I was just minding my own business at the big art place, looking at one of those old paintings that had a lot of gold on it. It was pretty quiet, just a few other people walking around. I was feeling pretty calm, just enjoying the quiet and the cool air inside. I even thought about getting one of those little audio guides, but decided against it.
Then this lady came up to me. She was carrying a big bag and looking all flustered. She just marched right up and said, “Excuse me, where do you keep the little statues? The ones shaped like cats? I saw them last time I was here and my niece really wants one for her birthday.” I just looked at her, kind of surprised she came right to me. I thought maybe she was asking a general question, like someone you meet in line for coffee.
I told her, “Oh, I don’t work here. I’m just looking at the art, same as you.” I even sort of waved my hand to show I wasn’t wearing one of those fancy uniforms the real workers had on, or a name tag. I thought that would be the end of it, that she’d just say sorry and go find someone who actually worked there.
But she just stared at me. Her mouth actually dropped open a little bit. Then she frowned. “What do you mean you don’t work here? You’re standing right next to the gift shop entrance, and you look like you know what you’re doing. Now, can you just tell me where the cat statues are? I don’t have all day.” My eyebrows went up. I felt a little confused, because I had just told her plain as day.
I tried again, slower this time. “Really, I don’t work for this museum. I’m just visiting. I don’t know where the statues are.” I pointed a bit over my shoulder toward the actual gift shop door, hoping she’d get the hint and go inside. I was starting to feel a little impatient, my fingers wanting to tap on my leg.
She put her hands on her hips. “Don’t be silly. Of course, you work here. You’re trying to avoid helping me, aren’t you? That’s just rude customer service. I know you know where they are. Is it because I’m asking for something specific? Because I really need those cat statues. They have to be the ceramic ones.” I could feel a little prickle of annoyance starting to spread. Why was she doing this?
I realized this was going nowhere fast. I began to look around for an actual employee, one of the people in the blue vests or with a special badge. I saw a young man in a blue vest near the information desk, not too far away. I started walking towards him, figuring I could ask him to help this lady. I thought that was a pretty good idea, solving the problem without getting into an argument.
But the lady followed me, practically stomping. “Where are you going? You’re supposed to be helping me! You can’t just walk away from a customer!” I really started to get a headache right then. I just kept walking towards the blue vest guy. When I got to him, I tried to keep my voice calm. “Excuse me, this lady is looking for some cat statues in the gift shop, and she seems to think I work here.”
Before the real employee could say anything, the lady bustled up next to me. “He’s trying to get out of helping me! He refused to tell me where the cat statues are, and now he’s trying to pass me off to you. I want his supervisor’s name. I want him fired for being so unhelpful and rude!” My muscles began to tense up. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Fired? For not working somewhere?
The museum employee looked from me to the lady, his face looking a bit confused. He said, “Ma’am, he really doesn’t work here. He’s a visitor, just like you. I can definitely help you find the cat statues, though. Just follow me to the gift shop, and I’ll show you.” He was trying to be nice and helpful.
But she wouldn’t have it. “No! I want HIM to help me! He’s the one I asked! And now he’s trying to trick me! This is terrible service! I’m going to tell everyone about this place! You all clearly don’t know how to treat your paying customers!” She was shouting now, and a few other people were starting to look over. My face felt hot. I began to see red. This was just ridiculous. I didn’t even know this woman, and she was making such a scene.
The museum employee’s expression changed then, becoming much more serious. He reached for a walkie-talkie on his belt. “Ma’am, you need to calm down or I will have to call security. He is not an employee, and you are disrupting other visitors.” But she just got louder. “You can’t call security on me! I’m a customer! I’ll have all of you fired!”
A few moments later, two big security guards came around the corner. They looked very serious. One of them stepped forward and spoke to the shouting lady. She continued to scream about how she was being mistreated and how I was supposed to help her. They tried to tell her to leave quietly, but she just kept yelling about her cat statues and how rude everyone was. Eventually, they had to gently but firmly escort her out of the building. I just stood there, breathing a little heavy, trying to calm down my racing heart. I watched her leave, still shouting as the doors closed behind her. I decided I had enough art for one day.
