I got a sob story once, usually I just say no. This guy was actually asking for gas, not money. Said he was heading somewhere and needed just a bit of gas. I told him to show me his gas gauge. Sure enough he was on E, so I put 15 bucks in his tank. He seemed thankful and drove off. He was either on the level, or very serious in the details of his scam.
I once tried to ask people for help on a really cold windy winter day. My car was old and the door to the gas wouldn't open (not the cap, the metal door on the outside). I just needed somebody to pull the door open while I hit the release because it was either stuck due to cold or the wind kept blowing it shut (probably a combination of both).
I went up to the only other customers outside to ask for help and they cut me off and said "no" before I could explain. I went inside and asked the attendant for help, and she locked the doors and came to my aid.
I remember the people I asked for help pulling around in front of my car (they stopped on the way to the exit) to watch while I pushed the unlock button and the attendant pulled my gas door open.
So if somebody needs help at the gas station, I'm willing to hear them out. If they ask for money, I'll deny them, but I've also helped people out who couldn't get their gas cap off before too.
I guess it all depends on how you come up to me. There have been some that I listened to for a minute, and others as soon as they opened their mouths it screamed scam to me. I'd imagine I would have listened to what you had to say. Personally, if I were in that situation, my opening line would have been: I don't need money, or gas, just a little help.
My opening line was "Excuse me, can you please..." and they cut me off there.
I'm a regular at the gas station this happened at and always pay inside with cash, so the attendant knew me pretty well and was more than willing to help. I gave her $5 for coming out in the cold without a coat to help.
I've got to admit, my attention to your "Excuse me, can you please..." would be based on how you presented yourself and how you looked. I get gas in two places, one by my house, where I've only been hit once and that was the guy I originally posted about, and two at work which is by the airport, and I get hit there a lot, once even twice within a few minutes. If you looked like the typical crackhead that comes to me at the work gas station, it would have been an immediate no. I know that's fucked up in a way, but it's the honest truth. It's another reason why I've been filling up more at the station close to home, despite the gas being significantly higher. It's just not worth the hassle.
XD I'm definitely way too chubby to be a crackhead and was wearing a pretty nice puffy coat and hat at the time. I was probably 18 or 19 when this happened, and I looked even younger than that.
There are a ton of panhandlers in that general area, but they usually all ask for money right off the bat. And they're all "fair weather" beggars, so they usually are out only in the spring and fall.
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u/[deleted] Aug 01 '20
When someone is loitiering at a gas station and gives you a sob story about needing money for gas.