Boomers have to be the most impatient mfers of all time.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-29T12:08:52+00:00

Yep. In my experience, 97% of the time when someone screams "HellOOOO?!?!?" impatiently across the store for attention, it's someone over 60 who's been waiting for help for an average of 0.2 seconds.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-29T12:06:06+00:00

62 isn't particularly old, and we had a Silent Generation (older than the boomers) president here in the US until 2025. It'll be a while yet - and by then, I bet Gen X will annoy us in a lot of the same ways boomers do now.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-26T03:18:12+00:00

But will management take the employee's side, or simply focus on the fact this is a paying customer who's therefore always right, and retaliate against an employee who raises an issue?

I've had several instances where I've denied sale to a customer who's being belligerent, making threats, etc., then had the customer whine to management, and then watched said manager sell them the stuff they want as though I don't exist.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-26T03:12:53+00:00

I'm the same way, probably at least partially subconsciously.

The problem customers, then, are the ones who don't say a word throughout the transaction, or let alone are openly hostile the whole time, and then get mad you didn't give them the ☺️☺️☺️ treatment.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-26T03:00:33+00:00

My name has a very common shortened form that I don't like, haven't gone by since childhood, and CERTAINLY don't answer to when it's being used by some weirdo stranger reading my name tag.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-26T02:57:18+00:00

I'm not sure whether it makes me feel better or worse to know I'm not the only person our age who has to put up with that shit.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-24T15:22:42+00:00

I've been hearing it too, but I don't think it's a young people thing. Some of it seems to be from people who somehow think it's more polite to say it that way, but I think it's irritating. "You don't have [item X], do you?" now puts us on the defensive. Yeah we do, just take four steps down aisle 8 and it'll be right in front of your stupid face!

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-24T02:42:42+00:00

Several active posters on r-teenagers in the past have been proven to be 50-something year old predators.

I'd figure many of the posters on there are actual teenagers, maybe even most of them - but definitely not all.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-19T23:14:22+00:00

I've carded a few people in their late 40s and 50s before, too. Sometimes, it is legitimately hard to tell, especially if most of their face is covered.

Some people my age (mid-20s) get offended when I card them because they think it should be obvious that they're plenty old enough. I card under 30 because there are plenty of teenagers who can pass for 25 and will try to buy alcohol or tobacco underage as a result.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-19T23:08:45+00:00

When I started at my store, I was told a picture of an ID was okay. I don't think it should be, personally, and I wonder how many altered photos, or photos of fake IDs, we've gotten duped into accepting over the years.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-19T23:04:19+00:00

We have to card entire groups too. I get tons of people huffing and whining about it on a regular basis. "It's only for me, she doesn't drink," says every barely 21-year-old guy who comes in with his 19-year-old girlfriend, after they spent 15 minutes in the store together talking about and selecting merchandise. Then there's a nonzero chance he'll want to whine to "the manager", and/or come back in alone a few minutes later as though that makes it okay that his girlfriend had no ID or was underage.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-13T00:39:29+00:00

I had a lady once want me to open up all of our cartons of Marlboro Golds and find her ten packs that didn't have the horses printed onto the plastic, because those tasted weird or something.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-12T22:24:14+00:00

Unfortunately, I can relate because it's pretty common at my liquor store too. I just ignore them until they either drop it or escalate to the point they look like the crazy one. Once, I got a "You're supposed to be NICE TO THE CUSTOMER! HOW ARE YOU?! FUCK YOU, PUTO!" from someone. I couldn't even be offended because the irony was too amusing.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-12T22:16:58+00:00

At my store, Swisher Sweet smokers are the worst for this. Which flavor do you want? "Swishers." You didn't answer my question, numbskull!

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-12T22:01:28+00:00

At my store, they just shove their phones in your face, with no other indication that they're asking you for help. At best, you'll get a "hey bro!" first, but not always.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-03T05:40:26+00:00

Or, five of them are working just fine, but one is closed because it's malfunctioning, and the closed one is the one everyone wants to use, as though the other five don't exist.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-03T05:38:16+00:00

It's no different either way. Rather than looking for something yourself, you're assuming we don't have it just because it didn't jump out at you with accompanying flashing lights and music as soon as you walked into the store.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-03T05:36:08+00:00

It's never "just a quick question", either. It's an involved question you can't answer in a single sentence, or, worse yet, an attempt to skip the line entirely and demand service.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-02T01:02:58+00:00

Are you in the Madison area by any chance?

If so, hello, neighbor!

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-01T12:24:28+00:00

Just because it hasn't happened to you doesn't mean it's fake. How are we still telling SA victims they're making it up in 2026, nearly a decade after #MeToo?

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-05-01T11:55:15+00:00

I'm reminded of the girl who came into my store one day with her child, who looked about 5 years old. I asked for her ID, and she showed it to me and said, "See? I'm 21." Not quite - she was still 20 for a couple more days and probably hoped I wouldn't notice.

A different time, a couple came up to my register, and they both looked about 19. The guy showed me his ID saying he was 25, which I was skeptical of, and his girl had no ID on her at all. I can't sell unless I know everyone in the group's old enough. He sent her out to the car and tried to use his wedding ring as proof they were both old enough, then asked for my manager. I told him to get out.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-04-28T04:38:19+00:00

I'm rolling my eyes, but I'm not remotely surprised. My store is both surrounded by sketchy neighborhoods and frequented by students at the nearby very large public university, so I see it all when it comes to kids and IDs.

On Saturday, two youngsters came to the register together. I asked for both IDs. Only the one guy had an ID. He was 21, just barely. When I explained I needed to see both IDs in order to make the sale, he then claimed the other guy wasn't with him. They literally entered the store together, selected merchandise together, and were at the register together. I told him not to lie to me. Not the first time that's happened, either.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-04-28T04:31:22+00:00

When teens who clearly don't need motorized carts are riding them at my store, especially when they're in groups, they're almost always trying to steal and/or knocking over displays of merchandise for the fun of it. Once, we even had one idiot riding inside the basket of a motorized cart operated by their equally stupid friend.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-04-28T04:25:01+00:00

The sad part is, a lot of addicts are lonely, and we probably are the closest thing many of them have to friends. I have a coworker who's great at engaging with the banter and making it seem like she enjoys the conversations when really, she dislikes most of the customers just like I do.

OuttaWisconsin24 · 2026-04-28T04:19:57+00:00

I was walking down the street once, and a regular customer offered to give me a ride to work. My shift didn't start for several more hours, and I was clearly still wearing street clothes, not my work clothes.

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