S/O Beggars, Moochers and Scammers

[Pen^2]

I keep getting emails from girls I've apparently had flings and one-night-stands with in places I've never visited, telling me that I got them pregnant (I'm female) and I owe them x years worth of child support, but if I only pay a small sum directly online then they'll forget all about it.

Or sometimes they just want me to add them on Facebook so they can sexily chat with me. Because nothing is more arousing than poorly scripted Java which only says one of six things.

I've replied to a few of the pregnancy ones with biology questions, and one actually attempted an answer before giving up. Some of the others, I just copy and paste and have them basically reply to each other.

The fact that they reply at all, and in ways that a computer could not, makes me wonder which sad soul does all this.

[Amara]

I've replied to a few of the pregnancy ones with biology questions, and one actually attempted an answer before giving up.

*laughing hysterically* Good thing I have a private office.

[nutraxfornerves]

The "pregnant ladies" reminded me of this one.

It's a long story, but I managed to hit my neighbor's fence while pulling into my driveway. It put a big dent into the right front of my car, but did nothing to interfere with driving. In the interest of keeping my insurance rates low, I chose not to put in a claim for it or to even have it repaired with my own money.

A few weeks later, I found a note under my windshield. (I park my car in my driveway, not in a garage.) The writer's grandmother's car had been parked nearby and was damaged by a hit & run driver. The writer got samples of paint from the car & a dealer determined that they were form my make, model and color of car. Followed by several sentences of how horrible it was to hit & run a car and how devastated Grandma was. But, if I called him, we could work something out, or else he would call the police.

The first thing I did was call my insurance agent. He told me that this was a known scam--look for a damaged car and maybe it was indeed a hit & run that you could exploit.

For the heck of it, I called the note writer and told him to call my insurance agent and put in a claim. The note writer suggested I relocate myself to a decidedly warmer place.

[ladyknight1]

Near my university is a Dunkin Donuts coffee shop with a drive thru lane. During the 7 years I have worked here, I have patronized it a few times a week.

At first, there was a homeless man who would hang out there in the morning. I would occasionally buy him an egg and cheese wrap and small coffee, because he was homeless, and had severe facial deformities that would make it very difficult to pass with the public in any job. I haven't seen him for a while, there is a woman and her dog that has taken the morning shift. If I go there on my lunch hour, there are two different people there then. Today, there were four! All flapping signs at anyone going by.

I feel that homelessness is a serious issue, and I would love to help everyone. We have many social agencies and organizations here that help people recover from addictions, provide counseling, day labor jobs, etc.

[CrazyDaffodilLady]

I was approached in a mini-mart by a teenaged girl who told me she was running for homecoming queen and would I please donate to her campaign.  Several months later, same mini-mart, same girl, same story.  I said "You must not have won last time, huh?"  She stammered and slunk away. 

Another time, two sorry looking guys were standing outside the mini-mart at an early hour.  One asked if I would buy him a coffee.  I know how I am without my morning coffee, and out of generosity (and a bit of guilt), I bought coffee and breakfast wraps for both guys.  The second guy informed me that he didn't drink coffee and didn't like the mini-mart's food.  He asked for money so he could buy breakfast at the McDonald's across the street.

[chibichan]

I was hanging around outside at a big city bus terminal one evening because my bus didn't leave for another hour .

To pass the time , I watched a guy approach people on the sidewalk and ask for a dime . Most people ignored him , some gave him change and one lady gave him a dollar.

Right after she did , street traffic dried up and the sidewalk was deserted . He milled around for a few minutes , then turned and saw me .

As he advanced  , I cut him off at the pass by telling him " Don't even ask me for a dime . I saw her give you a dollar . "

He slunk off not long afterwards .

[weeblewobble]

Just got "must be niced" about my recent weight loss by a relative, and I will admit, I was not very nice or smart in my response.  I have recently dropped about a significant amount of weight through very careful dieting and working with a trainer.  This is the first time I've tried a specific program to lose weight, and my results - while awesome - were the result of some seriously hard work.  This relative, Callie, has tried every weight loss method under the sun, including supplements that were taken off the market because they were considered too dangerous.  I say "tried" because she would start a program, be super religious about following it for a month or so, and then quit.   So her weight has stayed the same for years.

Callie has made several snide comments when I first started and my weight started to drop about how it's "easy" to lose weight at first, but sticking with a program is so hard that I'd probably give up in a few weeks. And then she'd offer me bread, dessert, butter, etc.

Yesterday, I saw her and another relative at a store.  The relative with her commented on how nice I looked.  Before I could say thank you, Callie said, "It must be nice to lose weight so easily.  Some of us have to work really hard to get results."

I smiled at her and said, "Actually, thinking so much about my meal planning and putting in the hours with my trainer HAVE been really hard work."

Callie volleyed back, "It must be nice to be able to afford a trainer."

AUGH!!  I engaged the crazy. I just can't win.  Next time, I'm just keeping my mouth shut.

[gramma dishes]

^^^   "Not really!  I was able to pay him with the money I saved on food!"   

[NyaChan]

^^^   "Not really!  I was able to pay him with the money I saved on food!"   

LOL    gramma you just blew my cover - I'm supposed to be studying and now I'm cracking up instead!

[Darcy]

We don't give to the homeless beggars that live around our local Target. The Target is down the road from the hospital - officers will arrest them for drunk and disorderly, dump them in the ER for detox, and when they're released they'll just walk back down to Target. Any money given to them goes to drugs and alcohol, unfortunately. :-/