Well I liked your anecdote. The thought of someone taking you seriously about not knowing about Thanksgiving was hilarious.
I think some people here are suffering from the “It’s Thanksgiving and I’m stuck working/with idiots” blues.
My guess is because when you talk about people who are different than you in this thread, you resort to over-the-top sarcasm. I don’t like interacting with most people on a casual basis; I never have, I probably never will, and I refuse to consider it a negative in my personality (there are many upsides to it, in fact - lines I’m in move faster, and cashiers never have to paste a fake grin on their faces for my “jokes”). Viva la difference, eh?
That said, sorry about the “knob” comment earlier. That was intended as a general, not aimed at you in particular, but re-reading, I see I didn’t make that clear.
Right, same here. But it’s also key to judge the person you’re talking to and continue accordingly. Throw one comment out there but if you see the other person isn’t answering in the same spirit, don’t follow up with two more and then describe the person as “cold”. Being mindful of the other person’s mood is respectful too.
“What credit card would you like to use for your deposit?” (For a hotel reservation.)
“Yours.”
Har har. I’ve gotten that one quite a few times.
It is a safe assumption that almost any jokey thing you say to a customer service rep, in whatever capacity, is not original. They’ve heard it before. Trust me.
Thank you. Now was that so hard?
There is middle ground between “you don’t exist” and corny jokes they’ve heard a million times, ya know?
Disregard these people who say you shouldn’t tell lame jokes to people who aren’t allowed to tell you to shut up and go suck a drainpipe at your soonest convenience, Spud. As someone who tells lame jokes on a daily (and sometimes hourly) basis, I can tell you the captive audience is the best kind. The other kind throws things at you. Sometimes sharp and pointy things.
Seriously though. Some people in the world are just not fun to be around. Ignore them and life’s wonderful. Needless to say, I ignore a great many people.
Jeez, guys, there’s a lot of defensiveness going on.
Honestly, I don’t think you really grok the sheer weight of repetition the cashiers have to go through, OP. Giving the cashier the respect they deserve as a person means (to me) understanding that they’re not having a fun time, they’re burnt the hell out on lame jokes, and that the best thing I can do is help make the transaction as smooth as possible.
This isn’t to say I’m being a stony joyless automaton, either. When they ask me how I’m doing, I acknowledge it and return the question with as much sincerity as I’m feeling up to at the moment. It usually elicits a pleased reaction, and if they want to talk further after that, I’ll keep the conversation rolling. It’s genuine human interaction (or at least it looks like it, I’ll admit to not necessarily knowing) without involving the stupid hyuk hyuk factor.
And believe me, I love lame jokes and puns as much as y’all. Half my posts on the SDMB are driveby jokes. I just recognize that forcing cashiers to listen to them, something many have often said gets on their nerves something fierce, is hardly treating them like people.
Asking how I was doing was fine. Any sort of “real” question or comment was welcome. Hearing “let’s steal the pizza boy’s pizza!” for the forty-thousandth time was just annoying. It was the “hot enough for ya?” of pizza delivery. Budding comedians, we aren’t asking you to stifle your creativity. Just think, for one moment, before you speak and imagine whether your cornball comment is likely to have been heard a few dozen times already. Come up with something original. Don’t go with your A material; think outside the box. Or just show some sympathy, keep your mouth shut, and don’t force us to smirk when we’d really rather garotte you with a piano wire and tap dance on your lifeless, stiffening back.
To put things in a little perspective from the cashier side. You are the customer and to you it is one-to-one. Maybe as a customer it is the only interaction you’ve had with someone the last hour or maybe even the entire day. You want a little conversation before you go home and eat your pie.
But the cashier in a grocery store has maybe hundreds of customers on her shift. You can’t really expect her to do her job–ringing up your order and bagging–AND be original and clever to hundreds of people. Now if she had been hired as a comedian that’s another story… but she is there to process your order as quickly and efficiently as possible, because there’s a line behind you, her boss might be watching and she has to do it all over again. She should be polite but if you want a social experience, you’re in the wrong place.
Well, I thought it was a cute story. But then again when I worked in retail, I preferred the customers who tried to interact with me.
