Sometimes, a dash of pettiness can truly make your day shine.
We all understand the significance of being kind and polite to those around us. However, not everyone seems to grasp this concept, leading to moments of shock when someone snaps at you in a supermarket for not moving quickly enough down the aisle or shows impatience with a service worker who’s simply trying to perform their duties.
As individuals, we generally don’t enjoy seeing the unkind succeed, and that’s where a bit of petty revenge can be quite satisfying. There’s nothing like securing the best table in a restaurant by being courteous to the staff while watching a discourteous patron create a scene over it.
A woman on TikTok has become an internet sensation after sharing her small act of retribution against some supermarket shoppers who were needlessly rude to an employee attempting to assist them – and she’s received online accolades for her approach.
In her video, the woman recounted how she was in the pasta section of her local store when she overheard three women discussing plans for a charcuterie-style meal with various meats and cheeses. They then approached a store worker with a question, and their manner of doing so appalled the woman.
She said: “This gentleman who works in the supermarket walked down the aisle and one of the women went like this to him [and clicked her fingers]. He went ‘Oh, can I help you?’ and she was like, ‘Where’s the penne pasta?’
“He went, ‘It’s just behind you’, because remember we’re in the pasta aisle and they hadn’t bothered looking. And she went, ‘Well how am I supposed to know that? I don’t bloody work here, you could have said it more politely.’ He said he was sorry and then he walked off.”
After witnessing the exchange, the woman expressed her distaste for the way they had treated the employee. As a retail worker herself, she is familiar with such treatment and knows how unpleasant it can be.
When the shoppers resumed their discussion about charcuterie foods, the woman began to devise her revenge plan.
She continued: “I thought to myself, it’s the afternoon and they’re talking about getting a premade [charcuterie board] because it’s cheaper. Most of the premade ones are going to be gone, I wonder how many are left.”
Upon reaching the cold meats aisle, the woman discovered there was exactly one left – so she put it in her trolley. Her revenge worked flawlessly as she later saw the other women realise they would “have to pay for individually wrapped cheeses and meat”.
She admitted: “Was it a bit petty? Yes. Would I do it again? Absolutely.”
Commenters on the post applauded her for her petty act, with some saying they’d have done exactly the same thing if they were in her shoes.
One person declared: “Babe, I’m vegetarian and I’d have bought it too,” while another added: “That’s going to taste so much better now, good on you!”
Kindness costs nothing – and in this instance, the customers paid for it for having to pay out much more than they intended. We have to admit, we don’t really feel very sorry for them either!
