Banana Republic sucks

You know, all it takes is one stupid salesclerk to ruin your afternoon.

On my way home from lunch, I stopped in at the Banana Republic store on 86th. I had a coupon for 20 percent off any purchases made with my B.R. card.

I went in to get two pairs of khakis. Picked them up in about 45 seconds (see also: bathroom usage, difference between men and women).

Anyway, I then go to pay for them. And there's one damn register open in the whole place. But there's about 10 staffers working the floor of the store, which was almost empty. And there is a customer at the register who is purchasing, and I'm not exagerating, about 20 items! And the girl working the register is, of course, having all sorts of problems.

So I'm waiting there and waiting, now at least 8 or 10 minutes, and seeing all these other staffers wandering around doing absolutely nothing is incredibly frustrating. So I finally catch the manager's eye and ask is there any way to get another register opened. Frankly, he should have taken care of that about 4 minutes earlier - he clearly saw me standing on line behind this clown at the register.

So he brings in this guy who opens a second register and rings up my two items - then takes the 20 percent coupon and starts studying it like it's the Magna fucking Carta. Brow furrowed, lips moving. I ask if there's a problem. Instead of saying anything to me, he calls the manager back over and says, "Can this be used in the store or is it only for online purchases?"

Well, the coupon CLEARLY said it was good for any purchase made with the card...and if used on br dot com for more than $100, there would also be no shipping fee. This apparently was too complicated for him to understand.

Idiot.

So I literally was stuck in the damn store for about 15 minutes when I should have been out in less than two.