Peeing in the Verizon store. How fun!

Sorry about the Test reply, I just hit the wrong button.

Anyway I believe you are way overboard with yourself.

I see nothing funny about any of this.

test

Okay seriously this is gross!! If I was the Verizon employee I would
of kicked you out of the store whether you wanted to buy a phone or
not after asking you to clean it up. Of course I don't think you would
of cleaned it. I work in a retail store myself and we do have public
restrooms but they are locked b/c people steal in there. All a
customer has to do is ask but one decided to pee in the water
fountains b/c he didnt want to ask someone to unlock the door. He was
arrested and thrown out. which is what should of happend to you.

I don't think Verizon is the one with a lack of character in this
situation.

I'm embarrassed for you.

What mother takes a 2 year old out knowing full well accidents happen
(who has 4 kids and should know better)? Your lack of vision to the
needs of your son is not the fault of the store. Should everyone just
stop what they are doing to help you? Yes a little kindness would be
nice. Lets put the blame where it belongs. Next time try using a
little common sense when you go out with your 2 year old. Either shop
at places with a public restroom or put a diaper on your son!

i would be embarrassed to tell that story. i could understand if you
told your son to try and hold it, and then he accidentally peed on the
floor. but telling him to pee on the floor, are you kidding me? you
could've at least stepped outside and told the workers he was going to
water their plants. there are plenty of public places that don't have
restrooms open to the public...period. i've gotten 2 children through
the potty training stage successfully, and i never once had to tell
them to pee in the floor as a last resort. yes, i have been told i
couldn't use the bathroom. yes, it was annoying. no, i did not expect
strangers to have to clean up my child's pee. i know of a movie store
that doesn't allow people to use their bathroom. i was allowed to let
my daughter use it once, and it made perfect sense why it's against
their policy. they have lots of valuable merchandise leading to the
restroom. if the clerk is watching the person using the bathroom, they
aren't waiting on customers. if they're waiting on customers, then the
person who asked to "use the bathroom" could be robbing them blind. i
would've called the cops if i was the employee. you encouraged your
child to pee in the floor on someone else's property....that is not
quite an accident.

I myself have just had a problem with verizon and was looking up an
address of corporate offices to pass along the problem and found your
letter.

I believe they enjoy taking your payment, but there is NO customer
sevice once they have your money.

Another idea would be to ask to speak to a manager (who is maybe a
little older than the clerk and possibly a parent also).

One thing I have done when businesses I intend to spend money in
refuse to let me use the bathroom (I have certain health issues and
when I have to go, I have to go, can't help it), I let them know that
I have to go find the nearest restroom, and if I have time left after
that, I will come back to buy the pair of shoes I had originally come
in for. Sometimes that makes them more helpful, if they know you want
to spend money in their store (which Verizon should have known in your
case!).

Also, I am a Mom of 4, and when mine were potty training and we had to
go places where there may or may not be a restroom, or a long wait for
one, I would put a pull-up on them, with plastic pants on over it.
You can still buy the plastic pants, they have them at Kmart. Hand
wash them, though, or they fall apart. While you are trying to teach
your toddler *not* to pee in his pants, it is probably not a good idea
to encourage him to do so only in certain circumstances.

The pull up and plastic pants worked well as a potty training (and
pretty well leak proof) system for my two youngest, who are now 9 and
10. Eventually we had them in the pull ups/plastic pants at night,
too, and the good thing is that they can feel the dampness and they
don't like it, but with two ways to catch the leaks, it both cuts
down on messes and discourages them from peeing their pants.

Just my two cents, fwiw.

thats what i would have done

Verizon was wrong in not allowing your child to use the employees
toliet. But, you where "WAY" out of line to tell your child to pee on
the floor. You have no respect for person or property and your
teaching your child the same. You need to look at your own actions.
Then think about the "character" of the actions you have taken. Two
wrongs, don't make a right.

When I worked at a Fashion Bug we could escort customers to our
employee restrooms. We had two, both in our back stock/break room. We
had to stand back there while the customers did their business and
then walk them back out front. Finally, due to staffing, the DM told
our manager no more, and the employee restrooms were just for
employees once again.
One Friday night before this took effect I had to take back a mother
and her young son, I'd say he was around 10 or so, to the bathrooms.
They told me that they had just come from the Chinese buffet next
door. She went in one bathroom, he went in another, and I had to wait
outside for them. I heard sounds coming from those bathrooms that I
hope I never hear again! Then as I walked them back out, Mom says to
me, "It's great going in, but not so good coming out." Disgusting.

