Special Snowflake Stories

[Mental Magpie]

Two SS on the walking trail over the weekend.  It was a lovely Indian Summer day and the path was crowded.  Most walkers were good about letting faster walkers by or sharing the path with oncoming walkers (not walking abreast, but moving to single file when others were oncoming).  However, our SS were, well, SPECHUL!  Both had strollers and were walking side by side, taking up the whole path.  Not only were they impeding traffic behind them, but oncoming walkers had to go off the path, onto protected meadowlands (stay on the trail signs everywhere). They studiously avoided my " Excuse me?" when I tried to get their attention to let me and about 12 others who had piled up behind them to pass.  The kicker?  We get to the endpoint of the path and their respective husbands asked them what took them so long.  One of the SS giggled and said, "There were so many people on the path!"  Yeah, lady, piled up behind you or jumping out of your way.

I and Dark Best Friend are what we like to refer to as "sturdy"; another way to put it is that we have child-bearing hips.  I also have a strong streak of stubbornness.  I am that person you see absolutely refusing to move off the trail as those SS's approached me from the other direction.  I will stop and stand there until they are forced to move if I have to; I've done it plenty of times before.

I am also that person (you, in this case, trying to get around them) who would SHOUT "Excuse me!" if I had to.  No, I don't think that is rude, especially because in cases like this I will not allow myself to be subjected to someone else's rudeness.

[oz diva]

So on the third try, I had finally gotten back to where I had been (the very, very end so as to be out of everyone's way)  a young man walks up to where I am and says "Excuse me, ma'am, but *I* am waiting for my bags so I need to stand in front of you."  I asked him if they happened to be any of the ones coming up and he said "No.  I just want to be here when they do."  I said "Well THAT is MY bag coming up right now and you'll forgive me for being bee-itchy, but it's the  third time I have tried to get it and I am not going to be nice anymore."  "Oh," he says "I didn't realize YOU were waiting for bags, too."

Oh for goodness sake, why else would you be standing there?

[Melde]

Oh for goodness sake, why else would you be standing there?

Because someone totally said Elvis was there.

[AnnaT]

My pet airport SS-peeve is the yellow line around the baggage carousel.  It's there for a reason (generic) people!  If everyone stood behind it, everyone could see their bags coming and step forward unhindered to retrieve it! 

Is top of mind at the moment because in 22 DAYS (!!!) I'm on a plane to Hawaii!!! A 10 hour flight so not looking forward to that part but the sun, sand and shopping (my 3 favourite s's) are definitely eagerly anticipated... 

[CrochetFanatic]

Ooh~  I'm jealous!

[Nox]

"Oh," he says "I didn't realize YOU were waiting for bags, too."

Where is he from  that it's common for people to stand around luggage carousels when they don't have luggage coming? Is it considered a form of meditation to watch bags go round and round? I suppose it was probably one of those random things that comes out of one's mouth that one looks back on and cringes, but I probably would have stared at him like he'd grown an extra head right in front of me.

[siamesecat2965]

Once again my store's FB page has provided fodder for the SS thread:

BG: we will offer "best customer" discounts throughout the year.  What that means is chargeholders get the discount for a few days prior to it being available to the general public (i.e. those without a store charge). And there will be several methods of communicating this; emails; coupons in catalogs or sent to a select group, which I can't figure out how that's determined. Basically, they are one and the same, but can't be combined. So this time it was 25% off for all chargeholders, for FULL price merchandise.  but if someone had the coupon, it was 25% off ALL, sale and full price.  I don't get why the company does that, but they do.  And since we don't scan the coupon, but there's a code in the system, we generally give 25% of everything to everyone. end BG

So someone posted on the page how they were upset they couldn't combine the 25% coupon with the 25% best customer.  And how she was told that that was a preview, etc. and that she didn't feel special beacuse of it.  That if they were extending it initially to only some customers, but she was told all in the store, it wasn't special anymore.  I was scratching my head over that one.  In what universe can you combine TWO 25% off (which are really the same) offers and get almost 50!% off?

And a bonus one: someone else thought it was horrible customer service because in making a return which she had used both her credit card, and a portion of a gift card, she was given a separate gift card with that amount on it, and how it was so terrible.  But as others pointed out, it is considered fraud to put the entire amount back on the cc, and unfortunately, OUR gift cards won't allow you to add to one, hence the new one.

Retail definitely has its challenges!

[Thipu1]

I get that all the time at the local drugstore. 

One line feeds two or three registers.  People who are used to the place have a standard procedure.  The person paying is at the counter.  The next on line stands a few feet back near a display of snack cakes.  The third person and the rest of the line forms down an aisle leaving a space between the snack cakes and the start of the aisles for shoppers entering the store.

I don't know how many times I've been the third person with a line behind me and someone will stand right behind the snack cakes.  This person will be amazed to discover that a line exists.

Oh no, we're not on line.  We get our jollies standing in a drugstore aisle with boxes of tissues and half-gallons of milk. 

[nutraxfornerves]

Several I saw yesterday. I was waiting to turn left onto a road, and on that road, to my left, I heard sirens, and saw an ambulance.  The light turned green, and while there probably could have been enough time for me to go, I waited.  But the three cars in the lane to my right, going straight, did not. All three zoomed across the road, the third literally just missing being t-boned by the ambulance.  All because they might ahve to wait for the NEXT cycle of the traffic light.

