Things that frustrate us all
- Thread starter rhubarbodendron
- Start date
Coupons are always a nightmare. 10 years retail experience and I never get it, and people get on me for them not reading exceptions.At my store it's not cash that holds up the line. It's the customers with dozens of coupons each, haggling over every single damn one.
And don't even get me started on digital coupons. They don't seem to grasp the concept that they have to have a smartphone, with our app on it, to download those coupons. They don't have a phone (side note: there's really no excuse for this anymore), they don't 'get the damn coupon!
I rarely use coupons. I still use cash.
Different departments doing different things more (or less) efficiently.
Do I think all transactions are monitored? No. Do I think some will trip key words and get further scrutinized? Yes.
Exactly. There's no way the government could be spying on everyone like that. There's not enough time or resources in the universe for them to do so. This isn't fucking Nineteen Eighty-Four.
Exactly. There's no way the government could be spying on everyone like that. There's not enough time or resources in the universe for them to do so. This isn't fucking Nineteen Eighty-Four.
No, it isn't 1984. But we're not that many steps away from it.
It's not the Government monitoring about which people should be worrying. It's the numerous companies that collect data about you so that they can "nudge" your behaviour, sell you things and, of course, turn you down for credit based on goodness knows what information collected from who knows where.
If you wouldn't want someone following you round checking on everything you do then you might just want to question with just whom you are sharing information every time you pay for a purchase using a card on your smartphone.
If you wouldn't want someone following you round checking on everything you do then you might just want to question with just whom you are sharing information every time you pay for a purchase using a card on your smartphone.
Oh dear. Companies are trying to sell me stuff. Whatever shall I do. 
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The two things that drove me the most crazy when I was a cashier was price matching, which I think they finally stopped doing a few years after I switched departments, and the WIC checks. The issue with price matching was that a lot of people didn't seem to understand that it had to be the same thing that was in that add, so I'd always make them show me the add to see they had the correct item. The worst was when they didn't have the right item, but threw a fit when I wouldn't give it them, and insisted I call the manager who would then give it to them anyway. The fact the manager usually gave it to them really pissed me off, because that just made me look like an unreasonable asshole, even though I was just trying to follow the rules.At my store it's not cash that holds up the line. It's the customers with dozens of coupons each, haggling over every single damn one.
And don't even get me started on digital coupons. They don't seem to grasp the concept that they have to have a smartphone, with our app on it, to download those coupons. They don't have a phone (side note: there's really no excuse for this anymore), they don't 'get the damn coupon!
And the WIC checks are for low income families, and I don't mean to shame the people that have to use them, but as a cashier they were a nightmare. The checks always have very specific items listed all the way down to number of ounces and you have to thoroughly inspect the stuff they were getting to make sure it was exactly what was listed, and when they had a whole cart full WIC items, it took forever. Then actually running it through the register was a multistep process. Usually if people came with a WIC check, I would just the turn the light off of my register to stop people getting in line, and warn anybody who was behind them that it was going to take a while.
The thing that really scared me about how closely these companies are monitoring us, was when Gillete sent me a free raiser and wished me a happy birthday when I turned 18, even though I had never given any of my personal information.
Customer came into the store ten minutes before closing wanting four new tires for his car.
Do you have the car with you?
No. It's at home.
Do you know the tire size?
No.
Do you know the year, make and model of the car?
No.
Is there someone at home you can call and get the information?
No.
Why even bother. Just want pound my head on the counter.
I deal with this kind of sh*t every day.
How is it that people have become so ignorant about even the basic information about their car?
I've had customers come in with hybrid cars where their dipstick is absolutely bone dry and when you ask them when they last had an oil change, they look at me like I'm speaking a foreign language.
A typical response is, I thought an hybrid car didn't need an oil change. A hybrid is not the same as an all electric vehicle. You still put fuel in it. It still has an engine with moving parts. It still has to have its oil changed.
Do you have the car with you?
No. It's at home.
Do you know the tire size?
No.
Do you know the year, make and model of the car?
No.
Is there someone at home you can call and get the information?
No.
Why even bother. Just want pound my head on the counter.
I deal with this kind of sh*t every day.
How is it that people have become so ignorant about even the basic information about their car?
I've had customers come in with hybrid cars where their dipstick is absolutely bone dry and when you ask them when they last had an oil change, they look at me like I'm speaking a foreign language.
A typical response is, I thought an hybrid car didn't need an oil change. A hybrid is not the same as an all electric vehicle. You still put fuel in it. It still has an engine with moving parts. It still has to have its oil changed.
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How could anyone not know that kind of basic information about their car? I don't drive, but I still know pretty much all of that information about my mom's car except when she last had an oil change. I think she did say a couple weeks ago that it is due for one though.