Why on earth would you tell your child to do that? That is beyond
rehensible.
If you are potty training, you take the necessary precaustions with
you or stay home (or go when you can leave them home/with someone
else!).
People feel too entitled anymore.

I really and truly hope Verizon has your contact info and they sue you
for the cost of replacing the carpet or flooring. Urine NEVER comes
out of carpet completely, and it damages wood flooring.

As a child that is potty training, your son is in no way responsible.
Verizon is not required to have a bathroom, so they are not
responsible, but YOU!!! As the parent YOU should have planned, and you
should have realized that children have to go when they have to go.
You should not have wasted valuable time messing around trying to
prove a point with the staff. At least as a boy, he could have gone
outside.

I cannot believe someone would tell their child to pee on someone'
floor. I am so glad you live several states away from me. I so hope
Verizon sues you. To tell your child to pee in someone's place of
business is an embarrassment to all parents, and it's the reason so
many establishments won't allow children into their venue.

When encountering this type of problem:

1. contact your local health department
2. contact your local city business permit office
and inquire about requirements for business
furnishing public restrooms.
3. Contact your better business bureau.
4. contact your state's consumer affairs office.
6. contact your Better Business Bureau and complain.
7. If you are in my business and have your child pee
on my floor, call your lawyer because you are
going to jail for disorderly conduct.

I have to say...this is the reason my family moved out of Flint as
soon as possible.

Flint is GHETTO. There are exceptions, of course, but people who live
in Flint are generally obnoxious, uneducated, and trashy. I worked at
Genesee Valley Center and could not be paid enough to do it again.

This is unfortunately exactly the type of behavior I would expect out
of someone who lives in Flint, MI.

My kids are now 12, 10, and 8. I remeber plenty of times where my kids
had accidents while potty-training because there wasn't a bathroom
nearby. I even had to buy new clothes sometimes (or go home and change
them) when we didn't make it. NEVER would I have allowed, much less
given permission to, my child to pee on the floor of a public area.
Not only is it unsanitary, but it teaches the kid that it is okay to
urinate whenever, wherever you are.

Oh, and I was not allowed to let anyone use our bathroom at the store
I worked at. It was too much of a liability. If the person were to get
hurt, it would be our fault. We had enough police action with all the
shoplifters we dealt with.

"What kind of business doesnt allow a 2 yr old to go pee in their
bathroom while they are in their store?"

What!?!?! What kind of parent uses their 2 year old child as a pawn
in a game of ticking off a sales associate?

I hope the confusion and embarrassment that you have brought upon your
own flesh and blood is worth the point you were trying to make. If I
were the associate I would have called the police. Maybe a visit from
the CPS would be in order.

There are state laws in effect regarding public access to restrooms on
the premises of a business. If the store isn't perpared/authorized to
have a restroom available for patrons, they cannot, for any reason,
let a patron use the restroom that is there for employees. It becomes
a liability issue due to a lawsuit happy public. My guess is that you
are a stay at home parent who didn't know this, which would make your
umbrage ALMOST excuseable, but your response negates any sympathy I
might have had for your plight and only makes me embarrassed for your
child and the mixed message he must have received. Were I the
manager of that store, you'd be banned and you'd be billed for the
cleaning of the soiled floor, which now presents a health hazzard to
other patrons. Shame on you for being a bad example all the way
around.

I'm courious as to what your wife said when you told her you told the
2 yr old to pee on himself because the store wouldn't let him use the
potty?

What's the saying, kids?

"Lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on
their part."

It's YOUR job to make sure that your child takes care of his business
before you go shopping. When I was a kid, parents always made sure we
went to the toilet before we went out anywhere.

You asked..."What kind of business doesnt allow a 2 yr old to go pee
in their bathroom while they are in their store?"

How about - the kind of business that doesn't have public restrooms.
That's the kind of business that doesn't allow a 2 year old to go to
the bathroom when in their store.

You're supposedly a parent, therefore it's your responsibility to make
sure that you're equipped to care for your child when out in public.

Well, you certainly showed that "ungentleman" salesman the finer
points of being a gentleman when you told your kid to urinate on his
sales floor. Maybe next time a customer demands usage of his
nonexistent rest room, he'll think twice before he refuses to use his
brain magic to conjure one up.

"There is nothing that Verizon can do to make this better."

Seems to me they've already made things better in that, thanks to your
absence, they won't have to spend as much time in the future
shampooing their carpets.

