I got kicked out of the Verizon store today....

Yes, dear hearts, yours truly, this fifty-eight year old rebel without a cause got ousted from the Verizon Store today. And I might add, I went out kicking and screaming. John said I'm starting to sound just like my mother!!!!!

Okay, here's how it went down. I've been checking out those new Blackberry Curve phones. I love the look, love the icons, yeah, I'm all about the eye candy, and anyhoo, I got this letter from Verizon, saying that I could get it at a Verizon Store for $199, plus a $50 rebate - same price as I could buy it for online, but if I went to the store, I could have it today and I'm into instant gratification.

I've been in a crappy mood, didn't even want to leave the house, but Maggie was out of Grammy's Pot Pie dog food and I had no choice, so I had to trek to the other side of town to get it. I scooped her up, and out the door we went. I got the dogfood, and decided I would stop by Verizon and check out that phone. Nothing like a little shopping to lighten the mood, right?

So I'm in there for about a half an hour with Maggie - she was her usual big hit, the employees took turns holding and petting her, one of the technicians took her picture to send to his girlfriend on his cellphone - they called my name finally, and I went to pay for it. The girl at the desk informed me that I wasn't eligible for a new phone until November 08 - I could get one, but I couldn't get the $100 credit. Well I didn't want to do that, so I said thanks but no thanks, left the store, got in the car, read that letter and it clearly stated that my cellphone line was eligible for the phone.

So back into the store we go, the woman at the counter was busy, but there was this old guy named Scott, who I realized later was afflicted with short man's syndrome, and on a power trip to boot, and I asked him if he could check on this for me because the other woman was busy and I had already waited for-ever. He informed me that he was busy doing something else, which consisted of him peering into the computer screen with a vacant look on his face because he was too stupid to figure out what he was doing.

But then this other nice younger guy said he would look at the letter, and he informed me that indeed I was eligible for the phone and he started to enter the infomation into the computer. I'm standing there with Maggie tucked discreetly under one arm, and all of a sudden this Scott guy says, "you need to leave the premises with your dog." I said, "what?" and he said again, "you need to leave the premises with your dog." He was like a friggin robot, repeating the same phrase. He was just glaring at me and saying it over and over.

"I've been in here for a half an hour, nobody else had an issue with my dog or told me to leave, it's 85 degrees outside, I can't just lock her in the hot car, can't I just put her in my purse and finish my transaction?"

"No, he said, it's against company policy to have a dog on the premises." Well, of course I was getting my back up by now, even though I should have had Mags in her carrier and the moron wouldn't even have known I had a dog - I told him that it wasn't posted anywhere that dogs weren't allowed, but he kept sneering at me and repeating the same phrase. "You have to take the dog and leave the premises." Oh, he also said that she might jump out of my arms and bite somebody.

Well that was the stupidest thing I ever heard, this little scrap of a thing tucked under my arm - get loose and bite somebody??? And of course, I sarcastically said, "Oh yeah, right." The poor guy that was trying to tally me up was actually laughing out loud at this Scott doofus for saying such a stupid thing, and now here comes the store manager, very nicely telling me that I have to abide by what Scott says.

She was polite, polite is all I wanted, but did I just leave quietly, oh nononono, I wasn't going to let that little weasel get the last word in - I pointed my finger at the little man and told him I was going to call Verizon and report him, that he didn' have to be so rude to me that I would have gladly left without him acting so obnoxiously. I was a customer, after all. Then I scooped up my paperwork, and Mags and I were outta there faster than a New Yawk minute!

But all's well that ends well, and this story has a silver lining thanks to a nice Verizon rep on the phone. I got home, started to order the phone online, Verizon site was asking me all kinds of questions about what kind of service I wanted, yadayadayada - I didn't want to change my service, I just wanted to upgrade the friggin phone.

Enough of that, I needed to talk to a real person, so I called Verizon, this nice guy customer service rep answers, I told him I've had a helluva day and that my dog and I got kicked out of the Verizon store, he told me not to worry he would take care of me.

And take care of me he did - the grand total for my new Blackberry Curve 8330 is, are you ready for this - $106.99 plus a $50.00 rebate. So the phone is going to cost me just $56.99. That's a hundred dollars cheaper than the Verizon store, which by the way, I will never go into again - from now on I'm shopping from home!

So that horrid little Scott man can just take his attitude and stick it where the sun don't shine.

I know, I know, you are all reading this and asking why did I take Maggie in the first place. I take Maggie everywhere, it's just what I do - it's comforting to me to have her along. Can't you tell by now that Mags and I are joined at the hip? I'm just going to have to start putting her in her carrier so she travels incognito.

This man was absolutely right in telling me I couldn't have my dog in the store if was company policy, I don't have an issue with that, I only have an issue with the way he handled it. I've taken her so many places, and not only me, I actually see several women with little dogs in stores, and have never had a problem, except once when Trish and I stopped at Dollar General for camera batteries, and the store manager told me dogs weren't allowed. I respect that, I just don't respect overbearing men with an attitude!

And am I going to report this Scott a**hole to Verizon? You bet your sweet booties I am. I'm going to write them a scaathing letter about how impolite he was!!!! Men Schmen!!!