When you drive 30 minutes across town to do an upscale health club shop, buy your day pass, walk into the locker room....
and within 10 minutes, run into two separate acquaintances who each know you just well enough to know that never in a million years would you drive half an hour from home to pay $33 for a day at a health club.

At least it made it easy to answer the question that requires me to start a conversation with a current member!

Any other awkward MS moments to share?

A week after my late husband's funeral, I had a scheduled movie shop. I have never met anyone I knew in any of the shops I did and here they were, my husband's friend. And she brought her whole family to the movies. So, further condolences and such. They probably wondered why I went to the movies alone. And then they saw me again as they were leaving and I was going to another auditorium. One of those unending movie shops, you know.

I was doing an arches shop. I sat down to eat inside, and I read my book for a while...but gradually it entered my consciousness that everybody was looking my way...gosh, right at me! I went to the restroom to see if perhaps I had left home with last night's spaghetti in my hair, or had my clothing on inside out...or had forgotten a significant item of clothing. Nope. Just the regular ugly old broad looking back at me from the mirror.

As I wended my way back to the table, I glanced up...and realized I had chosen a seat right beneath the large screen TV, which was showing a very popular college game!

I was doing an apartment shop at a really exclusive high end downtown building where they only have one bedrooms or studios. The leasing office was really busy and I didn't pay any attention to the other potential renters who were talking to other leasing agents. I was focused on my target. As we got up from her desk to go on the tour a woman at the next desk recognized me. It was someone I hadn't seen in a very long time and we mainly keep up with each other through periodic Facebook posts. She said "Hi! How are you?! Are you thinking about moving here?" And of course I had to say yes. She gave me this awkward look because she knows I have two kids who haven't quite figured out how to fly out of the nest yet and I own a house in the suburbs. I could see confusion written all over her face but I hugged her and hurried the leasing agent out the door.

Later, on the tour of the community we ran into my friend and her leasing agent again. This time my friend said "How's your big huge gigantic dog?!" Inside I was like, really?? I had to tell her that I didn't have my dog anymore, because I had already told the leasing agent I didn't have any pets, as the guidelines directed (my 220 pound Mastiff wouldn't have fit in their studio apartment anyway). I felt HORRIBLE telling her that because she rescues animals and loves them all and I could see when I told her she crumpled up. But it did get her to stop talking to me, after she gave me condolences and hugged me a few thousand times. I almost started crying myself at the thought of not having my dog. Which I'm sure made her believe me even more. Subsequently the leasing agent asked me questions about my dog and talked about how sad it was to lose a dog. Oh my gosh it was awful.

This particular shop was video taped and I had to watch the tape when I got home to see how awkward I sounded during those interactions. In watching the tape I saw how torn up my friend looked when I said I didn't have my dog anymore. I had to call her that evening and explain that I did in fact still have my dog so she could stop mourning. I told her I was checking the apartment out for a friend who didn't live in the area. It was so weird, but she was so relieved that my dog was alive she didn't question it.

It was the first time (and the last time) I've ever run into anyone I know while doing a shop.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/03/2015 04:44AM by Travisli.

I have posted this story before but basically I was on a high end restaurant shop. When I arrived the hostess hesitated when I told her the name on my reservation but took me and my husband/guest to a table quickly. As we walked across the dining room towards our table suddenly my brother in law who lives 3,000 miles away walked over and greeted us. We had no idea he was in town, not to mention eating at the same time at the same restaurant with a reservation in the same name as mine. After our greetings, brief catching up and his invites to join him at his table that I had to decline tactfully due to doing a shop, the hostess confessed to me that they had cancelled my reservation after he arrived thinking they had double booked him. And then there was the problem of my husband who had to get the evil eye several times when I could see he was about to abandon our table to go sit and have dinner with his brother. I did not get the personalized menu I was supposed to get for the shop so I had to answer no to that question and explain....must have gone to his table as he arrived first.

I was doing a bank shop and sat down with the rep, a young woman about my daughter's age. She said hello and we start to chat about the accounts. I smile about her comment, and the rep says, "Your ---- -----'s mom. You smile just like her. Yes I had given a fake first and last name, but it wasn't enough of a disguise. We discussed my daughter for a moment. I wrapped up the shop and emailed the scheduler. They sent another shopper to the bank. How this girl recognized me? I hadn't seen her in six years and she was only a casual friend to my daughter.