Every time I read this story I start feeling feeling the urge to use
the restroom.

O_o evil subliminal thoughts! o_O

As someone who works retail, you are the kind of customer that makes
me really wish we were allowed to smack sense into people sometimes.
There are frequently corporate policies that state that customers ARE
NOT allowed in associate only areas. If they don't have a public
bathroom, there really isn't anything that can be done about it. Tell
your kid to hold it and take them to the gas station if they really
need to go. How is it his fault that you didn't bother to plan ahead?

Unbelievable!

This is in NO WAY verizons fault.

If you are in the process of potty training, you need to make sure
your child (and everyone else) is protected during public outings. You
can't always be sure there will be a toilet available when you are out
and about.

This has nothing to do with Verizon not caring.
YOU didn't care and you taught your child the same.

Gross.

WHAT? You have got to be kidding me I am speechless. You told your
son to pee on the floor and you still have your children. I feel bad
for your children, they have a very inconsiderate dad. You didn't
just have him pee on the Verizon floor you had him contaminate the
place. What about others in the store? UGH! I am appalled.

KUDOS to your little one, I'm having my own issues with Verizon and
wish I could pee on them. Isn't it law that a public business has to
offer public bathrooms? Any person who does not allow a toddler to use
their potty-deserves to be peed on. I do feel bad for your little one
though, i'm sure he was embarrased, which is never good for their self
esteem. By the way-where do their employees pee? Probably on the floor
in the back somewhere which is why they didn't care. :)

Now that's the way to teach a 2 year old to use the potty - telling
him it's OK to pee on the floor. Ever hear of training pants?????

I'm assuming that Verizon has your name since they were activating
your new phone - I'd be surprised if they don't drop your contract and
report you to child protective services.

I commented on the language you used in front of your children and to
the employee, and was so shocked by your letter that it has taken me
time to comment on your other actions.
Pull Ups are a part of potty training and the child should have been
protected. YOU caused him to be in this position. Telling him to pee
on the floor was wrong in so many ways and you showed lack of respect
for your child, yourself, the store employees AND other customers.
The employee probably kept smiling because he was enjoying the thought
of Child Protective Services showing up at your door. Also, they could
have called the police. I would have.
You are showing your children that bad behavior is okay. So you will
have no recourse when they act like you did.
One last thought...when your son pees on your floor at home, YOU
taught him to do that and to it is okay.

lol

What if they didn't have a bathroom? I'm surprised they didn't remove
you from the store for the act YOU did. Poor kid.

Oh my! I have experienced my fair share of toilet training a child and
never, ever used this method, It is hard enough to accomplish this
training but you, my dear, have just confused the child. Don't go; let
mommy know when you have to go. Oh wait, just do it on the floor! By
all means cancel your phone and invest in training pants. All the
best.

I hope you had already given your name and address to the "smiling
ungentleman" (your words) because I'm also hoping you get a whopping
big bill from Verizon for floor cleaning and sanitation.

Plus, Flint isn't that big of a city. Is this really the kind of story
that you want to follow your son for the rest of his life?

It's one thing if it's an accident and an entirely different thing for
a parent to purposefully humiliate his child.

I've already had a couple of responses on this letter, but it bothers
me so much that I felt compelled to respond again.

I think what bothers me so much is not the lack of planning shown in
parenting here but the blatant lack of respect for not only Verizon's
employees and Verizon's property but also for the other customers in
the store and even the OP's own child. How a parent could willingly
and knowingly put his own child in this position is mind-boggling. I
just don't get it.

And I can't even begin to fathom how in the world anyone in their
right mind would think this was okay.

Wow. Just wow... there is no words for this. I am honestly surprised
the store didn't kick you out. Verizon must have WAY higher tolerance
than my employer. Cause if someone told their kid "Just go" on the
floor... they would be ban for life from our store.

Maybe this is a sign that your son isnt quite ready for full blown
potty training... buy some pull ups, he can still be potty trained to
use the bathroom, but you can avoid incidents like this in the future.

"What kind of business doesnt allow a 2 yr old to go pee in their
bathroom while they are in their store?"

Uh, my thoughts are more along the lines of what kind of mother allows
her child to urinate all over himself instead of dropping what you're
doing and rushing that baby home or to a place that does have a public
restroom.

I'm sorry but I do not think Verizon was in the wrong here. Many
businesses do not have public restrooms and there can be
repercussions, such as termination of your job, if you allow a
customer to use them.

