Wow. I cant’ believe I’ve never blogged about this story before. Apparently the time has come for me to share this experience with all of you.
It’s funny how comments on other people’s blogs can spark a post.
You see, I was reading my friend Margaret’s Blog, ‘Nanny Goats In Panties’, and she had written a post called, “What’s The Worst Thing You’ve Done To A Customer”. If you haven’t read it? You should.
Margaret tells a very funny story about the time she worked for a ‘Fast Food Restaurant’ and a subsequent mishap with a bucket of fried chicken, which may or may not have killed a person. [Yes. You read that correctly.] The comments on that post consisted of other people’s stories seeking revenge or hating on customers while working in the ‘Service Industry’. As I was contemplating my own reply to the conversation, I realized I have never truly been afforded the opportunity to really mess with anyone. At least not while at work. Eventually, one thing led to another, and it came out that I too had once worked in the ‘Fast Food Business’. But that only lasted for a week. And you’ll find out why by the end of this post.
Later that very same day, I was reading my friend Nicky’s Blog, ‘We Work For Cheese’, wherein she had posted a story called, “When In Doubt Tell The Truth”. If you haven’t read that? Than you should. [And not just because I have the biggest ‘Girl Crush’ on her.]
Nicky shared some truths about herself and much to my surprise we had a boatload of things in common. And one of those things was being held at gunpoint. Considering ‘My Story’ has been brought up on two other blogs [via comments] I suppose it’s only fair to share the ‘Whole Story’ with all of you today.
Here we go…
The year was 1991. I was 17 years old, living in Daytona Beach, Florida with my grandparents and the time had come for me get one of those ‘Job’ thingys. Having little to NO work experience, I figured my best bet would be to find employment at a local McDonald’s.
I was hired immediately.
I absolutely loathed putting on that ‘Outfit’. And may I just mention that it is half past IMPOSSIBLE to get the smell of grease, and the stench of ‘All Things Fried’ out of any fabric, especially a ‘Uniform’ made of brown polyester.
Anyway…
On my seventh day working, I was deemed ‘Skilled’ enough to handle the ‘Fry Station’. I immediately got busy congratulating myself for getting ‘Promoted’ so quickly. Of course, it doesn’t really take a ‘Rocket Scientist’ to drop a bag of frozen French fries into burning hot oil.
Later that evening, as I was sweating profusely underneath the ‘Red Heating Lamps’, cussing under my breath, and rethinking my ‘Promotion’ was more like ‘Punishment’, when three men in ski masks entered the building. I couldn’t see them right away, but I sure could hear people screaming.
One of the three men stayed by the front door. I suppose he was the ‘Look Out’, or his job must have been ‘Crowd Control’. The other two men rapidly approached the registers, jumped over the counter, wielding weapons, and demanded the Manager.
One of those two men rounded up all of the employees, including ‘Yours Truly’ and took us back towards the freezer. He told us to, ‘Shut Up and Stay Put!” And then he slammed the door, locking us inside.
I don’t know how long we were trapped in that freezer, but if it was only five minutes it sure felt like five years. And after what seemed like forever times infinity and a half, the unharmed manager opened the door, freeing us from Sub-Zero temperatures.
The store was closed, the police we called, reports were filed and the incident was made public the next day in the newspapers.
[Sadly, I cannot find the original article. I’ve saved it all of these years, and I am pretty sure it’s stuck at the bottom of a box in storage where many other items of my past dwell.]
After I came home to my grandparents and I explained how I had been held hostage in the freezer of McDonald’s, at gunpoint, while we were being robbed, my grandparents never let me go back to work there. In fact, they didn’t want me working anywhere.
And that concluded my stint in any kind of ‘Fast Food Joint’.
So how many of YOU have worked in the Fast Food Business? And what kind of experiences have YOU had?
When I was 19 or so, and in the Air Force stationed in Grand Forks, N.D., I got a part-time job as a fry cook at the Country Kitchen restaurant. While I have no real memories of anything as interesting as an armed robbery, I DID have a brief romantic affair with a cute waitress. Surely that counts for something, right? 😉
Great post!
The only time I was held at gunpoint on a job was at a dating service. I have never been afraid to work hard to pay my bills, and at this point in my life I was working three jobs to stay in college: bartending (loved it, I did that for many years to make ends meet, get through school, finance my new business way back when, etc), graveyard shift waitress a couple of nights a week and matching people at a certain national dating service.
