Strange stories from the front lines

?We buy jewelry and scrap gold off the street. Recently, two women came into the store with a couple of gold chains and a tennis bracelet (with the retail tag still attached!) to sell me. I could tell immediately that the chains were counterfeit even though they were stamped 14K. And a quick look through a loupe told me that the tennis bracelet was no good as well. I overheard a short discussion between the two women which indicated that they had purchased the items from a man on the street, and they thought they had gotten a good deal because it it was stolen merchandise. Never occurred to them that a man who told them he was a thief might also be a liar. Talk about instant karma!?  

LEN O.,
IRWIN, PA 

?In the summer of 2004, we raised our prices for watch batteries from $5 to $6. One customer got upset when I insisted that he pay the extra dollar. He claimed that as a ?good customer?, he shouldn’t have to ? even though all he had ever purchased from me was batteries for watches he had bought elsewhere. Finally, he stormed out of the store, blasting the door open with enough force to crack a $900 window. He hasn’t been back since.? 

ALADAR S.,
CLEVELAND, OH