I walked out of a sad version of McDonald's where mostly the down-and-out hang out (some of you might remember the poem I wrote there) to see a friend of mine getting out of a pickup truck in the parking lot. She had pulled in to secure something that she was transporting across town in her friend's truck. We laughed about it being the least likely place for us to run into each other, as neither one of us is the "McDonalds type." Then of course she asked me what I was doing at that McD's, in that rundown area, all by myself. I told her it was a long story and I would explain later.

And then I got into my car and went through the drive-thru.

I think I've told this one before, but had a high-end dinner assignment where as soon as we were seated, I noticed a client that I work with in my main career seated at another table. He stopped by to visit with me as he was departing the restaurant, and apologized for being busy recently. He had been promising to treat me to a lunch for a while and our availability never matched up. When I finished the meal and asked for the check, the server told me that my friend had transferred the entire meal to his tab before leaving. The server brought me a copy of the check but it was useless, as it listed four entrees, plus a bottle of wine and champagne.

Sadly, we had been ordering items we didn't really care for in order to stay within the reimbursement limits. Then I had to go back and have the same meal all over again the next week to get the assignment completed

@medowynd wrote:

I was doing a bank shop and sat down with the rep, a young woman about my daughter's age. She said hello and we start to chat about the accounts. I smile about her comment, and the rep says, "Your ---- -----'s mom. You smile just like her. .... How this girl recognized me? I hadn't seen her in six years and she was only a casual friend to my daughter.

I bet she is facebook friends with your daughter. My daughters have 600 fb friends. Then she could have seen your photo form your daughter's page.

I was doing a mobile shop at a Staples when I came across the most loud-mouthed, over-excited, frustratingly-annoying person I know. She immediately got all up in my shop (not knowing it was a shop) and would not leave me alone through the entire sales process completely ruining my chances at a successful job.

This is the reason I avoid this woman at all costs.

Doing a shop with a hidden audio recorder when you reach into your pocket, accidentally hit a button on the device, and the recorder starts playing back your conversation to that point loud enough for the salesperson to hear!

@SteveSoCal wrote:

Sadly, we had been ordering items we didn't really care for in order to stay within the reimbursement limits. Then I had to go back and have the same meal all over again the next week to get the assignment completed

I must be doing it all wrong. I will go over $7-$10 if it makes the difference between eating another chicken pasta dish and a fresh piece of seared salmon and a steak for my dining partner. I try to not sweat a few dollars when I'm at a fine dining restaurant. I can always do another FF shop and make it up.

Doing a big box hardware store's scenario only to remember halfway through, the associate that assisted me the month before, is the same associate that helped me the month before with the same scenario.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/04/2015 06:27PM by sillysister74.

@sillysister74 wrote:

Doing a big box hardware store's scenario only to remember halfway through, the associate that assisted me the month before, is the same associate that helped me the month before with the same scenario.

That's easy. Your looking for a second opinion and are terrible at remembering faces. I would just not remember them if they remembered me. I have interacted with the same employees at different locations before.

Sometimes its too late to back out when your sitting there and they walk out of an office at a bank and call your name.

@scanman1 wrote:

@sillysister74 wrote:

Doing a big box hardware store's scenario only to remember halfway through, the associate that assisted me the month before, is the same associate that helped me the month before with the same scenario.

That's easy. Your looking for a second opinion and are terrible at remembering faces. I would just not remember them if they remembered me. I have interacted with the same employees at different locations before.

Sometimes its too late to back out when your sitting there and they walk out of an office at a bank and call your name.

Thanks scanman1, now I put what scenario that I performed in my notes section of my spreadsheet and on my calendar. I will keep your suggestions close in case this happens again.​



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/04/2015 06:42PM by sillysister74.

@scanman1 wrote:

@SteveSoCal wrote:

Sadly, we had been ordering items we didn't really care for in order to stay within the reimbursement limits. Then I had to go back and have the same meal all over again the next week to get the assignment completed

I must be doing it all wrong. I will go over $7-$10 if it makes the difference between eating another chicken pasta dish and a fresh piece of seared salmon and a steak for my dining partner. I try to not sweat a few dollars when I'm at a fine dining restaurant. I can always do another FF shop and make it up.

