# Man who found finger in custard refuses to return it to owner **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 6, 2005, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693 "2005-05-06T14:37:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![lno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/21 "2005-05-06T15:51:23Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > A) The dumbshit that lost the finger for **not** demanding that the finger be retrieved before he left. Granted he’s stressed and just lost a digit but he’s not gonna bleed to death. If I lost a finger, toe, tooth etc somewhere I’d damn well want to take it with me to the emergency room. Let me give you the timeline, as best I can decipher it from the articles:[ul][li]Fizer loses finger. Fizer says, “Oh no! I have lost my finger! Where can it be!”[_]Another employee, not aware of the previous event, scoops up some frozen custard and sells it to Stowers.[_]Stowers leaves the store, and discovers the finger.[_]Stowers returns.[_]Fizer and the store owner try to retrieve the finger.[\*]Stowers refuses, referencing attorneys and television stations.[/ul]You may have missed the part where the store owner tried to retrieve the finger. I have a hunch that the man who lost his finger wanted it back. But, you’re right, I can’t assume that he did. We’d better accuse him of not asking to get his finger back.[/li][quote] B) Dumbshit store manager for continueing to operate at all!?!? WTF !? There’s a finger missing in this stuff and you’re still selling it?! :eek: … Stowers: “Jeezus Shit! THERE"S A FINGER IN MY CUSTARD!” Owner:" Uh yeah, we’re gonna need that back" Fizer: " gettin real bloody back here" Stowers " You dumbfucks served me a **finger** in my ice cream!!!" Owner " well wups, Mistakes happen. We’re gonna need that back" [/quote] And if you didn’t notice, that seems to be what happened, with the next line of: Stowers: “I’m gonna get Johnnie Cochran!” Yes, obviously, knowingly serving a finger to a customer is idiotic. And knowingly continuing to serve food when dismemberment has gone on in the back room is disgusting. But from what the admittedly scarce articles regarding this have said, the fact that Brandon Fizer had lost a finger was not known to the person serving custard. It seems to me that the screams of agony and the blood-flecked custard may be a hint, but I’m forced to assume that the server has enough common sense not to pass out food with people saying “Hey, wait, my finger’s in there!” ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/22 "2005-05-06T15:56:45Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > Fizer: “Shit!!! I just cut off my finger!” > Owner: "That’s terrible. As soon as I take care of this customer I’ll give you a hand. Your finger isn’t as important as me making a little money here. Yessir Mr. customer, here’s your custard. > Fizer: “Of course, my finger isn’t that important. I’m not even gonna mention how I lost it” The thing is, we don’t know that this happened. In fact we don’t know much detail about the sequence of events at all. I will say this, though: If it had been me that lost a finger, my thought process would not be “Golly gee, this might constitute a health code violation. Perhaps I should consider urging my coworkers to stop serving, in the best interest of the customers, doncha know.” My thought process might be more along the lines of “OH FUCK! MY FINGER! OWWWWWW!” And I think I could be forgiven for not thinking too rationally. And if some dipstick insisted on keeping my finger, I think I could be forgiven for beating him to death with a wet carp. There’s more to this story than we’re getting here. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/23 "2005-05-06T16:02:07Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > How you guys can dump on the customer for this is amazing to me. There’s just no way in hell a customer should **ever** have this handed to him in the first place. There was some serious fuck-up occuring that had nothing to do with the customer. > > \ I think the following is closer to what actually happened: Fizer: “OW! Ohsitohshitohshit!” (Custard continues to come out of the machine) Manager: “what happened?” (Custard continues to come out of the machine) Fizer: “My finger!” (Minimum Wage Custard Jockey serves fresh custard to Stowers) Manager: “What about your fing - Oh Shit!” Manager: “Stop the machine!” Fizer: “Mommy?” (Thump) Manager (to MWCJ): “Stop serving, and help me here.” MWCJ: "Huh? (Manager applies first aid, and calls 911. MWCJ begins finger search.) \ (Stowers finds a finger in his custard, and is probably totally grossed out. I would be, too.) Stowers: Oh gross! (Stowers remembers a lady who was going to sue a Wendy’s, only he didn’t plant the finger himself.) Stowers: Cha-ching! \<30 minutes after the accident. Fizer is probably on way to hospital.\> Stowers: “I found --==THIS==-- in my custard.” Manager: “Oh thank God. We need that back to reattach it.” Stowers: “Give it back? No way! I’m calling my attorney and the TV Stations.”\* Stowers: “Haw Haw Haw”\*\* \*Paraphrased from actual statement, which had witnesses. \*\* Not actually said. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/24 "2005-05-06T16:07:14Z")
> [@lno](#): > > It seems to me that the screams of agony and the blood-flecked custard may be a hint, If the custard were chocolate, then the Minimum Wage Custard Jockey would not have seen the blood. It would just appear to be some darker swirls in the custard. If the custard were a light color, then… well… As for the screams of agony… Who knows? ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/25 "2005-05-06T16:07:18Z")
I once sliced off the tip of my thumb on a deli-slicing machine. I immediately began bouncing around and swearing. I did not continue to slice meat. I took care of my thumb (it was only the very tip of it that got sliced off, and it grew back eventually) and took a little break. Then, and only then, did I clean the slicer. I can see where Fizer might have gone into shock, but I don’t understand why the batch of custard was not pulled from the sales shelf. That’s just gross. And Stowers is just an asshole for refusing to hand the the fingertip over. Maybe it could have been re-attached, maybe not. I hope that Fizer sues that guy for everything he’s got, as Fizer is now permanently slightly disabled. I’d hate to try to go through life without use of all ten of my fingers. The article mentions that this is the second time in less than a year that someone’s lost a finger in that machine. Someone needs to look into that. ---
