If you work in customer service, there’s only so much you’re willing to deal with until you finally throw up your hands and walk away…

And the customer this worker had to deal with was a real doozy!

To make it even worse, she was a regular customer who would come in the store all the time, so when the employee saw her coming, he knew it was going to be bad.

Check out all the details below.

Another classic tale of a customer getting mad at something that the employees can’t control.

“One of my biggest pet peeves when working in retail was the countless times that customers got mad over situations that were out of the employees’ control.

Being out of a certain items, machines breaking, price changes, items being re-shelved; everything that was left to the higher-ups, not the overworked and underpaid staff.

I’ve got many stories of people thinking I can magically make their favorite items be back in stock, or that I could change the price of a certain item.

Here’s one story where the outcome was actually satisfying for a change.

There’s always one customer like this…

When I was 18, I used to work at a convenience store, and one of our regulars was an elderly lady who bought the same bottle of off-brand Frappuccino and smokes every single day. We’ll call her CL (for “cranky lady.”).

At first, she didn’t seem all that bad, but she ended up being the type of person who wanted everything to be just so. CL wanted the exact same routine every single day.

If we were out of her favorite cigarettes, out of her favorite coffee, or if she waited in line for more than 5 minutes, she’d share her displeasure with everyone unfortunate enough to listen. “Ugh, I can’t believe it…” “I haven’t got all day, you know.” “Are you kidding me?”

Now, this was back in my late teens, so I already had the self-esteem of roadkill, ergo, I wasn’t too fazed by people berating me. Plus, I knew I’d just get in more trouble if I retaliated, so I just learned to put up with CL’s shenanigans.

Uh oh…

One day, CL’s routine was thrown way off course. By the time she got entered the store, we were just restocking the cigarette shelves, there were no more bottles of her favorite coffee, and there was a line of about 5 or 6 other customers.

You could hear her usual exclamations of annoyance from across the store.

I was running the register, and got more nervous than usual when she approached the counter.

Here’s how the conversation went.

CL: “It’s about time. Where’s my Marlboro Lights?!!”

Me: We’re stocking the shelves as we speak, m’am. It’ll be a few minutes.

CL: I don’t have a few minutes! I’ve been coming here every single day, and I always get my iced Frappuccino and Marlboro Lights!

Me: We have other kinds of Marlboro if you’re interested.

She wasn’t interested.

CL: I don’t want no other kind of Marlboro! I always get my Marlboro Lights!!!

Now, I wasn’t diagnosed yet, but I’d developed C-PTSD from being treated similarly by my father throughout my childhood, and something about the way CL yelled at me gave me a similar feeling to when my dad was doing it.

I tried to keep my best “customer service” demeanor, but it was hard to keep it up when you’re also trying to bottle up your urge to get angry or start crying.

Then CL said something I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone complain to me about.

This lady was too much!

CL: Why ain’t you smilin’?!

Me: M’am, please calm down.

CL: Whatever happened to being bright and cheerful toward customers? Whatever happened to “the customer’s always right?” Now, are you done getting my cigarettes?!!

A couple of ladies in line criticized CL for using foul language in front of their kids.

The woman got even crazier…

CL: Oh shut up! This is America; I can say whatever the Hell I want!

Just when I felt like I was about to either explode in anger or in tears, my hero boss walked in, and started escorting CL out.

She tried screaming, “GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME!!! YOU RESPECT YOUR ELDERS!!! I’M 78 YEARS OLD!!!”

We didn’t have any security, so my boss just guarded the door, letting other customers come in or out while keeping CL out until she gave up and left.

Here’s a twist!

My boss apologized profusely, and told me that that CL was actually his grandma-in-law! Apparently, everyone in their family thinks she has Asperger Syndrome, and a big part of it is obsession with routines.

I kind of felt a little bad for her looking back on it, but also very much glad to have her gone.

Later, my boss banned her from the store until she, and I quote, “got her stuff together because Judgement Day’s coming hard and fast.” Whatever that means…

Moral of the story: retail employees are people, too.”

Was the Cranky Lady really being unreasonable, or was the employee rude?

Reddit users shared their thoughts.

This person had a lot to say.

Another individual shared their thoughts.

Another Reddit user spoke up.

This reader chimed in.

That lady definitely needs to get some help.

If you liked that post, check out this story about a customer who insists that their credit card works, and finds out that isn’t the case.