Last day on early shift, and since it was my last day it had to be the longest, GRO-EMA-BGY-EMA. Let me tell you, that IS a long day and of course you'll pray you have nice pax.
Anyway, boarded, closed doors, safety demo, took off.. Like we all do. Started service once released from our J/S (me and my colleague started from the overwing to the back galley). So as it's part of our jobs, we asked everyone "any drinks or snaks".. you know, the usual. Nothing exciting so far.
Row 21. A-child, B-mother, C-child and D-father.
Mother (looking very nice, pretty face, well dressed...) : What have you got? (bare in mind she had the inflight magazine opened at the menu page!!!)
Me:Sandwiches, hot food, cold drinks,hot drinks, sweets... (smiling). Everything is on the menu.
Mother (with that "oh i'm so posh and i can talk down to the FA cause she's just a trolly dolly" tone in her voice) : I'm sure my children don't like most of all things you got here. What else have you got?
Me: i'm really sorry but we have in the bars just what's on the menu.
Mother: Yeah... i'll have the sour cream pringles for the boys and i'll have a tea.
I served her, gave the kids the pringles, made her the tea, asked her milk and sugar with the tea (still thinking maybe she's a nice person...)
Mother: Yes ( no "yes please") and honey and lemon, not to much honey
Me (still trying to realise when did i do the transition from working for a low fares cost airline to Virgin or BA business class or hey, maybe i was working now on a private Citation10!): I'm very sorry but we are not catered with honey or lemon, just the milk and the sugar.
Mother (getting visibly annoyed): I don't want the tea now. I want a coffee with cream
Me: I'm very sorry but we don't have cream either
Mother: Fine!Just leave it on my tray table
So i did. She gave me the money and we moved on. Finished the service, and then DING (call bell, Mother in 21B)
Me: Yes please
Mother: I want 2 more Pringles.
Me: I'll get that for you in a minute, i just need to finish something
Mother: But they want it now, i can't wait until you decide to serve me.
( At that point I was very close to lose it but hey, gotta keep my calm...)
Me: I'll be with you in a second (and walked away)
By that time my PU was half way down the cabin doing gifts, se must've been by the overwings. Ding! Call bell in row21, B... I look at my PU she makes sign she'll take it. The mother wants, yes, Pringles. My PU tells her she ran out of sour cream, but still has Plain and Salt and Vinegar. She literally shouts at my PU "But the children don't like anything but sour cream!" At that point my PU who is a lovely girl apologizes again and says that's all we have. So the mother had a propper tantrum and that was when my PU heard: coming from 21D : "Louise, will you JUST SHUT UP?" .
That was the Dad. Obviously he couldn't take it anymore and afterwards he came to the galley and apologized for his missus behaviour...
I know tis might be boring for some or for sure you experienced it as well, but what i'm trying to say is that maybe for every nasty pax there's a nice one, so somehow we still have a balance.
Next time i'm gonna tell you how a women accused me of wanting to keep her 80 pence change!!!!
Have fun out there, it's one of the best jobs in the world!