I saw something similar once, except that it was only one car that decided he had to cross in front of the ambulance. Just after the ambulance passed, we herd another siren, so had to wait for a police car. That made us miss the green light and have to wait through the whole cycle again.

Which meant that by the time I got a few blocks down the street, I was treated to the sight of a very unhappy Mr. Impatient, standing next to his car and having a "chat" with a very stern looking police office.

[Sirius]

There was one time I saw something like Mr. Impatient at a corner that used to be notorious for short cycles, and if the person in front didn't floor it you wouldn't get more than three cars past.  I was behind Mr. I as the light turned green - just as a passel of police cars with lights and sirens going entered the intersection.  He had already floored it and crossed the intersection, and I noticed one of the police cars following him.  I had to sit there through three more cycles (people going in the other direction kept blocking the intersection, another peeve of mine) and I could see Mr. I having a chat with the nice officer.

[rose red]

I remember once being at the red light with the "no turn on red" sign, and the guy behind us kept honking his horn.  You know, the long obnoxious beeeeeeeps.  We refused to move and I (the passinger) even stuck my arm out the window and pointed to the sign, but that didn't stop him.  We just rolled our eyes and privately made fun of him, but we did not move until the light was green.  We're not going to break the rules for you, buddy. 

[siamesecat2965]

I remember once being at the red light with the "no turn on red" sign, and the guy behind us kept honking his horn.  You know, the long obnoxious beeeeeeeps.  We refused to move and I (the passinger) even stuck my arm out the window and pointed to the sign, but that didn't stop him.  We just rolled our eyes and privately made fun of him, but we did not move until the light was green.  We're not going to break the rules for you, buddy.

I may have already posted this but I had the same thing, only someone honking at me to make a LEFT on red!  The intersection in question had construction around it, so for a long time, it was a blinking yellow and red light, as 2 ways of the intersection were blocked off.  I was coming home and just realized oh carp, the light is now working again, and stopped on the red.  Also, to my left where I'd be turning was the police station, and a cop standing out where a worker was diggin along the side of the road. 

Mr. impatient behind me is honking, long and hard, and the light was a long one.  I just sat there as I was not going to make an illegal turn in front of a cop.  So the light finally turned green, I made my turn very slowly, and the cop sort of motions me to stop.  I roll down my window, and he asks if the guy behind me was honking.  I said him or someone else. Next thing i know, car behind me is having a chat with Mr. Officer!

[ladyknight1]

Two SS on the walking trail over the weekend.  It was a lovely Indian Summer day and the path was crowded.  Most walkers were good about letting faster walkers by or sharing the path with oncoming walkers (not walking abreast, but moving to single file when others were oncoming).  However, our SS were, well, SPECHUL!  Both had strollers and were walking side by side, taking up the whole path.  Not only were they impeding traffic behind them, but oncoming walkers had to go off the path, onto protected meadowlands (stay on the trail signs everywhere). They studiously avoided my " Excuse me?" when I tried to get their attention to let me and about 12 others who had piled up behind them to pass.  The kicker?  We get to the endpoint of the path and their respective husbands asked them what took them so long.  One of the SS giggled and said, "There were so many people on the path!"  Yeah, lady, piled up behind you or jumping out of your way.

I and Dark Best Friend are what we like to refer to as "sturdy"; another way to put it is that we have child-bearing hips.  I also have a strong streak of stubbornness.  I am that person you see absolutely refusing to move off the trail as those SS's approached me from the other direction.  I will stop and stand there until they are forced to move if I have to; I've done it plenty of times before.

I am also that person (you, in this case, trying to get around them) who would SHOUT "Excuse me!" if I had to.  No, I don't think that is rude, especially because in cases like this I will not allow myself to be subjected to someone else's rudeness.

This reminds me of crowded walkways at theme parks and other places as well. I will not jump out of the way, you will need to move over. I am tired of being hit by people's strollers or electric scooters, especially when they can see me coming!
I have had one young woman actually trip on my walking stick which was less than two inches from my foot. She had the nerve to get mad at me!

[Wench]

I nearly was a special snowflake.  I was driving home in heavy rain and saw a jogger waiting to cross the road.  I then realised I was approaching a zebra crossing where pedestrians have right of way.  I managed to stop in time and the jogger thanked me.  Luckily I think he realised that the crossing was quite hard to see in the rain and decided to wait to see if I would stop!

[camlan]

Several I saw yesterday. I was waiting to turn left onto a road, and on that road, to my left, I heard sirens, and saw an ambulance.  The light turned green, and while there probably could have been enough time for me to go, I waited.  But the three cars in the lane to my right, going straight, did not. All three zoomed across the road, the third literally just missing being t-boned by the ambulance.  All because they might ahve to wait for the NEXT cycle of the traffic light.

Once I was stopped at a red light. On the other side of the intersection, there was a fire station. While the light was still red, the fire alarm sounded and firemen started running around and two fire trucks drove out of the station and waited on the driveway for the men to pile in.

The light turned green, but I figured those trucks would be hitting the road any second, so I stayed put. The driver behind me honked once, then pulled out to the left and zoomed through the intersection. Fortunately, the driver of the fire truck saw him coming, and slammed on the brakes fast enough that the two vehicles missed by about a foot and a half.