"I'm not some kind of Spider Hitler."

[maypirate]

In an awesome turn of events, I just got yelled at over the phone before the store even opened.

I actually think I did a very good job of staying calm in the face of his really brutal assault on the store and my coworkers, and his shouting and swearing, and spoke evenly and with what I hoped was annoying patience and superior lack of defensiveness. I even stood up for my boss, for what it's worth, although I know he's going to call back and tell her she runs a shitty store with terrible employees.

And I may hate my job, and think my boss is lousy, but we are not terrible people and we do try fucking hard to stay here in a world unfriendly to video rental.

I was proud of myself for keeping calm, and I know, rationally, that this guy is just a fucking asshole who sucks and it's not my personal fault his shit is messed up. But I still feel shaky and kind of ill. At least I didn't cry. Score one for me.

I don't understand, though, why people always say that the letters we send out are "nasty." It's a form letter. It's the kind of letter any store or agency is going to send out when you owe them money. It's the kind of letter I got from the hospital about my car accident. It's scary, but it's not nasty. We never said we would rape him or his friends or his pets or destroy all that was precious to him.

I don't know. I kind of want to buy myself a tea latte to cheer up, but I have a feeling it would just bother my stomach right now. Maybe I'll do that "seven sins" meme so I can talk about "pride" and pretend I'm good at things.

Siiiiigh.

Edit: I keep thinking about him saying that we have "the most stereotypical nasty clerks" and all I can come up with is that if we're less than friendly, and find it hard to give a crap, it's because of people like this guy, who make customer service a living hell.

Ugh.

Comments

[sedesla.livejournal.com]

I used to work for Blockbuster, they would go off in similar tirades about "rude" and "mean" letters. I think ours were post cards with a movie title and an amount due printed on the back--it's amazing what people can read into.

I know you know that this isn't about you, it's about him. But that's not going to make you feel any better. Just feel how you feel right now and then have a better day later when some awesome person does something nice to marginally restore your faith in humanity.

Funny thing is these people really have no idea what bad service is like. They're just entitled assholes pissed off at something in their lives they can't control, so they take it out on the first safe target. Someone they know won't hurt them. People in general suck. At least you're too good to let them bring you down with them.

[sail-aweigh.livejournal.com]

Ugh, what a nasty thing to have to deal with. You dealt with it very well. Still, I know how discombobulating it can all be. Wishing you much peace and calm.

One of my bosses loves your store! She rented all the movies she used for her Intro to French Film from you guys and thinks you have the best selection, ever. So, yeah, it's the asshats that stick in your memory, but it doesn't hurt to know that there are those out there who really appreciate what you do.