The dating service used these complex card systems and quizzes and psych tests to find matches, plus a bit of human intuition. It was kind of fun. We had separate files for the 'golddiggers' we knew didn't care about appearance but only money, normal folks, the hidden “marrieds” who'd lied on the apps, etc. One file was for the undateables – folks with psych problems or other legitimate issues that made them difficult or impossible to match. At a certain point, these folks were destined to get a refund, but we gave it the old college try to match as many as possible (the sales reps tried to weed them out at the door, but who wants to hear they are undateable? No one ever agrees. But I digress…).
This one guy was simply not able to interact with people in any kind of appropriate manner. Now we probably would have labeled him functioning autistic with OCD or some other cocktail of challenges and known better how to help him, but then autism and aspergers and other issues weren't as widely known, every date we sent him on ran for the hills. He had been ditched on every date at some point. He got frustrated with our matches for him and held us up at gunpoint using a shotgun for two hours one afternoon looking for restitution. Did he want money? No, he wanted a date who would sleep with him. Well, not much we can do to control how the dater behaved in person, and we sure couldn't guarantee that “service” for anyone, so we were stymied. Eventually, the police were able to get access to us via the fire escape and a back window and subdue him (not that he was unruly, other than the gun, he was oddly calm the whole time). And thus ends the surprisingly boring tale of dating service woes leading to potential violent action, and the reason why I wouldn't use a dating service for any amount of money: you never know what kind of person you'll get hooked up with, really.
No gun in my face, I used to have to kick hookers out of the bathroom at Dunkin Donuts. Not too exciting 🙂
YAY! I was inspiration for someone else's blog post and I even got to keep my clothes on 🙂 My first job was at a Burger King, and you are absolutely right about the stench sticking to those hideous uniforms! Ugh. As if the fact that I was wearing a brown/orange/yellow polyester pant suit with matching cap wasn't bad enough! I actually thought the grocery store was such a huge step up…until “the event”, of course.
Never worked in a fast food joint thankfully enough going on your experience. My first shop job was selling clothes in a mens shop. Boy, was that a killer. Wasn't allowed to sit down at all. Finally got the sack after the owner discovered I had lied about my age to get the job. Should have been 18 but I was only 16. If only I could go back to younger days!
You make that sound funny, but I'll bet it wasn't. Not being forced into a freezer at gunpoint–that really is hilarious–but working with the fryer and getting stinky clothes. That's terrifying. I once worked at Uncle Sam's Pancake House in Manitou Springs, Colo. I was the dishwasher, and one of my jobs was to jump the day's cooking grease into a drain outside. Inevitably, it splashed all over me. Like you, I tried to wash those clothes clean, but ended up throwing them away. I probably should've burned them, because I'm sure they were toxic.
OMFG! I said I was sorry! Do you have to keep bringing that up over and over again? I just wanted to go on a date with somebody who understood my problems, and don't think a little gunplay should get everybody all riled up. I never!
Out of passing curiousity, which Dunkin' Donuts? I like hoo…donuts. Donuts are good.
I've never worked handling food – obvious reasons being hair. And I myself avoided it knowing that fact.
Never was held at a gunpont or a knifepoint.
But I did see one pawnshop held at gunpoint in Toronto. The cops were there quick and pointed their guns at the cross-dresser (yep) but he stopped pointing his gun first… hehe.
HA, funny
My Fast Food experience lasted all of 30 minutes. I was 18, when a friend got me to apply at a local burger place, Gino's. The manager showed me around, and as I skated across the kitchen floor in my Addias, I thought of Wylie E Coyote greasing the road, trying to foil the Roadrunner. I shook his hand, took the W-4 to fill out, and never returned. I was delivering truck parts 2 weeks later.
Scary story Meleah. I have yet to experience work in the fast food industry but have close acquaintances that have and usually their stories are not of the fun & amusing kind. Did a short stint on the retail floor (Radio Shack) and more of it just to satisfy a decades old itch to experience the store from the other side of the counter… at most I had to deal with obnoxious customers, nothing at any rate as being on the business end of a gun barrel.
Hell yes that counts!!
That sounds exciting to me!!
Seriously, that smell is brutal!!!!
