Tuesday, January 10, 2006

Wierdest Day of My Life

I've never had to call Mall security until yesterday.

A manager in our other BBW store was "let go" on Friday. I'm not really sure of the details of why, but let's just say she didn't take it well. She threw her keys at the co manager and proceeded to say things about the store manager that I wouldn’t wish on anybody. She also said a lot of words I've only heard used on Sex and the City.

Of course, guess who gets to go clean up the mess. Before Charlie and I left for our Wilmington trip on Friday, I got a call from my store manager asking if I'd help out. I said yes, because I was already scheduled to go down there and help in a few weeks when the store manager has her baby. I left early yesterday so I had a chance to go by my mall and get the keys to the other store and ask my boss questions about the store. She left me with a warning " ***** has not been taking her termination well. She has been very verbally abusive, she's come by the store a few times, and she has said some pretty terrifying things. If she comes in the store to cause trouble, ask her to leave. If she doesn't leave, call Mall Security and have her removed from the store."

This is getting really long.

I was scheduled to work at 1-10 shift. When I got there, the co manager gave me the run down and I got acquainted with the layout of the store. Then she left to go on break. About 20 minutes later, ****** walks in the store.

I didn't want to ask her to leave right away, so I watched her for a minute. She was talking to the associate about the store manager, walking behind the counter, being loud. I wanted to call my boss to make sure it was ok to ask her to go, but she kept walking in the back room! Then she said she'd be back later, and she left.

I went to the back to call my boss to see what to do if she comes back. I was told to ask her to leave when she returned. As my co manager is asking me questions, my associate walks in the back door. "She's back and is demanding to know who you're talking to." I hang up the phone and walk out to talk to her.

"*****, I'm so sorry, but I've been instructed that if I see you in the store, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"By who?"

"By the people above me. I'm sorry, those are just my orders."

"Well, you can just tell them that [the store manager] is a F&%!ING LIAR and that I know what she did! (And here she gets in my face) I also know that they did this so you can get my job, so you just better watch you F&*#ing back!" and she walks out and sits on a bench right in front of the store.

First of all, the whole thing had nothing to do with me. Second of all, I can tell when somebody is saying things because they're mad, and when somebody is serious and wants to mess you up. She scared the crap out of me. I stood there a second and went to the back to call my boss. I explained the situation (shaking like a leaf!) and she said she would call the DM. He calls a minute later and says that I need to call Mall Security and have her removed.

Mind you this is not my store, so I don't even know where the number is. I found it, called and they responded. About 4 of them. The mall I was working at is like a ghost town, so I'm sure they all sit around waiting for calls like this. I explained the situation and they said they can't take her out of the mall, but they can make sure she doesn't come back in the store. So they stood outside the door in front of her for about an hour.

In the middle of all this, the co manager comes back from break and sees security guards everywhere. I explain the whole thing and the next hour she gets calls from ***** and her husband, yelling at her. Our DM calls and instructs the co manager to tell her she's not welcome in any of the BBW stores in the area.

So, I'm not going to lie, I was pretty jittery yesterday. It took a few hours to get my heart rate back to normal. I was afraid to go on break, let alone leave in a dark parking lot! We had a security guard walk us out. But then in my car I kept looking in my rear view mirror to make sure no one was about to shoot me.

I don't have to work in their store until Saturday, so hopefully the whole thing will have blown over.

The end. :)

18 comments:

bigsip said...

Holy Smokes, Di!

I worked as a secucrity guard whenn I was at Faulkner. It was over a summer and sucked.

The guard position was at a garbage bag factory of all places.

I was there for the sole purpose of keeping disgruntled ex-employees out of the "compound".

They had experienced several incidents where ex-employees had burnt entire trailers of garbage bags and tried to accost managers.

Protect yourself. Get some pepper spray and keep the guards near.

This chick is nutso. Just try to protect yourself till you know the situation is safe.

We'll pray for you.

Diana said...

I really want some pepper spray, actually. I mean, I'm in some situations sometimes that it would just feel good to have some nearby. I would like to take a self defense class, too. Maybe this summer!

bigsip said...

Good thinking. You just never know when you might need to defend yourself.

Ryan F. said...

I know you don't know me but your hubby does. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Things like this tend to blow over after a few days. Once she realizes that this job isn't worth going to jail over, she will let it go. Probably not a bad idea to have the ole Pepper Spray though. Never know what situation may arise that you might need it.

Ryan F. said...

You should sign up for some Rexkwando.