As a mother, I always felt that it was *my* responsibility to take
care of my sons potty needs. During potty training time, when my son
said he had to go, I dropped everything I was doing and took him to
potty even if that meant going home. If I were told that a business
did not have a public restroom, I didn't stand there and argue the
fact due to the fact that my child had to go potty NOW and time was of
the essence.

Well, it's not my idea of a fun time but uhhmm...


err yeah I am pretty much speechless on this one.

A. If they are not a food service establishment they are not obligated
to allow you to use their bathroom. Plus it could be a safety issue
for non-employees to use it, depending on where it is located in their
back room.

B. If you use your right to have a child, you need to assert the
responsibility of raising it, which may inconvenience you at times,
but it is what it is.

C. If I were the manager I would have told you to leave and never ever
to return, as PepperElf said you created a health/safety issue for
everyone around you.

D. Unreal.

And that is what is wrong with the world today (and no, I'm not
talking about Verizon).

Did you get kicked out?
If I were the manager, and you instructed your child to urinate on the
floor, I would have sent you on your way and told you to never come
back. That is absolutely ridiculous and uncalled for. You say the
salesman is an un-gentleman - I don't think having your kids pee in
the middle of the floor makes you a wonderful gentleman yourself. The
sales associates were doing their job and adhering to company policy.

They likely have a store policy that the restroom is not for public
use. After two people told you no, you should have had the sense to
tell him to run outside and do it on the ground if he could not wait
at all (you mention "growing visible spots"). That way, maybe a little
dribble would get on the floor, but not an entire bladder full. What
did your other kids think of this? Did they offer to help their
younger brother out? This is so un-imaginable. There are so many
better ways this could have gone - proving a point by having your
child urinate on the floor is just rude, not only to your son, but to
other customers, and also to the employees who have to clean it up.

I am so at a loss for words. I can not even believe you blame the
Verizon store for bad behavior. You TOLD him to PEE on the FLOOR? I
have potty trained three kids, and one the the downsides is until they
are fully potty trained, you either, do not go out, or you put them
back in a diaper/pull up. This is just so horrific that you stood
there any allowed your son to embarrass himself that way.

I remember my retail days. In many stores, you are not allowed for
any reason to let someone into the back room to use the bathroom..it
is a security issue. Especially parents asking for little kids to use
the bathroom. Many times, stock or safes are kept back there. It is
usually something that comes from corporate and is done for the safety
of the employees and clients.

You owe them an apology.

i understand toilet training can be difficult, but if owned that
business i would have kicked you out right on the spot. You created a
public health/safety issue. the staff must have had a darn good reason
not to let your child in the bathroom, likely they did not even have
one! dont you think if they had a facility they would have let your
son use it? nobody is that heartless. perhaps you could have used this
situation to teach your son self-control. the world does not revolve
aroung his bladder/bowel and not everyone will let you use their
toilet. im not trying to be cruel here, but you caused them hardship,
in that they likely had to steam clean the carpet, had this been
accidental it would be different, but to allow your son to just go,
you sent him a message...

Wow. I don't even have words for this one. I guess I'm just glad it
wasn't YOU who needed to urinate.

to go at the worst possible time? The beauty of being a boy is that
we can just lob it out and take care of business. You live in MI, and
your son will need to learn to write his name in the snow anyway. No
better time to start learning than now.

I can't believe you let your son pee on the floor, what is worse you
said "go ahead on pee"

I would have

1. Had pull-ups on my child

but say no pull-ups

2. would have taken them outside to do the deed.

I think you should have to go clean their floor.

I have two kids of my own, I've been there. You are in a store trying
to finish something up and at the most inconvenient time your child
has to go right now. If your 2 year old was truly already peeing when
you told them to just go on the floor, I highly doubt there would have
been time to get them even to the bathroom in the store. However, if
it had been me, I would have had my 2 year old in pull ups or diapers
and I would have dropped everything to try and find another bathroom.
My little boy has even gone outside or in a cup in our car before.

Potty trained or not, a 2 year old does not have the ability to hold
it in very long. If you aren't going to put pull-ups or diapers on
them, you need to take responsibility for dropping everything and
getting them to a bathroom immediately. And, already going or not,
it's not the brightest of ideas to tell them to go on the floor. What
are you teaching them to do next time around?

You really let your two-year-old pee on Verizon's floor and then you
have the gall to say there is nothing that Verizon can do to make this
better?

And you accused the Verizon associate of having no sense?

So, not one person was rude or mean to you, the only thing they did
was say they did not have a restroom. And you told your two year old
to urinate on the floor.

