A few general sucks/WTFs and a small shout-out
Hi. HI! I am the person talking to you, so why are you talking to my (clueless but wonderful) husband? Examples include:
* Getting a loan from the bank. We didn't end up getting the loan (our choice), but we were going to both be on the loan. I'm talking, my hubbie is staring into space, so why did you keep asking him "And how will you be paying?" and "What payment plan would you like?" etc, etc. He has no clue about finances, so you are barking up the wrong money tree.
* Buying a car. The first lady was pretty nice -- she initially talked to my husband about twice, but she caught on very quickly that it was my purchase and therefore she should respond to me. But then when we got into the dealership to iron out the details and get a loan, whenever they had an offer they directed it to my hubbie. Everytime he said "I dunno. Honey, what do you think?" and then I'D haggle. After about two times, why not talk to me directly?
* Getting technical equipment. I'm the computer person. I'm standing there telling you what specs we want. Why are you pausing on everything, waiting for my husband to nod? When I say I want a Gig of ram, I mean I want a gig of ram. My husband is not disputing it, so why do you need his "permission" to proceed?
* AV equipment. Went into a store with hubbie in tow. I tell the gent I need an XLR to 3.5mm cable. He looks at me a second quizically, and then asks my husband "Are you sure? What are you doing with it?"
Hubbie: "I don't know. It's her cable."
Gent to Hubbie, not me: "I don't have any, but I can show you how to splice it."
Me: "No thanks. I'm a great splicer, but I wanted to save myself the trouble."
Holy crap, please go away. You are nice, but why are you not taking no for an answer? I am trying to shop. I listened to you spiel, politely declined, but you just kept going. No thank you, I'm really not interested in getting quotes for home improvements. No thank you, I understand there is no obligation to buy, but I am not interested. I am edging away from you now, and you are still following me. What part of "No thank you, I'm not interested" are you not understanding?
I went and talked to the floor manager about it. No, I don't want her to be fired -- I don't even think she needs a reprimand. I said that while I appreciate her enthusiasm, I would like people to respect my answer of "No thank you" and not follow me around the store.
Ms Lady, you totally could have been snotty when I asked where the pressure cookers were, but you just gave me a gentle smile and said "Right behind you." I hope you got a good laugh later about the girl who was so clueless she didn't even realize her purse was resting on the shelf with the pressure cookers -- I know I laughed at my own severe "DUH" momment. :)