"How can it be $50? She must be wrong!"

[Coconut]

Back in my cashier day I had this one... I know there are tons of stories on here but I figured I'd share this one.

A young couple came through my line literally smooching all over each other (get a room!). As I rang up their stuff, the total comes to $50 on the dot. Now, as we cashiers know that does happen sometimes and it's not all that rare.

SC: Excuse me?
Me: $50
SC: What?
Me: $50 (has to literally point to total on register so they see it)

They paid... but as they walked away I heard them mumbling... "How could that be 50 dollars? No way... she must be wrong!"

[Becks]

Too bad you couldn't find a way to add a random number of cents to the total to make it believable.

[LostMyMind]

For many many years, a very popular pizza place where I live, set their prices so it will always add to a dollar amount. The tax was included in the displayed cost so everything was rounded up to the nearest dollar. Once they decided to go hi-tech (which means they got a POS register), they decided to let taxes go to the cents. Sometimes I wish more business did that, display final cost with any and all taxes added up.

(This place is so popular that they don't open on sunday and only open for dinner 5pm-10pm and still in business for 30+ years)

[Ryu]

my movie theater has everything end in .00 .25 or .50 after tax is factored in
its so nice rarely having to deal with pennies!
people never believe tax is factored in though haha

[tonydanza]

I guess those people don't realise that the possibility of that is 1 in 100.

[kerrisan]

That's hilarious . . . anybody's bill has as much chance of being $50 as it does $50.34 or $50.07. And really, if they still paid when they thought it was "wrong" then they're just wusses for not saying something!Stop smooching and use your brains!

[Worker-Intellectual]

I guess those people don't realise that the possibility of that is 1 in 100.

Not really... it's probably less than that depending on where you live, since a lot of places (at least where I work), most items are at 99 cents, plus 13% tax (7% PST, 6% GST). It's not easy to make a combination out of #.99 cents that totals to a dollar even... I know I do more than 100 transactions a day and it's not a daily event that often that stuff adds up to a dollar... I think the last time it happened was back when there was 14% tax and there was a #.69 or two in there.

and that is my anal-retentive reply

[tonydanza]

Not really... it's probably less than that depending on where you live, since a lot of places (at least where I work), most items are at 99 cents, plus 13% tax (7% PST, 6% GST). It's not easy to make a combination out of #.99 cents that totals to a dollar even... I know I do more than 100 transactions a day and it's not a daily event that often that stuff adds up to a dollar... I think the last time it happened was back when there was 14% tax and there was a #.69 or two in there.

and that is my anal-retentive reply

well sure statistically, but I was just saying grassroot's, there are 100 possibilities, and that was 1 of them. No other number seems to be more likely than another (that I know of). I'm no math whiz.

[LostMyMind]

well sure statistically, but I was just saying grassroot's, there are 100 possibilities, and that was 1 of them.

Well, you would be correct if that was all of the data was change for a dollar = what chance of pennies. But we know it isn't. Tax %, prices, # of different products, etc... will tilt the statistics. Making a zero penny rarer.

[Greenday]

Coconut, you are really silly. You forgot to add their stupidity tax on. That will change it from $50.

[Jester]

Amazing how so few people realize that the tax is figured in to the cost of their cocktail(s) at virtually every bar. There is tax on booze, folks, but bars want to deal with small change as little as possible, and keep the suds (and money) flowing quickly!

On a completely different note, once at my first table-waiting job back in ancient times (the 80's), I had a table freak about their total....and I was kind of with them. They only had a couple things, so their bill was low...but I saw the total, and didn't know whether to laugh or run. As I remember....

ME: Um, folks, this is kind of weird. Your total is $6.66.
GUY: [nervous laughter] That is weird.
ME: It gets stranger. You are sitting at table 13.
GUY: [no longer laughing] We'll take another coffee.

And speaking of weirdness with numbers, this last one has nothing to do with sucky customers, but it was still weird. I was checking out at the end of a shift at a restaurant, and I looked at my total sales. They were $333.33. The date? March 3rd. 3/3. Anyone want to guess what my lucky number is? Right. 3.

[El Barto]

And speaking of weirdness with numbers, this last one has nothing to do with sucky customers, but it was still weird. I was checking out at the end of a shift at a restaurant, and I looked at my total sales. They were $333.33. The date? March 3rd. 3/3. Anyone want to guess what my lucky number is? Right. 3.

I hope you bought a lotto ticket after work that day.

I've had the total come to $20.00 once. And of course that person was one of the few customers that didnt pay with a 20, just once I wanted to have someone hand me a 20 and not have to give them a lot of change back.

[Jester]

I hope you bought a lotto ticket after work that day.

I am not sure, but I think I may have. I am sure, however, that if I did buy one I did not win.

just once I wanted to have someone hand me a 20 and not have to give them a lot of change back.

I have a friend who used to mess with convenience store clerks. Already knowing how much the purchase would cost from experience, he would walk in to the store, grab a few items, and walk up to the register. The clerk would ring him up, say, "That will be $7.83" and my evil friend would look them dead in the eye, say "I know" put that exact amount down and walk out. Creeped them out every time. Of course, being a magician, that is basically his job-description anyway.

[Coconut]

On a completely different note, once at my first table-waiting job back in ancient times (the 80's), I had a table freak about their total....and I was kind of with them. They only had a couple things, so their bill was low...but I saw the total, and didn't know whether to laugh or run. As I remember....

ME: Um, folks, this is kind of weird. Your total is $6.66.
GUY: [nervous laughter] That is weird.
ME: It gets stranger. You are sitting at table 13.
GUY: [no longer laughing] We'll take another coffee.

I had the $6.66 before... as soon as I told the lady the total she very quickly picked up a pack of gum to add on to her purchase.

[skeptic53]

ME: Um, folks, this is kind of weird. Your total is $6.66.

I looked at my total sales. They were $333.33. The date? March 3rd. 3/3. Anyone want to guess what my lucky number is? Right. 3.

My mom had a total at a hardware store of $6.66 on 06/06/66 (June 6, 1966 for you Europeans). She kept that receipt for a very long time, might even still have it, a little over 40 years later!