I think there’s enough wrinkly skin on display in this thread already.
Preach it! I’ve worked in the service sector my whole adult life and there are days I want to take a rocket launcher and just blow everyone away. It grinds you down, having to explain over and over and over again X. There are lots of stupid people out there–age is no excuse–and so every now and again you have to vent or explode yourself.
I have no doubt that **lissener ** is patient and courteous to his customers. I’m warm and reassuring to my patients. That doesn’t mean I don’t bitch about some of them in the nurse’s lounge. It’s called being human.
Of course, those here who are castigating the OP have never, ever rolled their eyes at a question asked of them or been fed up having to deal with Uncle Fred at the family reunion–nope. I’m sure they’re all shining examples of tolerance and forbearance to us all. :dubious:
I most sincerely hope that I will not lose my mental faculties when old or if I do, that I will not be aware that I have. What I have little patience with is the cantankerous attitude of lots of older folks. They come into your store or hospital pissed off and looking for problems. I don’t know if it stems from fear (in the case of the hospital, that’s a fair guess) or just general cussedness. But nobody gets to be a jerk just because they’ve achieved 70+ years. Rude is rude–and not allowing someone to explain and/or not accepting the explanation is rude.
I’m really surprised anyone is upset by this OP. Lissener didn’t verbally abuse or refuse to serve these customers. He did his job and complained about some annoyances later. Sheesh.
I’ve got an older person vs. technology anecdote: My mom is 58, so not ancient by any means, and she learned about - and later taught - computers well before most of her age group. I remember her trying to explain why she’d bought a modem (“You can talk to other people who have a computer and modem too”) years before I heard it called the Internet. So I really always thought of her as relatively comfortable with the technology. But a year or so ago she UNINSTALLED AIM because some random guy had IM’d her… and after a conversation or two, he’d made some suggestive comments. She was SHOCKED. “My profile says I’m married! Why would he say things like that?” I tried to explain that he was trolling for some cyber-love, and that she could tell him she wasn’t interested in that. She didn’t know how to tell him to leave her alone without appearing “rude.” So I suggested blocking him. Then it occurred to her that OTHER men out there might have similar ideas, and she just took AIM off her computer lest she receive any other messages from strangers. Or in her words, “perverts.”
So, I guess being overwhelmed by new technology can sneak up on anyone, and I try to be patient and understanding with my parents’ attitude even though I don’t fully understand it. At the same time, I find myself NOT expressing a lot of frustration because while I don’t want to yell at them, it seems to me at times that they’re TRYING to make me crazy.
So if it’s being left to a vote, I say Lissener CAN indeed pit old people, and probably should - if it makes him able to go back into work the next day and do his job politely. Seems like some people are reading into his posts and looking for things to be upset about.
Did you *not *read Carrie’s rant on people who ask for cheese and pepperoni? You’ve helped make the point. People are asking for cheese and pepperoni, and it is pissing her off. Clearly *you *think asking for *cheese and pepperoni *is reasonable. My response to her was to help indicate that if you don’t put the cheese in, some people (clearly you) will wonder if you want cheese.
Now, see, this is waaaay too reasonable for most people here and certainly the Pit. Are you on Xanax to remain so calm and nice? 
Now in all fairness, Khadaji, I never said it pissed me off. It just gets repetitive. As I said:
I wasn’t posting that to start some bizarre digression on pizza ordering etiquette. It’s simple commiseration with lissener and anyone else dealing directly with the public like this. The customers aren’t doing anything wrong, but having the exact same exchange over and over again as I reassure someone that, yes, their pizza will have cheese on it is, well, repetitive.
If someone said they wanted a medium pizza I would, in fact, check that they just wanted a cheese pizza. If someone said they wanted a pepperoni pizza I would, in fact, check that they wanted a pepperoni pizza. I repeat back what they’re ordering in a slightly different way to ensure the order is correct. That’s why when someone orders a cheese and pepperoni pizza I repeat, “A pepperoni pizza?” If I misheard and they actually wanted extra cheese or they hadn’t said cheese at all, but “pig’s knees,” this would be the point when they could correct me. Most people will say, yes, that’s the right order, but there are some who’ll say, no, it’s a pepperoni and cheese pizza. As annoyed as I might sometimes get with having the same exchange every day, I’m sure somewhere out there is a customer who’s irritated because I double check his order every time and ask if he wants extra cheese when he lists cheese as a topping. But the customer is overly specific out of concern for the order getting wrong, and so am I, even if it’s a pain in the ass and I might grumble about it.
I’ve only ever had one employee who actually forgot the cheese on someone’s pizza and you can bet she was caught and made to make another one before the sad, naked pizza was given to someone. If that customer specifically asked for cheese, I don’t know, but regardless, that woman was an idiot. Unless someone wants extra cheese, cheddar cheese, or no cheese, they shouldn’t have to comment on the cheese at all, secure in the knowledge that it’ll be there. So I can understand why they do it, because of idiots like that, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy discussing the minutiae of the cheese, especially with regular customers who already know I’m going to give them cheese.
True enough. My apologies for misrepresenting you.
None needed–the joking reference to stabbing could easily be taken as an inference of some primal, pizza related rage, so I see where you may have gotten that. 
You had two ass cheeks?
Lucky bastard.
Also, who else is getting a hankering for a pepperoni pizza?
Of course they are, it’s lissener.
Whether he’s earned that type of distrust is another matter. There was the scheduled September pitting of him a few weeks ago. A lot of posters voiced contempt for him. Will see what the October pitting brings to the table.
Still, if he opens a pit thread, he opens himself to scrutiny. Had it been Scylla , there would be gushing about his [del]IMO non existent[/del] literary and stylistic merits. It’s lissener, so quite a few people will not take his OP as “just venting” but looking for ways to bash him.
It’s been remarkably civil, so far though. Let’s see if the usual suspects show up.
::crying with laughter::
My dad specifies unleaded gasoline every time, and it drives me insane (because he lives in New Jersey, and it’s all full-service there). I have many times pointed out that seriously, they know you want unleaded, because that’s all they sell, because it’s been illegal to use anything else since the mid-90’s and all you’re doing is making yourself sound old and senile.
I think whenever I’m in the car he does it just to spite me. 
Seconded over here–that is too funny. If I were her, I’d be tempted to mess with Mr Pimpin’s head a bit…
Pizza without cheese must not be very common where you are.
Unless I were in a Mom & Pop pizza place full of ready made slices with cheese visibly on them (oddly enough, they are referred to as “plain” slices), I wouldn’t presume that cheese was going to be on my pie unless I asked for it.
Are you serious? In New Jersey? Pizza is assumed to have Cheese and Tomato sauce unless specified and a pepperoni pizza can be assumed to at least have a crust, sauce, cheese and pepperoni. It should also be assumed that some garlic and Italian seasoning will be involved.
lissener, I get all of your complaints except the exact change one and video complaint. I don’t see the problem with exact change, though it can be exasperating waiting on the ones that don’t pull out their change purse until the order is completely done to count out the last penny, OK wait I guess I do get it. Well as to the video one, by this point you probably should just be use to asking if they want tape or DVD if you still carry tapes.
Jim
Officially, DVD stands for nothing. It’s just DVD.
Do you specify to put tomato sauce on too?
coughsee my locationcough
Yes, I’m serious.
If I were to eat in a small local place like Benny Tudino’s or were just grabbing a slice in the city in a place where everything clearly has cheese all over it, I wouldn’t bother to specify cheese.
Many places in the city offer cheeseless pizza. It’s very common.
If he worked in the Disney section he could yell
“Get off Mulan!”