Raging over insignicant events

[Guest]

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[rgraham666]

I've lived with people like that.

*HUGS* sweetie.

 

[jomar]

For some reason I'm reminded of an old movie, I forget the name, where the whole town was trying to quit smoking. Everybody got really cranky. It was pretty funny.

 

[Guest]

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[christabelll]

that must be my problemmmmmmmmmmmm damnit!

 

[carsonshepherd]

I can see how Wal Mart could send you into a rage, nonetheless I feel sorry for the employees that had to bear the brunt of it. They're underpaid and probably uninsured and have to deal with douchebags like that.

I've lived with people like that, too. It's like living on top of a very active fault line.

 

[BlackShanglan]

It reminds me of a scene in Gloria Naylor's excellent novel Mama Day. The title character, a wise elderly woman, is watching a television chat show and sees a woman asking about UFO's and whether they're friendly or coming to conquer us.

Her husband beats her, Miranda thinks, having seen the slight twitch around her mouth, and that's what she wants explained. She fears her dreams. Pain comes hurling down from the space outside her pillow, and she wakes to find a stranger has left her with a twisted arm or a split lip. Tell me how to sleep at night, she's asking. Now the NASA person was holding up a chart as the woman sat back down, clutching her handbag beneath her breast.

Sometimes we complain or rant or lose control about the things that we can control, or that seem insignificant, because the actual problems are wholly beyond us.

 

[rgraham666]

ISometimes we complain or rant or lose control about the things that we can control, or that seem insignificant, because the actual problems are wholly beyond us.

Been there, done that.

 

[slyc_willie]

A few days ago, we had a five-top in the restaurant. Dad, Mom, Grandma, little boy and a baby. It was Sunday, and we are always busy on Sundays. Naturally, that means that sometimes it takes a while for us to get around to people as quickly as we'd like. But we always try to be polite and keep the guests informed.

Anyway, the table was sat, and the server in the section, busy with a party of twelve, told the five-top that he'd be right with them. Well, he got busier than he thought, so he asked another server to get the drink order for the five. That server ended up busy as well, so he asked yet another to take out the drinks. highly unusual, of course, but the interest here was to give timely service.

At this point, Dad (a huge, muscle-bound guy in a sleeveless T-shirt) started getting a little perturbed. Several tables away, I could hear him ask, "who the hell is our waitress?" The server who brought the drinks informed him that his server was Teddy, presently busy, and indicated who Teddy was.

"So, who's gonna bring our food? I bet it won't be Teddy!"

"Would you like a different server, sir?" I have to hand it to the server who had brought the drinks for remaining cordial.

"I just want one person to wait on us! This is rediculous!"

Of course, our manager, Toby, was involved. He's this short guy with a limp, very unassuming. He gets the story from the two servers who had thus far taken care of the table, then decides to give the five-top to someone else. Me. No problem. I've turned upset tables around before.

But while Toby is talking to me, giving me the run-down, Dad gets up from the table, all six and a half feet of him, and stomps up behind Toby. "Is this how you run your restaurant? You call this service?"

"Sir, we're very busy, as you can see, and it's normal for busy servers to ask for help--"

"I don't want any excuses! I want service!"

I chimed in, with a smile: "I'll be right over, sir. Why don't you go ahead and have a seat, and I'll take care of everything." I indicated his table with my hand, took a step in that direction, which also took me closer to him.

"You gonna let me fuckin' sit down, first?"

I just stared at him. "If you don't mind, sir, there are children present." Honestly, that's what I said.

That was it for him. "This restaurant fucking stinks!" He storms back to his table, grabs his baby carriage with one hand and tosses a menu over his shoulder with the other. Of course, the menu struck another guest seated at a different table.

And I thought, 'here comes a fight,' as the struck gets stood.

Thankfully, though, Mr. Steroids lead his family outside. I noticed how embarrassed everyone else in his party was, especially his wife.

I've seen people get irate over various things in restaurants, but mad because he didn't have just ONE server at his table?

 

[The_Fool]

I rage when Sarahh wears too many clothes....

 

[Guest]

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[The_Fool]

I must remind you, sir, that we've only met in person once.

And as I recall, I was fully clothed.

exactly...

 

[Guest]

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[Guest]

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[BlackShanglan]

I think that for some people, the chief attraction of dining out is the chance to be uncivil to people who have to try to please them anyway. It's the poor man's chance to play Napolean. Any excuse will do.

 

[slyc_willie]

You can wait on my table anytime.

I'll give you special treatment

 

[TE999]

For some reason I'm reminded of an old movie, I forget the name, where the whole town was trying to quit smoking. Everybody got really cranky. It was pretty funny.

That was called "Cold Turkey". Dick Van Dyke had the lead.

People are just complete assholes sometimes.

