Ohhhh ma goodness.

April writing...

I took a trip to Bed, Bath and Beyond at lunch today to pick up a wedding present for an ex-co-worker of mine. Her wedding is on Saturday...anywho.

I picked out my items...I can't say what they are in case she reads this. I also swung by the car freshener isle to pick up a scent for my car, seeing as how every time Cory gets in he turns up his nose in disgust and says, "Your car stinks." I don't know why it does. I have looked for dropped food, a dead animal (OK it doesn't stink that bad, but I looked anyways) I have even changed my little car trash can for fear that napkins or tissues may be causing the stench. Nothing. Still I am left with this dull, musty smell that is my car. I have kinda of learned to tune it out...but Cory reminds me every time.

Soooo anyways...I got a car freshener...from Yankee Candle...it was called "Autumn Leaves." Of course it is packaged tight so I can't really get a feel for what is smells like, so I look for the candle...nada. So I decide, that it should work...after all, I enjoy fall-type smells.

I head up the register with my stuff...presents and a car freshener. The lovely sales clerk lady starts ringing me up and finds that there is no UPC on the back of one of my presents, so the Mr. manager-dude wanders over and takes it to look it up. At this point, lovely sales clerk lady smells the car freshener...I say, "I can't really smell it...so I hope it's good! ha" She says, "Oh couldn't you smell the candle to see if you like it?" to which I say, "I couldn't find the candle." Mr. Manager-dude looks over and says "I see ONE on the shelf, it looks out of place. Go give it a try." So I walk over, (like 10 steps away) give it a sniff and quickly decide that the smell of wet leaves wouldn't do the trick....bleechhh!

The lovely sales clerk lady laughs and says, "Oh I used to use the satchel scents in my car...why don't you give those a try." Now, during this whole time, Mr. Manager-dude is gone looking up the UPC code.

I wander over to the satchels...(a little further than 10 steps, but not too far) I quickly sniff around and pick one I like. I start heading back over to the counter when I see an older lady asking my lovely sales clerk lady a question, she helps her and I step up again to the counter proudly displaying my pick to the lovely sales clerk lady...when I am interrupted by...

"Excuuuusee me Ma'am! I was in line here!"

I quickly turn around, kind of confused and say, "Oh I am sorry, I was already in line, this is my stuff." (pointing to my presents and recently picked out satchel scent.)

Nasty tired mom lady says, "Well, you stepped out of line, it's my turn."

I quickly glance at lovely sales clerk lady who looks just about as dumbfounded as I do and she says, "Ma'am, I was helping her...I will be right with you."

"Well, she stepped out of line, she loses her spot!!" (enter her fussy baby, who is now screaming at the top of his lungs.) "I don't have time to wait around for her to shop the hole store, she's either in line or she's not."

At this point, I don't even know what to say...so my face turns bright red and I turn and face the lovely sales clerk lady...who is obviously not as bad at confrontation as I am. She says, "Ma'am! I will be right with you, please be patient. I am in the middle of ringing her up, her item is missing a UPC code. I would have to clear her order out to ring you up anyways. We will be done as soon as possible. Please feel free to move to the next empty line if you wish." (of which there are two available...now, lovely sales clerk lady is saying this, almost gritting her teeth...I do believe if nasty tired mom lady had met the lovely sales clerk lady on the street...lovely sales clerk lady would kick her butt into next week without hesitation.)

"I am not moving...just get on with your job, (she reaches up and taps me on the shoulder, I barely turn to her) but YOU should know that once you walk away from a line you lose your spot!" (I turn my head around to see that Mr. Manager-dude has come back with the UPC code and offers to take nasty tired mom at the next line over...so she wouldn't even have to move to a new isle.) At this point I breath a nice sigh of relief that I avoided that confrontation for the most part, thanks to lovely sales clerk lady and her impeccable skills in the area customer service. As she finishes ringing me up we hear this from nasty tired mom lady...

(Speaking to Mr. Manager dude...)"I don't know how you people put up with customers like her thinking they can use the front counter to hold their items while they shop. There are other people who have children they need to feed, and all they need is to run a quick errand, but it gets ruined by people like HER! (at this point she is pointing at me!) It's ridiculous...now I am never going to be able to calm him down to feed him...this woman has completely ruined my entire afternoon!!"

This is when it gets good...Lovely sales clerk lady, as she is passing me my receipt starts laughing and she says to me..."Girl, you are more patient than me...she should just be glad that there is a counter between the two of us!" (See! I told you lovely sales clerk lady could take nasty tired mom lady in a street fight!)

Nasty tired mom lady's' jaw hits the floor...she snatches her check back from Mr. Manager dude and walks out of the store in a huff!

Here's the BEST part...as SOON as the doors close to the exit of the store...my new BEST friend lovely sales clerk lady starts clapping, along with about 6 other customers and we are all dying laughing.

My flushed embarrassed cheeks begin to return to their natural color and the older lady that was being helped next to me earlier, (who actually stayed to watch the whole thing) says to Mr. Manager dude "You guys should give this lady a free product for being the most patient person in the world!" (isn't she lovely too!?) Mr. Manager dude, says "I wish I could...but I will wrap your presents for you! It's a free service anyways...but I will make it extra nice for you!"

He does and I leave with my dignity still in tow along with a nicely wrapped gift to boot! (along with some lovely clean linen scented satchels for my stinky car!)

You wanna know the reason I was so patient?? Cause I could sense that nasty tired mom lady was just that...tired...I knew she was frustrated that her baby was fussy...I felt for her (my hubby would be slapping my hand right now for being so nice) but I could see it. And you know, had she been a little nicer, and a little less frightening and threatening to my dainty little non-confrontational self, I may have stepped aside and let her go ahead of me. One may never know...if we both changed our responses it could have been a completely different situation all together...for the good or for the very, very bad.

*sigh*...get some rest nasty tired mom lady...and I hope that little one calms down enough for you to come back and get your spatula at another point. (Yep! All that fuss over her buying a spatula....ohhh ma goodness!!!)