March 28, 2007

Dealing With People

So last night I had an unhappy customer. The headset I gave her before Act I died somewhere in the middle of the act. She yelled at me at intermission telling me I hadn't done my job properly and scolded me for not testing the headset before I gave it to her. But I did and she saw me test it and she tested it herself before she sat down. She complained that she missed the first act and that she was going to complain to the manager.

She was sitting in the third row and last night's show was even louder because there was a smaller than usual number of people in the audience (less people absorb less sound making things louder). So while I felt bad I knew her claims were exaggerated. An usher who witnessed this public chastising told me the patron had been difficult right from the outset of the show, complaining about her very good seats in the third row, about bathroom location, etc.

So, I gave her a second set. And wondered for most of Act II if I should or shouldn't have given her a second pair in case the pair I gave her conked out. But I ended up relaxing somewhere in the middle of Act II and tried to enjoy the show.

After the show, she handed back the headset without making eye contact and she was completely sullen. She didn't say a word as she headed back into the auditorium to meet her husband. It wasn't over. She waited until she was one of the last patrons in the theater and on her way out, she gave me one more parting shot. "NEXT TIME, DO YOUR JOB THE RIGHT WAY!" I was so upset, I kept dropping things.

To make matters worst, I'm in the midst of a big fat cold. Last night, my big fat cold was responsible for my baby migraine headache.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

There are some very unhappy people in this world. And they do their best to make sure that we are too.