"Except that one. Or that one"

When I was standing at the checkout waiting to pay for my bread roll, milk and rainbow fruit pot, the queue was delayed by a woman who wanted to buy a gift voucher. I wasn't really in a hurry, so I didn't mind. She and her friend had already been looking at their watches, although not impatiently, whilst they waited their turn in the queue.

For the gift voucher, she had been to the stand where they were displayed and picked up a card to take to the till along with her shopping. She said to the Till Assistant, "I'd like a £10 gift voucher, please".

"Oh, we don't do those any more. You need to get the other kind," replied the assistant, who then helpfully added, "They're on the stand."

Shopper: "I got that one off the stand."

Assistant: "Yes, but that one shouldn't be on there. You need to get one of the others."

The lady walked over to the stand not far from the till, and picked up another card.

Assistant: "No, not that one. That's the same sort as this one. On the bottom."

Pause

Assistant: "Left. No, not that one. Left!"

Shopper: "These ones?"

Assitant: "Yes. You can have any on that stand you like".

I raised an eyebrow, looking at no one in particular. I seemed to be the only person to notice the incongruity of the customer-pleasing "any you like" and the previous refusal followed by lengthy directions.

The shopper looked to her friend waiting by the till and said "Which do you think?"

Other shopper: "Candles?"

Shopper: (decisively) "Candles".

As she picked up the card and returned to the till, the assistant left the till and went to the card stand. Collecting an envelope, she followed the shopper back to the till.

Assistant: "How much do you want?"

Shopper: "£10"

She added the ten pounds to the gift card, and then tried to show the Shopper where she should write on the card. With a wave of her hand, the Shopper, by now understandably out of patience, said "I know how to do that!"

A man appeared at the end of the till, and spoke to the shopper and her friend, "Have your watches broken?"

Shopper: (in a resigned tone) "No, we had some trouble with some of the shopping..."

They paid, and left. I moved down to stand in front of the Assistant.

Assistant: "Hello. I'm sorry to keep you waiting."

Me: "That's OK. I'm not in a hurry."

Assistant: "If I hadn't have gone to get it, they would never have found the right one."

I resisted the urge to say, "Yes, it's hard to find the right one, on a stand where you can have any card you like..."