But the sad part of Steve's story to me is that getting a meal or part of a meal "for free" by being comped only seems to happen on a mystery shop, never when I am dining on my own dime. And even if Steve had ordered to his stomach's content and gone over he still would have had to do all the timings and remembering twice.
I remember once getting the completely wrong rental car and having to wait hours while they found me another which was still wrong, not to mention not clean at all. It was covered by my insurance company as the rental was due to an accident. So what did the rental company do for me? They gave me a free day to make up for it. I told them they were actually giving this free day to the insurance company and not to me. I was the one who had to wait around and get to work two hours late that day.

The awkward moment when you give the salesperson your fake name, but then you forget and give them your real name (which sounds nothing like the fake name).

@DareWright Gawd! I did that for the first time last week! It didn't affect the shop, but I'm sure I turned a lovely color of purple. I now have an explanation ready for those little faux pas.

At a car dealership recently, sales manager asks "Do I know you?" For a moment I thought "I don't know... Have I shopped this guy before?" but then realize there's no way I know the guy... Glad I kept my cool and just said "I don't think so..."

That has happened to me--twice! Once, when I was doing a post office shop, I leaned forward against the counter and set off my recorder, which was in the front pocket of my coat. It began playing, loud and clear, "Entered post office 10:12 AM!" I was, fortunately, done with the shop, so I turned and high-tailed it out of the lobby and out the door. I was MORTIFIED! The second time, I was seated beside a salesman, doing a car shop. We were about to pull out on the test drive when I accidentally set off the damn recorder AGAIN. When I hard it start, I slammed my foot on the brake, screamed out, really loud, to drown out the recorder, "I HAVE A CRAMP IN MY LEG! OH, GOD!" I grabbed the recorder in my right hand, flung open the car door, yelling at the top of my lungs, and silenced the recorder while doing a dance to stop my leg cramp. The salesman stared at me like I was crazy! I fixed the recorder so it was just recording, put it back in my pocket (how, I'll never know) and demurely sat back beside him again and resumed the road test. "I'm really sorry," I said, "those damn leg cramps can be a real @#$%&. I need to kind of dance around to work them out." He must have thought I was a loon, but I finished the shop without further mishap and got a 9/10 on it.

@Hoju wrote:

I was doing a mobile shop at a Staples when I came across the most loud-mouthed, over-excited, frustratingly-annoying person I know. She immediately got all up in my shop (not knowing it was a shop) and would not leave me alone through the entire sales process completely ruining my chances at a successful job.

This is the reason I avoid this woman at all costs.

You should be ashamed at yourself for talking about your wife like that!

@sandyf wrote:

They gave me a free day to make up for it. I told them they were actually giving this free day to the insurance company and not to me. I was the one who had to wait around and get to work two hours late that day.

I was one a hotel shop last year. When I got to my room I realized that it was very cold, so I turned on the heat and started working. An hour later I realized that it was still freezing and turned the heat up higher. Finally I realized the heater was blowing out cold air (sometimes I'm slow). So I called downstairs and the lady from the front desk came up to look at it. She couldn't figure it out either and told me she would have maintenance come check it out. Meanwhile I completely turn the heat off and crawl into bed fully clothed with my laptop and keep working. Nobody ever shows up and finally I go to sleep. The next morning when I complained to the manager his first question was if I was here on work or pleasure. Of course I said work and he replied that my room was probably being reimbursed or at least I would be getting a tax write off if I was self employed so he asked if I would like enough loyalty points for a free night at a similar hotel added to my account.

I was VERY impressed that he not only immediately offered to comp the room but did it in a way that was most useful to me.

@proudlyshopping wrote:

That has happened to me--twice! Once, when I was doing a post office shop, I leaned forward against the counter and set off my recorder, which was in the front pocket of my coat. It began playing, loud and clear, "Entered post office 10:12 AM!" I was, fortunately, done with the shop, so I turned and high-tailed it out of the lobby and out the door. I was MORTIFIED! The second time, I was seated beside a salesman, doing a car shop. We were about to pull out on the test drive when I accidentally set off the damn recorder AGAIN. When I hard it start, I slammed my foot on the brake, screamed out, really loud, to drown out the recorder, "I HAVE A CRAMP IN MY LEG! OH, GOD!" I grabbed the recorder in my right hand, flung open the car door, yelling at the top of my lungs, and silenced the recorder while doing a dance to stop my leg cramp. The salesman stared at me like I was crazy! I fixed the recorder so it was just recording, put it back in my pocket (how, I'll never know) and demurely sat back beside him again and resumed the road test. "I'm really sorry," I said, "those damn leg cramps can be a real @#$%&. I need to kind of dance around to work them out." He must have thought I was a loon, but I finished the shop without further mishap and got a 9/10 on it.

