Today, an old man, while I was working, asked me to spell average-length words. Confused, I refused. Turns out I was apparently taking too long counting the large amount of small change he'd given to me, and he assumed I couldn't count or spell. I study law, and I've learned basic calculus. Welcome to retail. FML
Collection
Halloween
A failed costume, stolen candy and a very real scare: Halloween, the one night when fear is allowed.
Today, a McDonald's employee had to correct my math after counting out $2.37 in change. I'm in AP Calculus and am currently learning how to find the derivative of an inverse of a logarithm. FML
Today, I was working my job as a waitress near my college. I handed a customer her check, and she noticed that I had added her bill wrong. I apologized, and she pointed to my "student" labeled nametag, asking what I was studying. I said English. I'm a math major. FML
Today, I was tending the cash register. I scanned a lady's items which totaled $89.68. She paid with a $100 bill. I gave her $11.32 change. She angrily gave back the extra dollar and complained about "schools nowadays". I'm an AP Calculus student. FML
Today, as I rung up a customer's groceries, he gave me a pitying look and said I'd have a "real job" if I'd only studied harder. FML
Today, I spent twenty minutes helping an elderly man figure out how to use the self-checkout. When we'd finished, he smiled, thanked me, then walked away… without paying for any of his groceries. The cashier assumed I was with him. FML
Today, I saw a man help an elderly lady with her tray at the local McDonald's. I wanted to do something nice for him, so I added a couple extra nuggets in his meal. He later came up to me and told me I was dumb and didn't know how to count, and that was why I was working at McDonald's. FML
Today, working in retail, I noticed a customer looking for an item, so I walked up to them and asked, "Is there something I can help you find?" He replied, "Did I ask for your fucking help?" FML
Today, I had to explain what "cashback" was to a customer. She called me a liar and wanted to talk to a manager because she felt I made up the concept. I'm the manager. She wouldn't believe me and waited in the store for an hour. Apparently this is what a Masters degree gets me. FML
Today, my math teacher told me to learn how to say "welcome to wal-mart". FML
Today, while at my tutoring job, a middle school kid couldn't find a word in the online dictionary. I told him he could check a regular paperback dictionary. His response was, "That's what you did in your day. That's not what we do in our day." I'm only 19. FML
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Top comments
JMichael 26
Unfortunately most people look down on you if you work retail and assume you don't have the smarts to get a better job. They don't really understand the shit we deal with.
denna44 14
You will encounter lots of jerks when working retail. Don't let it get to you
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Comments (40)
zaidthunder1 27
Give it some time, you'll get the hang of it.
DannyDizzle 8
We all have to make small changes to improve.
coming back in the future 30
Some old men just don't make cents. (jokes aside, what do you mean basic calculus?)
Lalala579121 28
Calculus is a type of advanced math. Basic Calculus is, well, the basics of Calculus.
tantanpanda 26
If you look at it this way, algebra 1 < geometry < algebra 2 < precalculus < calculus. You could also throw in college algebra or trigonometry in there and they'd all be below calculus. Just to give you a frame of reference to the type of mathematics OP is talking about. Much harder than counting pocket change.
coming back in the future 30
I know what calculus is, but did he mean differentiation and limits?
Lalala579121 28
Probably just whatever was in calc 1. I don't remember exactly what was in mine, it's been too long.
DarthDeath 12
Basic calculus is Year 11-12 maths, differentiation and limits like you said.
IAintNobody 6
Probably calc a / 1
JMichael 26
Unfortunately most people look down on you if you work retail and assume you don't have the smarts to get a better job. They don't really understand the shit we deal with.
Lalala579121 28
While I'm not disagreeing with you, because many people are certainly qualified for better jobs but can't due to lack of experience/availability, I'd just like to point out how disconnected your two statements are. You make it seem like the shit retail people have to deal with automatically makes them qualified for better jobs. Which it most certainly does not.
luther48 20
Let's be honest, it's not like retail people are the only ones who have to put up with shitat their jobs. I'm an engineer and I get all kinds of shit too. Customers, bosses, colleagues, operators, other managers.
Mynxie 26
Every job comes with it shit. Retail does not have it worse. I work in the psych field, and we will deal with the clients, their families, supervisors, other agencies the client may have plans with, insurance, and making sure to always follow every government regulation while still giving the client all of our attention. So counting charge, when most cash registers tell you how much the customer's is to receive, is no excuse .
LowExpectations 30
Honestly, retail is the worst field to work in in my experience, simply because the general public is filled with entitled ass holes. I currently work in law enforcement and let me tell you, criminals are easier to deal with then some of the ass hats I've dealt with in retail. They don't pay retail workers enough for what they do.
nykkilynn16 7
You misunderstand the post. The man gave her a large amount of small change to pay for his items. You don't have it any worse, if anything, retail is seen as worse because it's paid so low for the amount of shit people deal with.
PhoenixChick 26
Look at all the people with far, far better paying jobs complaining that their jobs are hard too. Yes, every job has a lot of shit with it, but retail and food service are spent entirely dealing with the public. Who are, largely, assholes. And minimum wage workers get way less respect and way less money to go along with that extra helping of shittyness.
denna44 14
You will encounter lots of jerks when working retail. Don't let it get to you
hpandher 16
I don't know why people think counting fast in memory is important, for that we have calculators. Better be competitive in something machines can't be, atleast not yet.
kfchicken 31
why would you refuse to help someone if they don't know how to spell a word? just cuz you think it's easy (Mr/Ms law) doesn't mean everyone else does. also he's an asshole for doing something like that. this just looks like what happens when two dicks collide
deathshead 19
he didn't refuse to help someone who didn't know how to spell a word, he refused a nonsensical request, the man asked him to spell average length words, not a specific word, just any old word.
deathshead 19
unless of course he went through asking each individual word, but even then a constant stream of random and completely irrelevant words would have confused anyone
Burle 17
Studying law, probably is a dick
kfchicken 31
he didn't know it was nonsensical, and how do you ask someone to spell a word without specifying the word?
wmayrhofer 18
You're still slow at counting change tho
NoOrdinaryNZer 28
To clear up some things, the words he asked me to spell were words you'd expect a 9 or 10 year old to be learning to spell. I refused because my co-workers couldn't hear what he was saying, but would probably have heard me spelling out these words to him and it'd be weird. Also I didn't talk back or try to dignify it with a proper response because he'd think I was talking back to him, I had to be a good employee. He spent quite a bit and gave me a lot of coins to count, and was still a few dollars short. Didn't take that long, he was just impatient. He's apparently a regular customer, and has annoyed most of my co-workers too. Also, I'm only a first year, but not everyone who does law is a dick ;), if I was enough of a dick, I'd definitely have talked back to him and made him feel stupid for calling me stupid
Burle 17
Sorry for calling you a dick
neuronerd 29
I feel your pain. I frequently get people who think I'm the typical "dumb blonde" due to my look/style, and the fact that I work a front desk job part time. I'm about to graduate with a masters in neuroscience, and I have several high impact publications I've authored. That said, sometimes I'll play up the stereotype if someone assumes it, because I find it entertaining, and it's amusing frustrating rude people. If that guy comes back, have fun with it.
brezzyanna 17
I'm constantly called a dumb blonde. Even in school. I have a degree in genetics and a degree in political science, and I'm now in law school. I've been called a dumb blonde by people who graduated 3 years late from high school with only a GED because they kept failing and now they will only ever be able to work retail jobs. I hate the stereotype so much.