The Energon Pub

I was at a Walmart in Connecticut last night where I saw the latest wave of robot heroes. I was with my dad who doesn't approve of my collecting so I figured I would just come back another time and pick them up. There were only one of each and my ocd caught the better of me so I figured I'd just buy the damn things open them up and put them in my pockets, seeing how they're so small anyways. So I buy them and instead of maybe just going to the parking lot or the front of the store where the vending machines were I decided to head to the bathrooms where I knew I wouldn't run into my dad. Once there a guy was cleaning the bathrooms and I smiled and made no point in hiding what I was doing. He left the bathroom and three minutes later security stormed through the door making quite a grand entrance . I took out my receipt and the head security guy ripped it and the bag out of my hand and led me to a desk where he went over all of the upc's and started giving me crap about the situation. I started to explain my predicament though once he saw that the items were paid for and not stolen he quickly lost interest and made me feel like even more of a jerk. Luckily through out this whole debacle my dad remained none the wiser and I was free to head back to my nerdery where my new robot heroes look pretty sweet on my shelf. Thus concludes the tale of my being "caught NOT shoplifting".

In closing, while this little tale doesn't say much for my character and isn't worth more than a pitying chuckle I will add that this Walmart is in Norwalk, CT for anyone close enough or interested and as of last night they had at least four Masterpiece Starscreams and a couple of leader class Primes.

I'm less surprised at the security fiasco and more at the fact that you would resort to such tactics to buy Robot Heroes. Surely you should be allowed to buy whatever the hell you want freely without withering under your dad's stare. Besides, how long do you plan to keep them on the shelf before he notices?

That is a funny.
I would get the store manager
involved in this one. I have a friend
who works security in Michigan
and he has told me quite a few things
about his work. If you had played your
cards right you may have received some compensation.
Heck, sue the bastards now. They accosted you,
held you without provocation and harassed you.

Most of the time they are not allowed to
approach you until you leave the front door
as the item is still in the store
and has not left the building. Every state
has different laws pertaining to shoplifting.

If my daughter had paid for something and I found out
she was being held by Deputy Doofus for no reason
but suspicion I would be *#@%$ mad!
I would go as far as to try to get the dude fired.

In my own honest opinion i would never resort to tactics such as these to collect Transformers. Luckily my family have no such issues with my collecting, however, if one member of my family did have an issue with it then it is their problem and not mine.

Throughout history people have collected items such as stamps, thimbles, train-sets, train carriage numbers (trainspotters) etc...etc... things that i deem to be less useful and faaaar more unimpressive than Transformers.

Stand up for yourself. You get tfs because you like em. Why the smeg should it matter what your dad thinks?

Listen man it was just meant to be a facetious piece. Sure I am free to buy whatever the hell I want but there is something to be said for the bond between father and son and in my case I'd rather have gone through the situation I did then face that quiet moment where my dad would have looked down at my bag and shaken his head in disapproval. Whatever, it was a weird thing that I did (for the first and last time mind you) and it brought on a weird consequence which I thought would be humorous to share. Has no one else had an embarrassing moment that was the product of unusual circumstance? Cause I think that would make for an interesting/funny topic, "the crazy things you've done to collect".

Ignore me mate. I'm in a foul mood today

The Master Blaster wrote:Ignore me mate. I'm in a foul mood today

It was all good man, I was typing the response to the first response and by the time I published it there were a couple of other responses. Cheer up though, at least be happy you didn't get caught out opening up robot heroes of all things in a walmart bathroom.

this forum needs more humor.

taking itself too serious.

I use to do that too.

Actually my parents still don't approve of my collecting and I'm 26, as if it's their business!

None the less, funny read!

that's embarassing, but I would have got the store manager and whatnot. However, the security was just doing his job. However, a true theif does not make an open show of it.

I buy the toys, and bring them home. My husband eventually spots them. "that's not Starscream" or "where did he come from?"

If your parent's don't like them. That's tough. You like them and that's all there is to care about. If it makes you happy then it's all good. They're not hurting anyone or anything (unless a dog chews on them and chokes).

I can think of a bunch of other things more concerning for a father to worry about than some cute toys. Stand your ground and hold your head up high. Be proud. You, have a collection.

DISCHARGE wrote:That is a funny.
I would get the store manager
involved in this one. I have a friend
who works security in Michigan
and he has told me quite a few things
about his work. If you had played your
cards right you may have received some compensation.
Heck, sue the bastards now. They accosted you,
held you without provocation and harassed you.

