I *Love* helping out a fellow Non-rev, after all, no matter what airline we actually work for we're still a family, and flying is in our blood - but still, pass travel is a privilege, and we need to remember that Revenue passengers have to come first.

That being said, last night I got a call from a Non-rev spouse who's damn lucky I'm a nice person, otherwise he'd be flying on greyhound for a long time.

No sooner had I said hello when this guy starts kevetching (putting it lightly) about how long he had been on hold - Umm hello? Holiday evening, we're short staffed and obviously there are other people in the same boat - we handle callers one person at a time.

I can't disclose exact flight loads to you unless I know for SURE, for POSITIVE that I am allowed to. That means I can't just take your word for it that your spouse is an employee, and no amount of being pissy will change that. I need your number. If you are an employee of another airline, I can give generalities, and will normally drop some serious big hints letting you know how it looks, but if you want exacts, I need that number - period. Getting angry because I'm protecting my job won't help.

It's not my fault that the loads are bad, especially on a holiday weekend. It's not my fault some of your fellow employees decided to travel on the same day you did, and it's definitely not my fault that the system isn't working.

Look, as I said, I Love helping non-revs, but I'm also on a time monitor - especially when it's busy. It's customary to ask if an agent has time to help a non-rev. 99% of the time, even when it's busy, we'll make time for you, but there's a limit, and being a complete and utter **** isn't going to help you.

I was utterly shocked by this caller's behavior, and I'm one to let a billion and one things slide - but from now on, if you or your guest is a turd, I'm going to do my damndest to make sure that you aren't going anywhere for a long time...

You've been warned, and it's your own damn fault.