He Broke It-- I Bought It-- They Freaked Out!

While shopping today with Thing1 and Thing2, I spied a new display of nifty Hallow'een decorations. (You all KNOW how I love Hallow'een!) Not the typical bunch of Precious Moments-type decorations, these were interesting and different. I was particularly enthralled with a large skull designed with a Day of The Dead motif. Very unusual (odd?) for North Carolina and probably why it hadn't been purchased last season.

I turned for two seconds to pick up the skull and heard an ear-splitting *SMASH!!!* and a loud "GULP!". Thing1 had picked up a Hallow'een snow globe, conveniently displayed at child-level, and he dropped it. Yes, it was an accident, but he knows better than to touch breakables in a store. I was NOT pleased.

There was a clerk near by and I told her that, "Of course, I plan on paying for this." She looked surprised and went off to get a mop and a bucket. Clean up on aisle 12! I began picking up pieces of glass and Thing1 burst into tears. The clerk returned and I assisted her in cleaning up the mess, just keeping the globe's base (Look, honey! It's also a music box that plays 'Phantom of the Opera'!) because the SKU and price were listed there. As we finished as best we could, the clerk turned to me and said,

"I'm surprised that you helped and that you're actually going to pay for this. Most people just walk away."

I couldn't believe it! Now, I'm no saint, but I believe in the you-broke-it, you-buy-it philosophy of shopping. My kid is my responsibility and therefore his breakages are my problem. Apparently, this is NOT the norm anymore. People just break things in stores and walk away. How depressing! How sad! Again, when I got to the checkout, the checkout clerk said, "I'm really surprised you're paying for this." I just smiled (grimly) and paid for my new convertible snow globe (and the skull, of course!).

Do I seem the criminal type? The smash and run sort? Am I being naive?

PS. Thing1 will be working off his debt.