Most of the time they are not allowed to
approach you until you leave the front door
as the item is still in the store
and has not left the building. Every state
has different laws pertaining to shoplifting.

If my daughter had paid for something and I found out
she was being held by Deputy Doofus for no reason
but suspicion I would be *#@%$ mad!
I would go as far as to try to get the dude fired.

Is that a poem or what?

DISCHARGE wrote:That is a funny.
I would get the store manager
involved in this one. I have a friend
who works security in Michigan
and he has told me quite a few things
about his work. If you had played your
cards right you may have received some compensation.
Heck, sue the bastards now. They accosted you,
held you without provocation and harassed you.

Most of the time they are not allowed to
approach you until you leave the front door
as the item is still in the store
and has not left the building. Every state
has different laws pertaining to shoplifting.

If my daughter had paid for something and I found out
she was being held by Deputy Doofus for no reason
but suspicion I would be *#@%$ mad!
I would go as far as to try to get the dude fired.

true. true, and true....
.... i think your pops would be more mad at the security officers for giving you a hard time, rather than because you bought toys.

Dr. Z wrote:Is that a poem or what?

Nah, can't be. 'State' doesn't rhyme with 'shoplifting'. At least not to me.

Heh. Poems don't have to rhyme though.

I've had items that hadn't had their security patches deactivated go off. I've also had a Walmart employee demand to know if I'd paid for my backpack, which I had brought in with me. Luckily it's lost it's new look.

I'm sorry that your dad doesn't approve of your collecting. I know how you feel. My Dad doesn't like my collecting toys either. Of course, my Dad doesn't think I should leave the house unless it's to buy groceries and go to church either. He's also pretty evil. It helps me that he lives on the other side of the United States!

Dr. Z wrote:

DISCHARGE wrote:That is a funny.
I would get the store manager
involved in this one. I have a friend
who works security in Michigan
and he has told me quite a few things
about his work. If you had played your
cards right you may have received some compensation.
Heck, sue the bastards now. They accosted you,
held you without provocation and harassed you.

Most of the time they are not allowed to
approach you until you leave the front door
as the item is still in the store
and has not left the building. Every state
has different laws pertaining to shoplifting.

If my daughter had paid for something and I found out
she was being held by Deputy Doofus for no reason
but suspicion I would be *#@%$ mad!
I would go as far as to try to get the dude fired.

Is that a poem or what?

It is if you want it to be

well, they have nothing to do with collecting or toys...but somewhat following the theme:

I've been pulled over for NOT stealing gas

and i've been issued a noise violation ticket for playing my car stereo too loud when it was sitting at home on my desk...

i feel bad for you but it was kinda of a funny story at the end....

wmpyr wrote:this forum needs more humor.

taking itself too serious.

*thinks of witty comment*...... atleast it wasnt a bratz doll

Luckily you weren't caught with the Robot Heroes in a stall tapping your feet up and down.

Rather than getting stormed by walmart security it would have been the FBI.

is my face red or what?

I'm not sure how I would have reacted in that situation. Sure, it was just an embarrassing misunderstanding, but it sounds like you had a pretty intense security guard on your hands. It's no wonder that retailers get sued so much anymore.

decepticonjon wrote:
is my face red or what?

Dude what the hell?....I am crying right now! That pic is so funny!

CleverUsername wrote:Listen man it was just meant to be a facetious piece. Sure I am free to buy whatever the hell I want but there is something to be said for the bond between father and son and in my case I'd rather have gone through the situation I did then face that quiet moment where my dad would have looked down at my bag and shaken his head in disapproval. Whatever, it was a weird thing that I did (for the first and last time mind you) and it brought on a weird consequence which I thought would be humorous to share. Has no one else had an embarrassing moment that was the product of unusual circumstance? Cause I think that would make for an interesting/funny topic, "the crazy things you've done to collect".

Keep in mind walmart isn't known for fairness and justice. Heck alot of adults wish for it to disapear into the mists of time along with it's unfair and illegal econimical practices and what you experanced was something I would actully talk to your family about sueing them over because

1. They acted unprofessionally...

2. Violated your civil rights as a United States Citizen...

3. Assault againts a minor...

Don't worry about your father's approval It's what you do not for him to judge you.

Sunstar wrote:that's embarassing, but I would have got the store manager and whatnot. However, the security was just doing his job. However, a true theif does not make an open show of it.

Also the security guy should have had the I.Q. points to have taken a look at the receipt before he reacted.