I've worked 8 years in retail myself. Not that I'm not already a polite person (I am) but that time in retail has given me more than enough empathy to keep me from being even slightly rude or abusive to retail clerks, phone center operators, and wait staff. It has also given me first-hand experience being the minimum-wage teenager who you think isn't paid enough to do a good job. And I have to tell you, you're wrong about that. Whether you think $8/hour is worth it or not, I do think people should be expected to work for their "f-ing paycheck." If they have a problem with their compensation they can either find a higher-paying job if they're qualified, or do better at their current job and get a raise. Those are the appropriate paths to higher income. You can't boat-anchor your way up the ladder. I am not a collector. Not of GI Joes, not of postage stamps, not of anything. The toys I buy are all actual, active TOYS for my kids, nieces, and nephews. I'm not in TRU looking for a factory error, repaint number 7 on an un-punched mint card of some obscure comic book character that only appeared on page 2 of issue 19 of an unpopular comic series. With the exception of a new year's release of Joes, I am mostly in there shopping for basic toys a couple of times per year. Ninja Turtles, How to Train Your Dragon, Barbies, Nerf, that kind of stuff. Mainstream and EASY stuff. They can't answer those questions, either. The questions TRU clerks have been unable to answer for me have been BASIC - even along the lines of "do you guys carry xxx" or "where do you have your xxx" where "xxx" is any fairly major product line. Specific examples from my experience included Play Doh and Fisher Price Little People toys. I got "don't knows" and "I don't think we have those." I am not asking them Gung Ho's real name or place of birth. I am not asking them the muzzle velocity of a Nerf dart. The polo-wearers and front desk people are just as much of a waste of time to talk to as the t-shirt-wearers. I have been flat out lied to on multiple occasions by polo-wearers and front desk people who just didn't want to answer questions so they just flipped up a few screens on their computer and made stuff up to make me leave feeling like I had good news. I don't want to bloat my answer any further here, but if you want specifics just ask.