands, so the soap needed to be replaced and that was about it. However, when I looked in the trashcan in there, I noticed a wad of toilet paper. Figuring they'd just blown their nose or something, I thought I could flush that and then the trashcan would be passable again. I mean, the paper didn't appear wet or anything, so it was like any other wad of paper and I really didn't feel like changing the plastic bag in the can.

So, I got another tissue and gingerly lifted out the wad of paper, at which point it unrolled and a bloody tampon splatted onto the floor. And yes, the word splatted is very accurate and we'll talk no more of that.

That's how I came to have to replace the soap, replace the can liner, and mop the floor.

There were also the people whose sheets smelled very strongly of cheese when they turned them in (they weren't taking housekeeping and were changing their own sheets every few days), and I remarked involuntarily very loudly on this fact, but thank God they didn't seem to have heard me.

[ArenaBoy]

Hmmm, let's see. There is the numerous country music concerts that I work at the party venue during the summer. A stench of beer, sweat, piss, and gasoline requires a strong stomach and an ability to be able to go without eating for 5 or 6 hours so you can avoid losing your lunch. Then there has been the numerous times that I've caught customers having sex in their car, in the treeline at the party venue, or in the woods at the college venue. I pretty much have a plethora of customers that have made me nautious but after a while you get used to it. The joys of working at arenas.

[pookalamouche]

not my story

a friend of mine works in a removals company and he's seen some pretty gross stuff but the worst story he's told me has to be when he went to clear a mother and daughters 2 bed town house. nothing seemed out of the ordinary, until he and his mate lifted the matress in the daughters room and found a colony of used tampons between the matress and the base of the bed. he said he almost vomited.

a little off topic, sorry guys, but hauntedheadnc reminded me!