11.30.2006

butterfly catcher

we have a regular kid who comes in everyday after school on her rollerblades and orders a "rainbow water" (one pump of each syrup in a venti iced water). we call her 'butterfly' because she flits about the store, talking to total strangers and dancing on her blades. she normally is just a small annoyance, but lately she's been acting like an entitled beast.

last week she expected us to give her a free refill of her rainbow water just because she's in our store "all the time!". she's also been bold enough to ask us baristas to give her a ride home when she doesn't feel like blading to her house (which apparently is "only three blocks away"). and once she even tried to go into our backroom because she'd "never seen one before!".

this afternoon, however, she went above and beyond.
because she's in our store nearly everyday she knows where we keep our phone. since none of us baristas were willing to give her a ride home (not that we've ever been willing) she decided to go behind our counter and grab the phone so she could call her mother.

"hello? hell-ooooo! can you hurry it up because i need to use the phone!" butterfly was yelling into the receiver.
"hang up that phone and get out from behind the counter!" i was pissed and made no attempt to sound nice.
"i need to use the phone but someone is talking!" she cried out and started pushing numbers on the dial pad.

yup, indeed. our manager was having (yet another) serious conversation with our district manager when butterfly picked up the receiver and started hollering into it. butterfly tried to argue with me as i took the phone from her, hung it up and chased her out from behind the counter.

"but i just needed to use the phone for a second!" she whined.
"don't you EVER do that again," i scolded her like she was a bad dog. "if you can't behave then you better quit coming here."

my manager came out from the backroom ready to kill. butterfly sat her butt down in a chair and acted like nothing happened. when my manager went back to his phone call butterfly bladed her way to the front counter and started taking quarters out the tip jar. i had to fight the urge to slap her hand away.

"i need change for the pay phone." she said when i told her to put the money back.
"put the money back and get out of the store." i gave her the evil eye.
"well," she pouted. "will you give me money for a taxi?"

unfortunately my manager won't ban the butterfly. i can't wait to see what she pulls tomorrow.

partner rant: you've been begging for more shifts. you complain that you need hours. so when a fellow partner offered you one of their shifts you readily accepted. well, why the hell didn't you show up for the shift? not only were you a no-show, you didn't answer your phone when we called. thanks for screwing over the morning crew. because of that we had to play catch up for the rest of the day.

19 comments:

Amy said...

Uggggh, I rainbow water sounds positively sick. Perhaps all the sugar has gone to the brain.

pseudostoops said...

ew on rainbow water and ew on heinous behavior. someone should drive her home, once, and tell her parents that she's not allowed to come to your store anymore because of the nonsense she's pulled. even if the manager won't officially ban her, it might work?

Anonymous said...

one pump of each syrup in a venti iced water

Found your problem.

My god, that must taste awful. How does anyone even imagine that without passing out?

Anonymous said...

How old is this "kid"? I don't understand why food service chains are so reluctant to throw out undesirable guests. When I eat at counters downtown the proprietors don't even let them in the door.

Anonymous said...

There's a bigger story here, BB. Something with the home life. Start asking her the right questions and you'll get a novel out of this.

Moxie said...

I thing jpdc may be on to something. Kids don't act that crazy unless there is something very wrong. Good luck in dealing with her.

Brat, can you tell us about the buttons and awards that Bux employees get? This morning I saw that one of my favorite baristas was wearing a ton of award/recognition pins on her apron and she's only been there 6 months. Also, what is the difference between the green apron and the black one?

Peter said...

Butterfly reminds me of the "mascots" who used to hang around the quicky mart I worked in. They were lonesome, middle aged men, usually alchoholic or mildly disturbed. They knew the store better than I did and, at times, could be helpful. But there was an entitlement line that they knew not to cross, most of them anyway.

It sounds like Butterfly is vying for the mascot position.

she said: said...

Oh yeah... that kid is definitly going to do porn.

Anonymous said...

Ugh that sounds terrible. I'm really glad we don't have anyone like that at my 'bux. Good luck with her in the future!

Sling said...

I'm pretty sure if someone puts their hand in your tip jar,you are allowed to murder them with extreme prejudice...There must be precedent.

mellowlee said...

Oh my God! How long has this kid been hanging around? I like the idea of someone driving her home, and talking to her parents. So weird! Rainbow water sounds hideous! Im trying to think of what all the syrups are, and can't quite do it. It must be horrible though BLEH.