Ugh! Retail is a nightmare!
“Not being forced into a freezer at gunpoint–that really is
hilarious–but working with the fryer and getting stinky clothes.
That's terrifying.”
Ahhahahahahhshahah
Exactly!
You're sooooooo funny!
Jaffer!!!!!
Good call!
Still I worked in Macys and I know how much retail sucks!!! Gun or no
gun it's an awful job!
What ? It happened that way – honest !
Jack-In-The-Box. 1+ year. Graveyard shift.
You get some really strange crowds past midnight. We set the grease vats on fire one night. Had ourJack Head order box shot out. Served two hot girls in their underwear (tacos) and one old naked guy in the drive thru. Learned many valuable lessons that year:
1) Never want to work in fast food industry again
2) Only the stoners are out after 2:00 am
3) Beer is a full acceptable means of currency
4) Have it your way is a stupid slogon
5) People are sick/twisted
6) Never piss off your food handler/cook
7) Vengance is a dish best served cold under a heat lamp
At least you can look back on your experience and laugh (or cry).
Oh my god, I would seriously SHIT myself if that ever happened when I was at work. Seriously.
I have never been held up at gunpoint but the liquor store I worked in briefly in my 20s was held up by knifepoint. It was scary because the robbers were obviously high and had these big hunting knives that they were waving around. Fortunately, the police came very quickly, but it was terrifying until they did. My husband was also held up by a guy with a screwdriver. Would you believe he disarmed the guy by throwing two volumes of the Yellow Pages at him? Knocked the guy out. It has become a joke among our friends – Death By Phonebook.
I am really, really glad you survived your horrible experience and that you weren't hurt. Thank God!
OMG THAT'S UNBELIEVABLE!!
YOU GOT TO WORK THE FRY STATION?!?!?!
That sounds exciting to me!!
🙂
I KNOW! And, I ruled that station!
I worked at RAX, it was just like Arby's! Anyways, after that story man,no way I can top that but I do know what you mean about not getting the grease out of polyester and Oh, I worked at Rax through High School and college, roughly four years, just a tad longer than you at McDonald's (LOL)
So did they ever catch the guys? I've never worked at a fast food place, but I did work at a drug store all through high school. I stole amphetamines and I was a fast employee! Great post and story, Meleah!
Never worked in a fast food place. I did, however, work in a little mom and pop bakery where the owners were prone to leaving their young teenage employees in charge for the evening and where the young teenage employees did things like dare each other to stuff an entire pack of Bubble Yum bubble gum in their mouths and then try to wait on customers with a baseball sized wad of gum in their mouths and where a male customer found humor in the antics and asked, “Whatcha doin' with all that gum? Patching tires?”
No, never. Fast food wasn't around when I first went to work. By the time 'Wimpy' (which I think was the first) hit London, I was well into my working career. I've never seen a real gun either 😉
It just dawned on me that your statement implies that you've been the inspiration for somebody's blog with your clothes off. Where do I need to go to read about that?
I have never worked in fast food but I did work as a waitress in a chain restaurant for a few years (does that count). I have also never been help by any kind of point (gun, knife, etc). My first job was actually my favorite job, I worked in a book store (where they let you borrow the hard cover books). Unfortunately, being young and stupid, I left that job to work in a grocery store because there were boys there.
OMG! Did they ever catch the guys? Did anyone get hurt?
I also worked at McDonald's for my first job and remember when the drive thru person was held up. Someone drove up in a car and as she leaned out he grabbed her and put a gun to her head. Managers started throwing money out the window and he eventually left. I quit after that incident too.
ouch! that was YOU?
now this is awkward…..
ahahahhaha
Holy Crap Leslie! I never knew THAT story!!
I think that's exciting!
#3 is hysterical!
I was pretty scared!
Death By Phonebook rocks!
Seriously, NOTHING gets that smell out!!
Yep. They caught them right down the street! And, I'd be a fast employee too if I stole that!
Aw! That's funny. I would have MUCH RATHER worked there!!
you're very lucky! on both counts!
I would LOVE to work in a bookstore!
What IS it about McDondalds that drives people bat.shit.crazy.?
PS; no one was hurt, and yes they caught the guys
I know, I mean, it's not like “held at gunpoint” stories come up often in regular conversations… lol