Hospitality

I was recently approached by a woman with a ragged-ass medium popcorn bag demanding a refund for her popcorn that she allegedly dropped during her movie (after our concession stand had closed). Now, our official policy is "Too damn bad, you just learned an expensive lesson: don't let your two-year-old hold the popcorn." Depending on our mood and the politeness of the customer, we may refill it... but we certainly are not obligated to do so.

Especially when said bag is sporting a fashionable footprint and grease on all sides, clearly having been dug out from the bottom of a trash can.

After some questioning, I learn that she came out to the concession stand during her movie and asked for a new popcorn, but was refused by my floor staff and told she needed to bring her half-empty bag out. But, what are the chances?! She dropped it right on a puddle of spit. First of all, it would obviously have to be your spit, and what the hell are you doing spitting on the floor inside? So she didn't want to pick it up because "that's gross." Also, she was in a hurry and didn't want to miss her movie.

I carefully explained to her our policy, and that my floor staff was correct in refusing her a new bag. I went on to say that we keep track of what we sell by the number of bags and cups we have (NEWSFLASH: a huge percentage of the general population does not understand the word "inventory"), and that issuing her a new bag would have left her register short. The woman then continued to demand a refund, but after explaining that all the money was cashed out for the day, this turned into requiring a voucher for next time.

Honey, this ain't the welfare office.

When she finally understood that I wasn't going to give her anything, she asked to speak to someone else, because "I work in customer service and this should be handled differently." Well, that's your opinion, here's my GM's card.

After speaking to my floor staff, I learned that
1. She remembered serving the bitch, and she only purchased a candy
2. She did indeed come out during the movie, and even had the same story about the spit, but claimed to have worked in a hospital so she knew about germs
3. She argued with my staff for a full ten minutes
4. After being given gloves and a box (I love that floor staff) and being told she needed to return right away with the bag in hand, she didn't show until after the movie with that bag that obviously wasn't hers
5. She claimed to have already spoken to a manager and been promised another free popcorn and free nachos

My floor staff flat-out said "No, she did not tell you that. You can go talk to her right now, she's at the front desk."

Like I said, I love that girl.

A few things to address here:
-Who doesn't know about germs?
-Customer service at a hospital? The only desk at a hospital is called "Billing," and they are definitely not concerned with customer satisfaction. Let me count the ways your are full of shit.
-Way to lie about having already spoken to me. If somehow we hadn't caught on to your scam yet, we're definitely up to speed now.


Epilogue: She never called my GM.


Movies!

Paul Blart: Mall Cop- Movie Fail
I thought even Kevin James had more self-respect than this. Don't be deceived by the ads. Yes, it is still popular; it's also just terrible. If you're that interested in the story line, wait for Seth Rogen's "Observe and Report." I can guarantee you it will be approximately one million times better.

Coraline 3D: Worth It (with a side of "Don't Ever Take a Small Child to See This")
It's creepy. It's trippy. It's an excellent movie. Your child will have nightmares.

Friday the 13th: Time-Killer
Admittedly, it was much better than any Jason movie in years. There's plenty of nudity and gore to go around, but the last 4 seconds are the least plausible thing I've ever seen. Terrible sequel, anyone?

The International: Time-Killer
I was entertained until the end, but that's about all. It was anticlimactic and there's pretty much negative resolution- meant to give it a more realistic feel, but this isn't a terribly believable story in the first place. It might have been better received a few years ago, when international banks weren't dropping like flies.