Why in the hell would someone go in for tires without the car!?!
I can't defend that person not knowing the basic information, but it is possible to buy tires for a car that you aren't bringing.
I did that very thing for my wife last week. Her front passenger tire split open that night before, and I didn't want to risk damaging the car by driving it to a shop if the tire exploded on the way there. So I went to buy the tire, put it in my truck, and brought it home. We had a mobile mechanic put in the new tire without the cost of a tow truck.
(I didn't put on the spare and drive it over because one of the lug nuts was different than the rest, and I didn't have the right size tool for it. Turns out it was a lock of sorts, and the 'key' was something buried behind the spare tire. Seems to be a security feature to prevent people from stealing rims... not a bad idea, actually. Similar to the idea of using a different type of screw I use for my license plate, because believe it or not, about 15 or 16 years ago, someone actually stole my license plate. Using a screw that's not flat or phillips was the only deterrent I could think of because those are the two most common screwdrivers, and someone wouldn't likely have the type of screwdriver needed to steal mine again.)
I did that very thing for my wife last week. Her front passenger tire split open that night before, and I didn't want to risk damaging the car by driving it to a shop if the tire exploded on the way there. So I went to buy the tire, put it in my truck, and brought it home. We had a mobile mechanic put in the new tire without the cost of a tow truck.
(I didn't put on the spare and drive it over because one of the lug nuts was different than the rest, and I didn't have the right size tool for it. Turns out it was a lock of sorts, and the 'key' was something buried behind the spare tire. Seems to be a security feature to prevent people from stealing rims... not a bad idea, actually. Similar to the idea of using a different type of screw I use for my license plate, because believe it or not, about 15 or 16 years ago, someone actually stole my license plate. Using a screw that's not flat or phillips was the only deterrent I could think of because those are the two most common screwdrivers, and someone wouldn't likely have the type of screwdriver needed to steal mine again.)
Why do people keep falling into toilets?
https://www.outsideonline.com/outdo...son-has-accidentally-fallen-into-an-outhouse/
https://www.outsideonline.com/outdo...son-has-accidentally-fallen-into-an-outhouse/
I don't know. I've only been at this for a year, but the level of ignorance about basic car care astounds me.
And it's not any one age or ethnic group. It's across every bracket. People come in panicked because they don't know what the lights on their dashboard mean.
I had one customer who confused their low tire with their low oil light and overinflated their tires while neglecting to add oil to the car. Did damage to both.
And don't get me started on Tesla's. What a POS. No mechanic I know in any shop likes working on them.
It took me many years to learn the basics beyond oil changes and tire pressure.
People are not encouraged to do things themselves. There has become this attitude of "let the experts do it" in terms of basic care, maintenance and upkeep. So, people don't feel any need to learn and then learn the hard way.
People are not encouraged to do things themselves. There has become this attitude of "let the experts do it" in terms of basic care, maintenance and upkeep. So, people don't feel any need to learn and then learn the hard way.
I would have loved auto shop. But by time I went to high school, they no longer offered it.
I’m not shocked that people fail at this.
But what I did learn for the short period of time that I worked in the industry is that people in general took better care of their pickups despite having more dings.
Back when I was in high school 86-89, the three high schools in the district offered auto shop and drivers Ed.
With shop you could take an extension class at Lake Washington Voc Tech and usually be offered a job as an intern at a dealership or repair shop.
Now, only one high school offers shop, so the students at the other two high schools have to be bused there. And no one offers drivers Ed anymore.
Thankfully, they're still partners with the Voc Tech. I knew a shop manager at a local garage whose son went through the program and upon graduation got offered a job at the local Toyota dealership, where he makes $40/hr working on cars.
I wonder about the future for mechanics. As we transition to EVs, what mechanics mostly fix should change. If I was in my 20s, I’m not sure I would pursue it. Too many unknowns.
The next twenty years will probably be fine, but then what happens from 40 to 60? A lot of people I know in the trades are having medical issues in their 40s. One is already on disability.
More youngers are interested in trades than college education.
Several of the schools I work with partner with local mechanics to have teen students shadow and learn different trades and aspects of the business. There is also still interest in a lot of quick lube oil shops too.
Several of the schools I work with partner with local mechanics to have teen students shadow and learn different trades and aspects of the business. There is also still interest in a lot of quick lube oil shops too.
Not surprised given all the student loan stuff in the news.
The biggest challenge with the trades is the health impact post 40 years old.
Interesting. Our provincial government keeps having to run ads to try to interest young people in trades, because they always seem to be so chronically understaffed here.