Anonymous said...

that kid (how old is she?) must be on more than rainbow water... perhaps her parents smoke a lot of pot... and perhaps her mum smoked pot whilst pregnant with her...

funny though - these are the characters that even though we can live without, they make the world a more interesting place to live in... at least she isn't really harming anyone...

Anonymous said...

Rainbow water? That could be a new drink on the menu board. Hahahaha.

Anonymous said...

wow, i think i would have actually just smacked the crap out of her. haha.

Anonymous said...

I have an idea.

Find a male barista. Preferably one that can act well. Have him take this after-school shift. Next time Rollergirl comes in, asking for a ride, have this guy step up to the plate. But, of course, have him act as sketchy as humanly possible. Goofy grins, disheveled hair, nervous laughter, the works. Should go something like:

Sketch: Here's yer rainbow water. I made it myself. Heh heh heh
Roller: Uh, thanks, can you give me that free?
Sketch: I won't charge you anything, but it won't be 'free'. -chuckle-
Roller: Um, okay...
Sketch: So do ya need a ride home? I live real close to you... hee hee

If all goes well, she'll either never come back, or file a restraining order. K

Writeprocrastinator said...

Brat,

First, someone needs to explain to this "kid" that Rollergirl from "Boogie Nights," was a fictional character and not a role model.

Second, somebody should give her a ride for just the once and talk to her parent or guardian when they drop her off. Your Bux is not a baby-sitting service and if the parent/guardian contiues to take this for granted, your Bux should charge an astronomical fee until everyone involved gets the hint.

Third, your franchise should seriously think about paying a college student or somebody who is down on their luck in coffee and stale pastries that are on the verge of a trip to the dumpster, to guard the tip jar.

Wherever you go in this world, there are two rules of ettiquette that should never be breached. You don't lean on somebody's car and you don't touch their money. In most countries, this would provoke justifiable homicide.

barista brat said...

amy - it IS sick. it smells foul, too.

pseudostoops - we are all too afraid that once we show a smidgen of interest, she will be attatched forever.

anonymous - i think i'd almost rather drink a whipping cream latte.

anonymous - she's about thirteen. the unwritten rule at bux is we can't throw people out unless they are dangerous.

jpdc - i'm sure you're right - i just don't want to be the one to listen to her life story.

girl with moxie - green aprons are standard issue. black aprons are for those baristas that are certified coffee masters. that means you can ask them ANYTHING about coffee and they should give you an informed answer. there are many different pins. the most common is called a MUG award (Moves of Uncommon Greatness). you'll also see "100%" pins if they scored a 100 on their secret shop. i've seen shift lead pins, coffee cherry pins and others. some baristas LOVE the pins and others don't bother with them.

peter - she might want to be the mascot, but she's more of a pest.

she said - haha, you're comment was too funny!

skavoovee - lucky you, haha!

sling - that should be signed into law!

mellowlee - vanilla, sugar-free vanilla, hazelnut, sugar-free hazelnut, classic, melon, caramel, valencia, blackberry, raspberry, toffee nut, almond, gingerbread, cinnammon, peppermint water. GROSS!

marcus - she does seem like a hippy child. and yes, she is harmelss but hella annoying!

anonymous - please, no!

angela - seriously, i was tempted!

kiz - haha, i don't think any of my barista buddies are brave enough to try it.

writeprocrastinator - i agree someone should talk with her parents, but none of us want to give her a ride home. in this day and age of lawsuits and false accusations, we don't want to chance any drama just because we were being nice.

Writeprocrastinator said...

"in this day and age of lawsuits and false accusations, we don't want to chance any drama just because we were being nice."

Yeeeshhh, good point.

Anonymous said...

Totally, no! Don't give her a ride home. For all you know, that may THRILL her mother to have free transportation. Her mom may tell her to get one of bux people to drive her home every time. I think next time you should call a nice police man to escort this lost little girl home. I think the police officer would scare the mother a little more than a disgruntled but obliging bux worker. Maybe then, someone would pay attention to where the girl is, and what she's doing. If the mother calls the Bux and complains, you could always say that it was a liability issue, since the child was unaccompanied. Y'know, in this day and age, one DOES have to be concerned about lawsuits.

What a utter monster-child!