They take out their frustrations with their fucked-up lives on clerks, waitstaff, attendants, salespersons, etc. who have to take their crap (mostly). Lording it over someone else makes 'em feel good about themselves. Like the schoolyard bully.

I worked retail, service and delivery jobs before and I know.

 

[Guest]

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[slyc_willie]

I think that for some people, the chief attraction of dining out is the chance to be uncivil to people who have to try to please them anyway. It's the poor man's chance to play Napolean. Any excuse will do.

For some, I might agree. But I have also noticed that quite a few people have the automatic tendency to look down upon restaurant workers. Our job may seem easy, and most of the time, it is. But not everyone can do it.

 

[Boota]

I was eating in a Steak and Shake late one night and a customer at another table forced me to get involved because of his ridiculous raging at the wait staff.

This guy was a big loudmouth who THOUGHT he was a real hardass while pushing around women and smaller guys. A waitress asked if she could remove a plate he was obviously finished with and he said yes. But when she reached down to pick up the plate he just started ranting, "Jesus Fucking Christ! You just reached in front of me to take my plate! What the fuck?!"

The waitress didn't know what to do, so she apologized. He followed his initial outburst with a tirade on how stupid she was and that was why she was stuck waiting tables. He was wearing a t-shirt from his place of employment, Chrysler, so we knew he was wellpaid blue collar who did virtually nothing for his huge paycheck. And at his age he had probably walked right in after high school and went to work for them. He didn't know what it was to not have enough money or to deal with an asshole customer. The friend I was there with also worked at Chrysler and knew who the guy was. He was embarassed enough for the all Chrysler workers in the city.

Anyway, the waitress ran off crying. A waiter saw the trouble and came over to take over for her. He asked to remove the plate and the guy said yes again. And again he blew up the same way about the waiter reaching in front of him. There was absolutely nothing you could do to please this guy.

Finally he threw a quarter down for a tip and stood up to storm out. As he walked past my table I leaned over at him and said, "Goddamn, you're a fucking dick!" He shot me a quick look and thought he was going to act hard. Once he got a look at me he changed his mind. (I was 100 pounds heavier at the time. A powerlifter and a fighter. Three hundred fifty pounds of walking muscle and bad attitude.) I added, "You wanna to talk to ME that way, bitch?"

He didn't.

I think I was angrier seeing him treat them that way then I had ever been when someone was doing something directly to me. I had to stand up for them.

I don't think you have a true education, no matter many years you spend in college or learning on the job, until you've spent time in the service industry at some level. It's like it says in the Bible: "People suck."

 

[Trombonus]

I've seen my dad go ballistic a few times. So embarrassing.

 

[slyc_willie]

I had the opportunity to refuse service to a guest, once. He was rude and crass right from the beginning, and made his initial server cry (granted, she was an emotional girl), I took over for her, and the guy starts in on me. Nothing was good enough, from the 'cheap silverware' to the off-white napkins. It was too cold in the restaurant, the print on the menu was too small, "And I can already tell the service is lacking."

I politely took his menu away, told him he was very rude and onoxious, and that I was not going to serve him.

He sat there for another fifteen minutes, then got up and left.

 

[cantdog]

You can't get your food without the waitron units. That's the only weapon they have, sometimes. TE999 is dead on. There are people who go out simply and solely to bully waitstaff and act big.

 

[SeaCat]

I see idiots like this quite often. In restaraunts, in stores and yes even in the hospital. I can never understand people like this.

Maybe it's because I have been and am in the Service Industry that I go out of my way to be helpfull and friendly with these working people.

The best response I ever saw was in a Chinese Restaraunt I tend to frequent, a lot. It is a family run place and has tables for maybe twenty people and their food is incredible. This wanna be Mr. Macho was complaining quite vocally about how his soup wasn't hot enough. He was more than rude with his comments, he was crude and he was vulgar. He had his poor waitress almost in tears.

I stopped her as she headed towards the kitchen. I knew what she was going to do. She was going to complain to her father who would come out and try to eject the guy. I told her to instead tell her father to make another bowl of soup for the guy, but to make it the way he makes it for me. (I told you I go to this place a lot.) She smiled shyly and went into the kitchen.

A short time later she came out with another bowl of soup. I knew she had told her father what was going on because I saw him looking out. She placed the bowl of soup in front of him and informed him that this was a special soup made only for certain customers and pointed me out while saying I had ordered it for him. He looked over at me with a smile on his face and saw me finishing mine off. He got set and took a large spoonful.

It was a pleasure to watch him start sweating as his face turned red and he spit out the soup all over his wife.

He quickly got up and left.

I suppose I should have told him that the Hot and Sour Soup the old man makes for his "Special" customers is seasoned with Thai Peppers.

Cat

 

[Guest]

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