Ryan F. said...

You should sign up for some Rexkwando.

JS said...

an AWESOME story. The longer the better I say!

THis is going to be great material for the 2006 blog awards! Ill have to come up with a category to fit it into!

pepper spray is a good idea... but only use it if you have to. If you use it on psycho chick, she is liable to hate you even more afterwards.

Next time yall come, LArissa can show you some great areas you can pinch or pull if someone grabs you. The crothc is always a godo one, but she has better ones too

bigsip said...

I'll teach you to kill someone with a paperclip.

On second thought, stick with the pepper spray.

Mat Brewster said...

Bad experience, Great story.

I love these people. Any case she might have had to say she didn't deserve to be fired is immediately blown by acting like a complete psychopath.

Don't worry Diana, she'll move on soon.

I love it Jamison. Don't use peperspray because she'll be mad later. but grab her in the crotch and she'll be your best friend! Tee heee.

JS said...

"...but grab her in the crotch and she'll be your best friend!"

It worked in college!

mullinz8 said...

Yeah good story! A story like this needs to be good and long to get the details. I would have left the psycho’s name in because the chance that we’re going to meet her or anything like that is pretty slim; it adds a personal touch to it among friends.

I’d be cautious but not too worrisome over the whole thing. Like Ryan said she’ll get over it once she realizes that she needs to get a new job and understands that a good recommendation even under bad circumstances is better than explaining why her name was in the police report.

Pepper spray… This stuff is really good if your attacker is kind enough to wait on you to get it ready. If you’re calling your boss and the nut is walking towards you to attack all the pepper spray in the world ain’t going to do you much good if it’s in your bag across the store.

This is very simple, take a hand and feel your throat. On a guy just under the Adam’s apple there is a space right above a really soft spot above the clavicle. Gently press on this area; you should feel a very unpleasant pressure. If you have one shot to defend your self aim for that and aim REALLY HARD! If this doesn’t send someone to their knee it should still give you enough time to get help. If you nail them it could crack their wind pipe and considering most attackers aren’t thinking that you’re going to be able to defend your self you’ve got a leg up.

There are those guys who are enraged enough to where a kid in the crotch isn’t going to phase them enough. If you can’t catch your breath or breath you’re not going to be hurting anybody.

Never be afraid to fight back.

On a trip to Atlanta once some dear friends were trapped in a car by a crazy mo’fo. I was paying for some gas and had no choice to walk out there and try and face the nut. Face to face with this guy waving a stick I caught a break and he got distracted enough for me to get in the car and take off. Had I sat in the gas station waiting on someone he could have done damage to the car and the loved ones inside.

bigsip said...

So true..the pepper spray won't help unless you have it to use it.

I only recommended it to have out and ready while walking to your car at night.

Have it in-hand and thumb on the button. If you douse someone with that stuff, they'll be incapacitated for hours, so you can easily walk to your car and calmly unlock the door and drive off after you've kicked them in the face and left the writhing in agony in the parking lot.

JS said...

Best story on earth Mullins... It still begs the question: "Who, indeed, is swollen? And where is he?"

Same trip, different story:

"Opening the grilled cheese...Tasting the grilled cheese...Delicious."

It is soothing to know that the first thing a black man does after getting drunk is to go into a Waffle House, exclaim "I'm DRUNK as HELL!" to the resturant, then order a grilled cheese and tell the resturant how good it tastes...

mullinz8 said...

Yeah, when you know you're going to passing through or heading into a questionable area pepper spray is the way to go. For that matter even when you think you’re safe you should have it in hand. A lot of muggings and attacks happen in broad day light. Remember the Boy Scout motto: “Be Prepared.”

Somewhere in the “south ATL” there is going to be placed a head stone which will read “He opened the grilled cheese and we will miss him.”

Jamison you do grow that shit good.

bigsip said...

The dearth I feel from missing those experiences saddens my heart.

I wish I could have been there for "swole" and "grilled cheese" man...

JS said...

dont forget the large oriental man that blocked brews path in the underground

bigsip said...

I didn't know about "large oriental man"...Do tell!

JS said...

it was so short and so quick, i am surprised it has stood the test of time.

We were in the Atlanta Underground and the 4 of us were walking, trying to stay together and brew got blocked by a very fat oriental man. The man seems to be a bit on the "slow" (retarted) side and just stood there with a wicked smile on his face. Brew about lost us because the man would not let Brew pass...

Brew, fill in the gaps....