Stupid People With Popcorn

When I was in Navy Electronics Technician School in Great Lakes, Illinois I lived in a large berthing with hundreds of other female sailors. I don't know if you know what it's like when hundreds of women required to live together in the not so optimal conditions. Four girls to a small room, marching to class in "Lake Effect Snow," bad food in the galley and annoying Barracks duty officers. Not to mention the multitude of backgrounds and cultures that must be transended to live together harmoniously.

But the greatest obstacle was the stupidity that many of us displayed when preparing food. Being a barracks for mainly E1-E3s there were no real cooking facilities. Just a couple of microwaves where the vending machines were located. So needless to say, there was a lot of popcorn being made.

Then, unfortunately, many a sailor would leave a bag of popcorn in the microwave unattended assuming that the directions on the bag would work on any microwave, despite the fact that the directions also say "microwave ovens may vary." Right?

So after several microwave fires they banned food from the barracks completely. Originally, it was only banned from the original berthings but ok in common areas. The result was many girls ouside in the Lake Effect Snow freezing their butts off eating delivery pizza at the picnic tables.

So, anyway, an hour ago I pulld up in front of the local 7-11 when I saw this lady writing down the name and phone number that you call when you have a complaint. I noticed that she had a Connecticut lisence plate. I was hoping that she was military and not really from CT because she had a stupid "Uncle Sam Wants You To Speak English" bumper sticker. I never found out.

I went inside and I heard the manager and the cashier talking with another customer about what had happened. Apparently this woman got a bag of popcorn, didn't pay for it, popped it in the store microwave, burned it and brought the bag to the counter wanting retribution of sorts. Apparently, the directions on the pack did not work with that paticular microwave. That's why anyone over the age of 14 aught know that you listen for the pops and you stop it when they only come one every five seconds or something like that, reguardless of the minutes it's been in there.

So of course the question was, did she expect her money back, or another bag of popcorn? She never paid for the pack she burned!! Isn't that theft? Is she going to call the number and say that she didn't get a refund or a replacement? Doesn't she realize that they will probably ask for a receipt number and when she can't produce one it will make her out to be a theif?

OK, that's all.