From: "Chris Jackson" <duncan@frii.com>
To: "Stacey" <stacey@krulewich.com>
Subject: Re: How to doeal with obnoxious twisters? - long
Date: Mon, 14 Aug 2000 00:45:03 -0600

Greetings, All.

>talk over the customers and in general make things difficult.  I have
>tried asking him if he wants a balloon, telling him I will talk to him
>when the line slows down, and asking him (nicely, cos there are kids
>around) to go away.

I had a guy like that recently, except what this jerk wanted was to go to
the head of the 20-minute+ line because "He was in a hurry..."  I was
busking, (i.e. giving away balloon sculptures and business cards and hoping
that the recipients would show their appreciation by tipping) and I
explained my policy of politeness.  If you would like a balloon, you must
wait your turn in line.  If you want a second balloon, then you must go to
the back of the line and wait your turn.  There are a *lot* of kids who
would like a balloon, and if *they* can be patient enough to wait their
turn, then an adult can wait as well.  The guy left.

The guy came back an hour later, again wanting to go straight to the head of
the line.  I told him again that he had to wait.  He rudely stepped into my
work area, (I draw an arm's width circle with sidewalk chalk as "my area!"
Any child that enters that area gets buffetted with whatever balloons I am
working with until they step back.) and said "So, how much to give me 5 or 6
balloons for my kids?" I looked at the $4 that he was flashing me at the
time and said "The rule is: NO LINE CUTTING.  WAIT YOUR TURN!"  Then turned
my back to him.  I faced the long line of waiting families and said "That's
only fair, right?"  The 3 nearest families (including the kids! <chuckle>)
all loudly chorused: "RIGHT!"

The guy made one last attempt,... He went up to the mother of the 2nd child
in line and said, "It's O.K. if I get in front of you isn't it?  I'm in a
hurry."  She promptly responded, "NO it isn't!  you heard the man, No Line
Cutting!"  (I gave her a quick wink.)  The jerk left, the mom got a bonus
flower for upholding the rule of courtesy, and the next 4 people all asked
for my card and said that they liked my rules.

If someone is being a jerk in your line, don't just ignore them, make a
*POINT* of ignoring them and concentrate on the folks who follow the rules.

side note:  (If the guy had flashed a $20, I would have said something like:
"I'm sorry, but I must abide by my own rules."  Had he shown me triple that
I would have said: "Why don't you hire me for a party?" and given him a
card.  Anything more and I would have written him off as a nutcase unworthy
of my attention...)

>Today I ran into someone who was possibly more annoying.  I had planned
>to work this event for tips, and didn't have to pay a booth fee.

Some on this list would be indignant about the fact that you were
entertaining for free and that your only payment for being there was the
possibility of tips.  I've been there, and done that.  I occasionally donate
my labor to help decorate for the event in exchange for a guaranteed booth
and a credit in the advertising fliers.  For an "up-and-coming professional"
this is a good way to advertise your skills.


>A couple of days before it started I was told that everyone okayed this,
>until it reached the top of the committee.  That person decided that if
>I was getting tips, then the park needed to get their money too and I
>had to pay the fee.

If you are working strictly for tips, then your 'fee' should be at most a
percentage of the tips, (say 5-10%) or the booth fee, whichever is lower.
That's just my opinion of "fair".

> I said what the heck, it was only $20 for a 3 day
>event and it would give me a place to set up a canopy for when I wanted
>to get out of the sun.

Hmmm...  at that rate, I would *gladly* pay the $20 for the canopy space!
(It can get *hot* in Colorado.  We've already set a record for 90+ days this
summer, and the hottest month is less than half over!)  I've seen up to
triple+ that fee for *one* day!

>First two days things went without a problem.
>Today some a guy comes by while I was setting up.  He was with his
>daughter and looking very intently at my menu.  I asked if he wanted a
>balloon for his Brownie (she was in uniform) He said he would make her
>one later and left.  Ok, cool, he's a twister.  Maybe we can jam later.


You should have asked for his card... (Oh, Well...)

>Well this guy goes and sets up a bit away from me and starts giving
>balloons away for free.  He says he won't ask for a tip, but he won't
>turn one down either.  (I should add that I was vending, as I usually do
>when I have to pay a fee.)

Sounds like a party crasher to me...

>  I asked the parks guy
>to speak to him and the problem was solved.

Sounds good so far...

> EXCEPT that 4 hours later
>he was at it again!!!  Since it's illegal to beat someone to death with
>a balloon pump I asked the parks guy to get rid of him again.  And this
>time he didn't start up again.


I would have to say that you did the right thing.  This guy didn't have
permission to vend or busk at the event, so he had no business doing so.
Informing the appropriate authorities about his unauthorized activities was
about as far as you could legally and morally go.  Had the event
coordinators ignored his twisting, you would have just cause to demand a
refund of your booth fee.  The fact that they banned the guy from the event
means that your $20 was well spent!


>  And I didn't even get to the part of the day where a couple got
>mad when I wouldn't make their six month old baby a balloon hat.


(<chuckle!>  Tell them flat out that if they didn't care about the
possibility of their infant choking on a broken balloon, then they don't
*deserve* the entertainment of your artistry!)

No, seriously!...  In that case, I inform the parents of the potential
dangers of a small child suffocating on a balloon, and ask that they come
back when the child is old enough to understand that balloons do not go in
their mouths!  If that dosen't work, then I tell them that I reserve the
right to refuse service to anyone, and just walk away.  There was *one* time
that I broke my own rule.  The mother told me that the balloon was for *her*
and not for her infant.  I made her a teddy bear, and warned her that if I
saw the baby putting the balloon in it's mouth, then I would take it away.

Sure enough,  the mom took the balloon back to her table and gave it to the
infant.  The infant immediatly tried to bite it.  I followed the woman back
to the table, took the balloon out of the infant's mouth and popped it,
pocketing the pieces.  The woman started to complain, so I called the
restaurant manager over to mediate.

The parents, (both of them,) screamed their stories.  They claimed that I
had approached 'them' and that they had paid me for several balloons, then
stole all of them!   (This was after my scheduled quitting time for
balloons.)  I gave the manager the bare-bones truth, pointing out my "keep
them out of the mouths of babes" button, (T.Myers!  *GET ONE OR MAKE ONE!*
This is your *first* line of defense against 'choking' lawsuits!) and said
that I saw a potential choking hazard and dealt with it appropriately.

This manager had seen me twisting for about a month.  He knew that I would
not willingly make a balloon for someone too young to know the hazards.  He
told the couple that I was a professional, and that I knew the hazards of my
job.  If I said 'no', then I meant, *NO!*.  If someone had a problem with my
safety issues, then I was not obligated to make them a balloon.

That was 5 months ago.  I'm still a regular attraction at that restaurant.

Moral?...

Make your rules, and *STICK* with them!  Most people prefer "Honesty" over
"ability"!

I know that *I* do!

Chris Jackson
Ft. Collins, CO.