| rev:text
| - * Good concept, but rules are made to be broken! *
Picture this - rushed guy with 15 minutes between meetings to pick up a gift for a friend's son.
Enter the store (no children in tow, looking franctic).
Greeted by a very friendly and almost Disneylike staff. (It's a Small World music chanting away on the speakers in the background.)
She: "Hello, is this your first time?"
Me: "Thank you. Yes. I need to find a gift for a friend's son."
She: "Ok, let me explain how everything works."
Me: (internal voice) "Oy,"
She: "First you pick your new friend, then you pick a star to make a wish and place it inside your friend, and we stuff your friend, and then you get to dress it, and then you build a passport and take the pledge."
Me: (internal voice) "I wonder if we can short circuit this routine and get out of here in the 15 minutes I have?"
She: "I'll let you wander around and explore."
Me: (internal voice) "This one looks good. Ok, deal."
Me: "Ok, I'm set. Can I buy this one please?"
She: "But of course. Now follow me to pick the star."
Me: (internal voice) "Oy."
She: (paraphrase) "Ok, the first star is this....The second is this....."
Me: "This one looks good, thank you."
She: "Ok, place the star on your forehead and make a wish for the recipient."
Me: (internal voice) "5 seconds on the head should be enough, right?" (hand star to her)
She: "Ok, now would you it like soft, medium, or hard."
Me: (internal voice) "Huh?!?!?!?! Am I getting a massage?" (confused look)
She: "Let's go to the stuffing machine."
Me: (internal voice) "Phew."
She: "I recommend medium."
Me: "Sounds good."
She: "Ok, now when I say go step down on the stuffing pedal."
Me: (internal voice) "Um....Can't you just do this for me and speed things up a bit?" (external voice) "Ok."
She: "Now we place the star inside so your wish stays with your friend and comes true."
Me: (internal voice) "Ok, can we move to the register now?"
She: "Now let's build the passport for your friend."
Me: (internal voice) "I'm glad I bypassed the "Dressing your friend" part by picking a costume before approaching her to stuff the bear. But oy....What now?!?!?!" (external voice) "Do you think I can send them in with their son to do this activity as it seems he might enjoy it?"
She: "Oh, ok. I'll give you a voucher for that."
Me: (internal voice) "Did she think I would prefer to do that rather than letting the kid do it? Really?!?!?!?!"
She: "Ok, let's ring you up."
Me: (internal voice) "Yeah, I might get out in time to make my next meeting!"
She takes my payment, I sign the slip, and am ready to go. Not yet though apparently.....
She: "Ok, now you have to take the pledge."
Me: (internal voice) "WTF?!?!?!? I've gotta go!"
She: "Put your hand on your chest and repeat after me....."
Me: (quickly repeating the pledge)
She: "Enjoy!"
Me: "Thank you." (internal voice) "Can't they deviate a bit from the routine when the kid isn't with you and you seem like you are in a rush?"
Overall, a very nice store, which is set up to be a lot of fun building your own plush toy. They seem to have a party room in the back, which I'm sure could make a great children's birthday party where everyone gets their own toy to go home with which they built themselves.
The bright side - my friend's son seemed to like his new friend so it was worth going through the "procedure."
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