....

Wow. Great lesson you taught your kids there.

It would have been better to just leave and worry about the phone
later and get your two year old to a place with a public restroom.

Even when I was toilet training my son when we went out he almost
always wore diapers until HE could give plenty of warning as to when
he need to use the toilet.

Lack of preparation on your part does not constitute an emergencyon
their part.

If you can afford to buy a phone, you can afford some pull ups for
your 2 year old when they are out in public.

I blame faulty parenting.

it's been quite a week!

If they don't have a public restroom, they don't have a public
restroom. It's up to you, as a parent, to prepare for these little
issues. A retail establishment like this is not required to have a
restroom for the customers.

Shame on you for just telling your son to go ahead a pee on the floor.
You should have hustled him outside to answer nature's call. I'm
sure his embarrassment will set his potty training back some.

BTW..Nice potty mouth!

And when Metro PCS won't allow you to use their bathroom and you have
your kid whiz on their floor, what phone service will you choose next?

How upsetting it must have been for your children to see you behaving
this way!

While I understand that a child's bladder doesn't function on a
convenient schedule, it is not a store's responsibility to provide for
them, it is yours. When your potty-training child expressed a need to
urinate, you needed to excuse yourself and take him somewhere else
(Even if it was the car tire, as another poster suggested), regardless
of the inconvenience it caused you. This issue was not anyone's fault
but yours and I hope this letter actually stems from your
embarrassment at not knowing how to handle the situation, otherwise
you come off as extremely entitled and careless.

My sympathy is with your children for having to see you act out so
inappropriately, and my kudos to the employees for obviously
attempting to remain relaxed and friendly under extreme circumstances.

Regardless of whether they had a public restroom or not, this was
completely uncalled for. You couldn't have at least taken him outside
in the grass or behind the building?? GEEZ!

Sorry, but after the FIRST time you asked and got a "no." you should
have LEFT the store and at least went out to the car. I have let my
son pee on MY car tire when there was no were else to go. (he thought
it was REALLY fun!) Inconvenient, yes. As a parent, we sometimes have
to stop what we are doing and take care of our child's needs FIRST.
My 3 year old is now 100% trained. It took a while. He was NOT ready
at 2. (Pull-Ups are a GREAT thing) Some kids are, some are not. You
should NOT have let you kid on on the floor. If he had all ready
started, then you should have picked him up and took him outside.
There have been many things I have missed both/either left because of
my son.

There are many, MANY reasons why you couldn't use a bathroom there.
Maybe the bathroom was surrounded by stock. Maybe it was broken. You
don't know.

I would NEVER tell my son to pee on the floor someplace. How do you
think HE felt having everyone look at him? There are many things you
can get that will help with the training. Even plastic/rubber
coverings that go over the Undies. Here is a tip that helped us: Put
a pair of undies on THEN put a pull-up OVER the undies. The kid gets
the feel of the wet, however, there is only the undies that get messed
up. That way you only have to change the undies and not the pants
too. AND there is NO accidents on the floor. Out somewhere OR at
home.

i've ever seen someone tell their child to just pee on the floor
before.

on a bush or tree yes
but not on a floor in a retail store.

and most verizon stores i've been to are carpeted.

Yes I was in a hurry when writing that. I should have mentioned that I
didn't have time to leave the store to find a bathroom and he was
going and it didnt matter. I told him to go because he was in the
process of doing it. He had visible spots getting bigger when I told
him that. What was I supposed to do? When kids tell you they need to
go to the bathroom they mean they need to go now! Even if they went to
the bathroom 20 minutes prior. If I could have made it to my car he
would have peed in a pop bottle or something but he was going and
there was nothing I could do to stop it.

There's usually a reason that customers aren't allowed to use employee
bathrooms, actually from my retail experience there are MANY reasons.
A couple of examples are possibility of theft, and customers making a
mess of the bathroom.

YOU are the parent, it is YOUR responsibilty to get your child to a
bathroom, not Verizon's. What kind of father allows his child to
urinate on the floor in a store? Actually, I should rephrase that,
because I know accidents happen, so what kind of father TELLS his
child to pee on the floor in a store? If I were the manager working in
that store, you would be out, and never allowed to return.

You tell the kid to go on the floor, what kind of potty training is
that, and your potty mouth wasnt much better.

Correct me if Im wrong, but isnt part of potty training being able to
learn how to hold it?


Ridiculous



Good Day

Did you really use that language in front of your children?