I think part of being a truly courteous person is knowing your audience. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with wanting to joke around with people, but IMHO you took this one to west hell. When you saw that she wasn’t going to joke back with you, you just kept it going for your own amusement. That’s pretty dickish. It seems to me that she let you know pretty quickly that she’d like it to be all business and you forced the “joke” to the point of embarrassing yourself.
Not everyone wants to talk to every single person they meet in a day while some people do. There’s nothing wrong with either of these wishes no matter how defensive the OP wants to be (and you are being over-the-top defensive in these comments to the point of jerkism). Try out your joke or whatever, but if it seems the worker just wants be polite and do their job just roll with it and do what you came there to do.
Of course, a little joking isn’t nearly as bad as our little segment of creepy Dopers who believe it’s fanfuckingtastic to flirt with all the waitresses who are depending on tips to make a living… but I digress.
Well… I guess I’ve been told that I am completely a jerk because I said “Wow… sure is busy for a Wednesday.” And aparently I’m being even more jerkish in defending my position. I will not make the same mistake again and share a story that I thought was funny in such a serious forum as this. I’ve been here 10 years and I’ve never seen anything like this.
Happy fucking hollidays everyone.
Monkey’s Imaginary Players presents:
The grocery line skit
Tater: Nice weather we’re having, heh?
Cashier: It’s raining.
Tater: I know! Get it? Nice weather? It’s raining and it’s hot. Must be 75 degrees outside. But it’s a dry heat.
Cashier: sigh
Tater: Seriously though, it’s raining buckets out there. Maybe we should build an ark? You know where else has dry heat? Phoenix. I just flew back from there yesterday, and boy are my arms tired.
Cashier: grunt
Tater: Maybe we do need an ark. Noah built an ark. Took the animals on it two by two - one male, one female. Since he was a holy man, I bet he performed marriages. “Will you take this cow, to have and to hold?” that sort of thing. I’m not sure I could marry cows. But what am I saying? I married my wife!
Cashier:Oh, for the love of God.
Tater: Hey! Why the long face? I’m trying to be lighthearted and I can’t see why you can’t. Here’s one that will put a smile on your pucker. A horse walks into a bar. Barkeep says “why the long face?” Hah! Seriously, though, you need to lighten up. I’m just trying to have some social interaction here. Most people like a little humor in their day. Take my wife… Please!
Cashier: I will destroy you.
That’s pretty good… but you seriously think that “Cashier” is the position you want to take? I think that tater guy is pretty funny. Again, I think there is a slight disconnect in our level of civil interaction.
Maybe I should restate… I stated “Wow… sure is busy for a Wednesday.”
Sorry, I guess I should have said how it would have normally gone down for normal people.
The very funny Tater guy… "Wow… very busy for a Wednesday.
Cashier… [Smile]
The very funny Tater guy… [Smile]
Cashier… “Paper or Plastic”
If that was all you stated, this wouldn’t even have rated a thread. But you didn’t read your audience and you kept at it. And then you got all pouty when this didn’t turn out to be a fluffy bunnies and huggles thread.
It’s not even like what you said at the time, to the cashier, was all that awful and horrible. You were just one more joker in a long line of jokers that retail clerks encounter all the time. That hardly makes you some great demon.
No, it’s the way you came in here thinking she was “clueless or humor-impaired” as if she were broken somehow, instead of figuring she just had a really long day and was probably pretty beat. That’s not cool and shows a remarkable lack of empathy, which is pretty ironic considering the reason you tried to joke with her in the first place was because you were trying for some innocent social interaction.
OK, I guess I should have given her a big old hug and thanked her for working such a long day. I appoligize for saying that she was “clueless or humor impaired”.
Did nobody notice that I said I worked retail for several years… and I liked people who interacted with me.
This was supposed to be a fun little thread and it has gotten ugly. I have asked for it to be closed.
Can’t imagine why.
I think we may have found the problem.
Your sense of humor sucks.
Look, buddy, if you want to be better at social interaction you need to know that inflicting your “comedy” on others, especially a captive audience, is just plain rude. You’re not funny. Which would be fine, except you keep whining about how others don’t get your jokes.
Please, for the love of God, show just a bit of social skills. Telling a joke that bombs is fine. Persisting with it is annoying and a touch rude. Whining about it afterwards is pathetic.