Thursday, April 17, 2008

Lemonade?

I got ripped off today...ever so slightly.

After I visited my mother at her temporary house I drove down the road I grew up on to pick up her mail. I came upon two brothers who had set up a stand with a sign that said, "Lemonade 25 cents."

OK, I said to myself, after I drop off the mail I'll go back and get a lemonade...I'm a sucker for enterprising youngsters and it was abnormally warm for April.

I stopped, rolled down the window, and handed the boy a quarter, big spender that I am. He gave me a plastic cup.
Um, it wasn't lemonade. It was grape-flavored, sugary water, nice and warm from sitting in the sun.
Refreshing? not particularly.

I asked the entrepreneurs how business was, and they said they had had only "three or four" customers, then added, "Tell your friends!"

Tell them what? That what they advertised as lemonade, wasn't?
Don't mean to sound harsh. They really were cute kids, and they were polite.

(Lesson learned: Let the buyer beware.)

6 comments:

Anonymous said...
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Christy said...

The previous comment is a virus, malware link, don't click it.

As for the lemonade, bummer, I would not have liked that.

Lynn said...

I think that it's wonderful that you stopped and supported these two young entrepreneurs. I am surprised that you actually dared to taste the liquid that they offered you. I usually try to stop and buy whatever is being sold, but then I 'pretend' to taste it and throw it away A.S.A.P. I worry (maybe this is from working with kids) that their sanitation skills may have been sorely lacking. But then...that's just one of my weird quirks.

BTW...I loved the "I'm a sucker..." no pun intended, right? :~)

Michele said...

I think it's terrific that you supported these kids regardless if it wasn't lemonade or not. Perhaps they intended it to be lemonade and made the signage and realized they didn't have any in the house and opted to have the "grape juice" instead. No time to change the signs, I don't know... being so young, they just didn't quite understand to explain to "customers" the product had changed to those circumstances and opted to stay with that. Or perhaps they figured Lemonade Stand meant a general statement as in a Refreshment Stand... hmm.. who knows but I respect you for supporting them regardless.... if people are a little hesitant about tasting the product of these young ones, perhaps just donating a quarter and adding supportive words or as Lynn had put, pretending... that was cute. I can't tell you how important that can be to the young ones doing this as opposed to "hanging out in the malls".
Great post, Patti!

Odat said...

LOL...well, at least they tried....and you were a good sport for stopping. ;-)
Peace

Linda said...

Which just goes to show that you can't buy much with a quarter these days!