Omg! That is hilarious! I'm crying real tears over here. :'D

That is so funny that the recorder went off in some of the shops. That has never happened to me though. I have been very lucky with my shops. So far everything has gone smoothly. I have completed some recorded shops, but I recorded them just to remember specific details about the shop. It helped a lot.

bgriffin, at least you didn't have to make up a problem for the maintenance call, right? Hehe
That is always my least favorite part of hotel shops (the ones that require it, anyway). Sometimes I get excited when there actually is a maintenance problem so I don't have to make one up.

I was doing a bank shop and I had to meet with a financial adviser to discuss moving money into an investment account. Darn it if I had not been in his office for 30 minutes when another employee came in and told us to stay in the office and not come out. I truly thought I had been busted as a shopper. My back was to the tellers and I asked the financial guy what he thought was happening. He told me that a teller probably pressed 'the button' but no one was down on the floor. I look out and every customer looked freaked out. About 20 minutes later we were asked to come out of the office and there were police asking if anyone had seen anything suspicious. No one had and we were told we could leave. Turns out the truck that was picking up the ATM money had been robbed at gunpoint and the driver then shot the gunman. Yeah, that was awkward and I'm glad I didn't die just to make $30!

Now, you could've said to the AGENT, you were thinking about a trial separation...........????



when I got home to see how awkward I sounded during those interactions. In watching the tape I saw how torn up my friend looked when I said I didn't have my dog anymore. I had to call her that evening and explain that I did in fact still have my dog so she could stop mourning. I told her I was checking the apartment out for a friend who didn't live in the area. It was so weird, but she was so relieved that my dog was alive she didn't question it.

It was the first time (and the last time) I've ever run into anyone I know while doing a shop.[/quote]

Last year I lost quite a bit of weight when I gave up cokes. I hadn't realized just how much until I was doing a quickie gas station shop one day. I was nicely dressed in a suede skirt and boots for a car shop I had done earlier. As I was wandering around the Cstore of the gas station checking on things, I suddenly felt a woosh of cold air. My skirt had fallen down around my ankles. I don't think anyone saw me but I sure was hoping that the video didn't get reviewed.

I've never directly run into anyone I know on an assignment, but was reminded by the discussion here of a close call....

I had a high-end hotel assignment that included a limo picking us up at the airport and driving my guest and me to the hotel. The driver was waiting for us when we exited with our luggage and he did a very good job of collecting our luggage and making conversation on the way to the hotel. I have a policy of trying to keep my story with the staff as close to the truth as possible, since the hotel staff at those type of places ned to 'Google' guests anyway, so when the driver asked where I lived, and what I did for a living, he quickly realized that I must know his cousin, who works in the same industry and lives by me. Turns out that his cousin is a close friend of mine!

That would have been fine and just an interesting point of conversation, but he then decides to call his cousin on the speakerphone in the limo and say, "Guess who I have in my limo?" My head was in my hands by the time my friend had replied that I must be on assignment and went on to tell her cousin about how I travel all over the world evaluating hotels. She didn't realize that the limo ride was PART of the assignment! I shut her down as quickly as I could, but luckily the driver was a freelance contractor for the hotel and agreed to to say anything to the hotel staff. He was happy because the tip was included in his fee, and he had done a great job up until the point where he accidentally outed me, so he got a good report for his part of the service, obviously.

I had a burger shop that I was not able to complete due to the fact that I forgot to bring money! I had my purse but not much money in it. I guess I forgot because I was thinking about how I was going to get it free eventually if I completed the shop. So they were really nice and they gave it to me free (I really should pay them back some time) because it was too late to cancel the order. And it was delicious but so embarrassing. But they weren't able to pay me the "fee" of course or accept the shop (which was more important to me than $4) since I got it for free. At least I got a tasty meal and good practice out of the deal. Another embarrassing time was trying to explain to a lady at a fitness center why I changed my mind and wasn't really interested in a membership. That one at least I completed.