Was this rude? Or is this just how people are?

[Highereducation]

I was at the store this morning, shopping for a raincoat.

 

A woman, probably in her 40's, was looking at coats on the same rack. I heard her asking the salesperson a question about whether one of the coats was in stock in a different size. The salesperson left to go check.

 

I couldn't find the color I was looking for, so I asked the woman if she knew if that was the only rack of raincoats of that type, or if there were others (it was a promotion, and the sales racks were scattered around the department).

 

She looked at me for a minute, then said in a very snarky way, "I don't really care. I don't work here."

 

I was flabbergasted. Had someone asked me the same question, I would have either pointed them in the right direction, or said something like, "I don't know, but the salesperson will be back in a minute if you want to ask her."

 

And it isn't just what she said, it was the way she said it - as if I had no reason to be wasting her time.

 

At any rate, I simply said, "Whatever," and went on with my shopping, but it would have really bothered me if I had been that rude to someone.

 

I hope that whatever she was looking for was out of stock!

[Impish]

I think it was incredibly rude of her.

[Highereducation]

Maybe she was insulted that you thought she worked there.

 

I didn't think she worked there - I had just seen her speaking to the salesperson about what was in stock and what wasn't, so I thought that she might know if there were any other racks that held the same style of coats.

[2cents]

Extremely rude! I'd hate to be the salesperson having to wait on that gal and her attitude. :thumbdown:

[Sophia]

Yes that's rude.

No manners.

[Tree House Academy]

Very rude!

 

I was in the library one day and this woman was talking about the Twilight series with the Librarian. She was deciding whether to check out one of two of the books. Being friendly, I chimed in and told her that I had read the books in 3 days and they were hard to put down (thinking that would help her make her decision). She looked at me, said NOTHING, and then told the librarian she would just take the one book.

 

Let's just say that the word Witch came to mind (and almost came out of my mouth...only the W was a B). ;)

[elegantlion]

Yes, rude.

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm

[joannqn]

She was rude.

 

I know our local grocery store almost as well as the employees and have helped many customers over the years find things even though I don't work there. I've even walked them to the area. I'm not saying this woman should have walked you to the other racks, but a simple "I don't know" would have been much nicer.

[sleepy]

Yes, that was rude. And yes, that's just how some people are.

Sorry you had to be on the receiving end. :grouphug:

[Tammy]

certainly people from the south don't act like that, LOL! I would have said something like, "excuse me for asking".

[chaik76]

Very rude!

 

My reply to her probably would have been, "My, you're rude!"

[kalanamak]

Very rude!

 

My reply to her probably would have been, "My, you're rude!"

 

I usually say "I hope your day improves" and smile as sweetly as possible.

[TN Mama]

I usually say "I hope your day improves" and smile as sweetly as possible.

 

:iagree: This is what I would have said, too.

 

Sorry she was so rude.

[LaxMom]

certainly people from the south don't act like that, LOL! I would have said something like, "excuse me for asking".

 

I'm from Maine. That's still in the North, right? We would find that appallingly rude. (Her comments, not yours)

 

I have often been mistaken for an employee in stores (note to self, carry larger purse) and have, at the absolute worst, apologized and corrected the mis-perception. If it's a store I'm familiar with, and I have the answer, I will correct the mis-perception and help.

 

And yes, some people (more and more, it seems) are just like that.

[alegnab]

Very rude. People quite often ask me where such-and-such is, and since I'm usually rolling a shopping cart and looking for items to put in it, I'm assuming that they don't think I'm an employee. It's a lot easier to ask someone nearby than to search for an employee. If I have the answer, I help them. If not, I say I'm sorry that I can't help.

[mcconnellboys]

LOL, I'm sorry! I'm laughing because this reminds me of myself. Perhaps this lady is mystified because every time she's in a store people ask her questions as if she works there. I say this because this happens to me almost constantly. Really. It doesn't matter what sort of store I'm shopping in, whether I'm in a hurry or just browsing, how I'm dressed (although it's generally too shabby to pass for a worker, LOL), etc. People *always* come to me and ask me to help them find things, get things off shelves too high for them (I'm not all *that* tall), ask me about prices, etc., etc. I swear to my husband that I have some sort of scent or sign hanging on me that says I grew up in retail.

 

Now, I promise you that I have never been mean to anyone. I'm always so amused that I take the time to help them, no matter how much of a hurry I'm in (or how little I know about the store). But I can see that someone of another disposition might take things differently if they get asked questions on a regular basis.

 

I know you were just making general conversation while all shopped and sort of waited for the salesclerk. And I agree that there was no reason for this lady to have been so rude to you. I'm just trying to imagine some plausible reason why she might have answered in such a way. Maybe she was just thinking, "What the heck? Why is it every time I'm in a store shopping I get asked questions as if I'm a sales clerk?"

[chaik76]

I usually say "I hope your day improves" and smile as sweetly as possible.

Well, I have been known to say, "Have a nice day!"...nicely. I think it depends on my own mood!

 

Your way is much nicer than mine!:001_smile:

[SherryTX]

She sounds like a bitter woman, and yes she was definitely rude.

I hope they didn't have her size.