**Author:** ![holmes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e95f7d/32.png) [@holmes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/holmes)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/26 "2005-05-06T16:08:22Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > I’m somewhat in agreement that the right thing for Stowers to do would have been to give it back but he seems to me to rank third on the list of assholes involved in this little melodrama. \*\*Third?\*\*Everything else was an accident… Stowers has deliberately maimed this guy. C’mon. man. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/27 "2005-05-06T16:08:23Z")
I dunno, it seems pretty bizarre that something (anything) could fall into a food delivery machine and be served so fast that nobody could stop the machine or inform the server that a foreign object is in the food. If this was a pen cap, paperclip or nametag, would that all get served up too? It’s also the second time a person lost a body part in that machine. Methinks the management is not really up to snuff. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/28 "2005-05-06T17:03:59Z")
I wonder if Stowers thought for even a second that coldly insisting on hanging on to a piece of SOMEONE ELSE’S BODY might open him up to a lawsuit of his own. Just for his mean-spiritedness, I’d love to see the two suits cancel out to zero gain for either party. But that would be fair, and we know the tort system always moves in the direction that will take it the quickest away from fairness and common sense. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/29 "2005-05-06T17:41:26Z")
> [@neuroman](#): > > He’s already getting some of his just desserts though Pun intended? ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/30 "2005-05-06T17:42:59Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > Fizer: “Shit!!! I just cut off my finger!” > Owner: "That’s terrible. As soon as I take care of this customer I’ll give you a hand. Pun intended #2? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/31 "2005-05-06T17:50:28Z")
> [@Lynn Bodoni](#): > > I don’t understand why the batch of custard was not pulled from the sales shelf. We don’t know that it wasn’t. Until we get a clearer report of how much time elapsed, what the setup is there, and whatever other factors were in play, I’m hesitant to throw any blame. ---
**Author:** ![Big\_Norse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/big_norse/32/9954_2.png) [@Big\_Norse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Big_Norse)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/32 "2005-05-06T17:51:20Z")
They explain how it happened [here](http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2005/05/02/national/a163838D35.DTL) > [@](#): > > Shop owner Craig Thomas said the employee who lost the finger had dropped a bucket while working with a machine that dispenses the custard. He tried to catch the bucket when the accident occurred. > > Thomas told WWAY that several employees tried to help the injured worker, and that a drive-thru window attendant apparently scooped custard from the bucket into a pint before being told what had happened. ---
**Author:** ![davenportavenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f8ce5/32.png) [@davenportavenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davenportavenger)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/33 "2005-05-06T17:53:20Z")
Sometimes the pain from losing a body part can be so tremendous that the brain can’t comprehend it immediately. I’ve heard of people who lost entire arms in shark attacks and car wrecks who didn’t realize their arm was missing until they looked down and saw that it was gone. The kid could have been slinging custard for five minutes before he got a good look at his hand. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/34 "2005-05-06T17:59:08Z")
> [@Big\_Norse](#): > > They explain how it happened [here](http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2005/05/02/national/a163838D35.DTL) Thanks for that. So now the questions become: -Did the window guy look at what he was scooping? (Or did the finger sink down a bit?) -Did anyone say “Stop! Finger!”? ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/35 "2005-05-06T17:59:19Z")
> [@Lynn Bodoni](#): > > The article mentions that this is the second time in less than a year that someone’s lost a finger in that machine. Someone needs to look into that. And lose an eye??? ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/36 "2005-05-06T18:36:36Z")
That’s what I’d call custard’s last stand. Okay, strike that last one. Two thumbs down (but hopefully still attached)! ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/37 "2005-05-06T18:49:47Z")
I gotta tell you, **BBVL** , there’s something funny about what you just said…but I can’t seem to put my finger on it. ---
**Author:** ![Ace309](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ace309/32/1050_2.png) [@Ace309](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ace309)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/38 "2005-05-06T18:53:09Z")
> [@aerodave](#): > > Just for his mean-spiritedness, I’d love to see the two suits cancel out to zero gain for either party. But that would be fair, and we know the tort system always moves in the direction that will take it the quickest away from fairness and common sense. I can understand this if Stowers and the store sued each other, but how is it ‘fair’ to the kid who lost the tip of his finger and may have lost the chance to have it reattached by the meanspirited asshole’s deciding to hold onto it? ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/39 "2005-05-06T19:00:17Z")
If there were two suits, it would be Stowers against the stand and the kid against Stowers. So if it “evened out” the stand loses and the kid wins. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2005, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693/40 "2005-05-06T19:03:54Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > I gotta tell you, **BBVL** , there’s something funny about what you just said…but I can’t seem to put my finger on it. There’s got to be a knuckle sandwich joke in here somewhere. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-who-found-finger-in-custard-refuses-to-return-it-to-owner/302693.md?page=3)