I have a AMEX and noticed that’s it not taken at lots of places which means I may get rid of it once I pay it off next month.
Dammit! I can’t believe I did that!:o
Didn’t notice, based my reaction on my preconceptions, my fuck up. Sorry.
I ain’t sayin’ she a gold duighur.
@ Vinny: 
Your story is sexist and/or homophobic because you made the implicit assumption, and included way too much unnecessary detail, about the participants apparently being heterosexual. Allow me to FTFY:
Book title: “Young pre-adult person meets another young pre-adult person”
Young pre-adult person meets another young pre-adult person.
Young pre-adult person gets other young pre-adult person.
Young pre-adult person looses [sic] other young pre-adult person
Young pre-adult person gets other young pre-adult person back.
The end.
You could probably even leave out the “young pre-adult” everywhere. How relevant is it that the persons in the story are young pre-adults?
Pretty common, yeah, but sometimes they’re just having a shit day. It’s also pretty common to have been getting shit from someone you can’t strike back at (for example your boss) and then turn around and drop like a ton of bricks on the nearest available target (family, retail worker, subway cashier).
I find your ageist, anthropocentric micro-aggression offensive.
The large black woman as a customer is enough of a correct stereotype that I will count on one to make a huge deal about how important she is.
Make a stop by Wal-Mart and observe the registers.
And, my intended contribution to the thread:
Amex (the original green card):
- Was not a credit card - it was a charge card. Payment in full was due upon receipt of the statement.
- Charged 5%. Historical note: a bunch of (expensive) restaurants in Boston got together and announced (publicly and loudly) that they would no longer accept Amex. Since Amex marketed itself as ‘THE’ card for life’s finer things*, losing those restaurants hurt. The publicity the revolt generaed really hurt. Hence the 3.5% (Visa, M/C charged 2%. I assume Discover matches Visa and M/C).
- Macy’s, back when it was snooty, accepted only the Macy’s card and Amex - they would not take the (everybody has one) Visa or M/C
My first card was an American Express (this was back in the early 80s when I was fresh out of grad school and in a low-paying academic job). I tried to get a Visa and was rejected, probably because of my limited credit and employment history, but Amex was happy to accommodate me (provided I coughed up the $75 annual fee). I know that Amex cultivated an image of exclusivity, but the notion that you had to be rich to get one was (and is) pure hype.
Why is it relevant to specify gender?
If you work retail you run into such over-the-top asshats on at least a weekly basis. It’s not you running into them, it’s them coming to your place of business.
Why would you assume such a person would act rationally?
Seriously. You’re essentially saying “I’ve never done such a thing, so why would someone who did that thing act this way?”
Years ago my workplace was kitting out a conference room with A/V equipment. Part of it was a plasma TV monitor. This was back when a 40" flat screen was still $10-15,000. A week after it was delivered and moved into the room, it disappeared. The company and police interviewed everyone who had access to the (secure) room. Everyone gave their (reasonable) accounts except for one guy who got defensive and belligerent, yelling how they were slandering him and how he was going to sue. Everyone else was like “there’s your guy!” But there wasn’t enough evidence to do anything.
And why assume that gender is binary?
Seconded. And despite generally being only 0.1% of the people one serves, they leave a lasting impression.
Okay then. I believe Pit etiquette prohibits my apologizing to you directly like a civilized human being, so I’ll just give you a long meaningful look. :o
Well, obviously, she was a ho then.
Why say “get?” That implies ownership. Does the writer of the story believe in slavery? And the one who gets is the male!
Down with the oppressive patriarchy!
I might as well drop this here; I’ll assume the above was the case for a rather odd little drama last night.
(Knock on my front door, well after dark)
I open the door partway. A young man in a tie, carrying a clipboard, is standing there.
We stare at each other.
Me: can I help you?
Him: Well, I’m just waiting for you to open your door and stop looking like you’re scared of the black man.
Me: (thinks, “WTF?”)
Him: launches into a speech about how he’s gotten the stink eye from “85%” of the people in my neighborhood and strongly hints at what a bunch of racists we all are (I guess he hadn’t yet stopped at the houses of any of my several African American neighbors). This goes on for a couple minutes; at no point does he explain what he’s offering, or selling, or whatever.
Me: “Excuse me, are you selling something? What do you want?”
Him: “I can see you rolling your eyes, so I guess you’re not going to listen anyway.”
Storms off
I’ll admit I did roll my eyes. Couldn’t help it, really.
I’ve never heard of someone getting into full door-to-door kit with tie and clipboard just for an opportunity to take out their frustrations by incoherently scolding random strangers, but I have no other explanation for what happened to you there.