A Strain to Keep Talking

There are times I really enjoy the 'teaching' aspect to my job.
Like I love sharing the information I know so that I can make the customer's experience with their new pets...a good one.

lol I probably overdo it on occasion, pouring information out like a geyser into a thimble....

Oops. ^^;; 

But like....
There are times when I find it rather...tedious....

Which is usually when I'm helping customers who aren't getting it.
Like I say the words.
And it just doesn't compute in their minds. 
I don't know where I lose them.
I don't know which words aren't giving them the meaning I want them to have.

So I had a young couple come into the store today.
Where they could have either been highschool sweethearts, or actually college graduates...
They just had those faces where...you can't really tell how old they are.
But they were young.

And they had this fish they were given.
Only they didn't have a good picture of it when they asked me if I could tell if it was actually a guppy or not. 
They'd taken a picture looking down into the bowl...instead of you know...from the side like most people do. *shakes head*

So yah, from the top it had a guppy look. But could I confirm it? Ha. No.

In any case, these customers were wanting to upgrade their tank, possibly add in some more fish, wanted to know what fish could go well with guppies, and what tanks they could get, and how to design said tanks so they looked like the pictures on the box---
(which why copy the box? Create your own designs) 

And like, it's a normal sort of conversation that I often have.
Though rarely do I want people who want to copy the designs pictures on the boxes of fish tanks. 

But what was throwing me off this conversation was a) the fact that they kept asking me the same questions, like...if I told the guy one thing while the girl wasn't listening, she'd then ask me the exact same thing like a minute or two later, or visversa.

And they were rather intense.
Like they were emanating the strong need of "TEACH ME." but like...in an off kilter way. Of we want to know all the minor details that we don't really need to know.

But would ask such weird questions. 
Like "What's the difference between these two tanks?" 
Uhmm....like from the picture. A) Size of Tank. B) Color of tank. C) Shape of Tank. D) How the filter is placed in the tank.....

Like....it seemed rather clear.
But then they were like "How is this filter different from that filter"
Uhm...this one hangs on the side of the tank and is visible, this other one has the filter set inside the tank, but out of sight in it's own little invisible section while the fish swim in the main part of the tank?

Again....rather clear....

But the conversations continued like that.
Where they were wanting me to tell them things....that they could have figured out if they'd taken a moment to study the box and well....look?

"What gravel is this?! We want this gravel on the picture!"
Well...looking at the picture it's a combination of three different gravels.....

*exhales*

It also didn't help that the guy would keep giving me this wide eyed look.
That was more freaky than anything.
Because like he was probably trying to show that he was listening and paying attention.
But it was just a wide eyed creepy stare.

And the two of them just had this....energy to them...like a fritzing lightbulb.
That I just didn't like.
It was like nails to a chalkboard having to be near them.

And like all people who have this sort of energy.
They end up being the most needy of customers. 

I spent like half an hour with these people.
Which is LONG. 
Most conversations are 2-5 minutes. 
More difficult problems can be up to 15.
But customers that take longer than 15 minutes to help?
Just super super needy.

I was so grateful when another customer interrupted them to ask me a question about cat treats, which allowed me to move away from them.
-As they were dithering over decorations and wanting to know if getting a decoration with an air stone already attached meant that they needed to buy an air pump. (the answer was no) 

And those customers had moved further down the aisle, allowing me to slip away once I'd spent the minute helping the other customer.

To which I made a direct beeline to my manager standing nearby and asked him. "Can I go on break, because I was with those people for half an hour and I need to get away." 

Which he said yes.
And I was able to escape into the breakroom for 15 minutes. Which thankfully was enough time for the customers to gather what they needed -via help from my coworker- and be checking out at the register by the time I got back.

So yay.
Because I could just see myself talking to them for another half hour to hour.
And I didn't want to deal with that energy any further.

Else I probably would get a headache from the strain. 

Until you next read these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi