And that includes other unintentional commitments telephone owners might make as a result of malfunctions, ‘pilot error’ – or what we’ll call tampering by others. Today’s post may strike you as ‘just awful’, ‘serves her right’, or more likely, as laugh-out-loud funny…
A shy toddler from Texas grabbed his mom’s phone for just a minute
and managed to order 31 cheeseburgers from McDonald’s via DoorDash…
(Video: CNN via CTV)
We all know what can happen when we turn our back on a toddler for even a second. Everyone who’s raised a child has their own stories, which they generally use to amaze and terrify new or expectant mothers. Like the classic, “He was just getting ready to stick a fork in the toaster!” or, “She’d have been doing a headstand in the toilet if I hadn’t caught up with her when I did!”
Likewise, we’ve all heard the tales of woe about cell phone owners who’ve hit a bad number by mistake and dialled Hong Kong instead of the dry cleaner. Or repeatedly bum-dialled a friend – every time they bent over.
But now there’s a story that combines tykes and telephones in a way that has certain significance to food lovers.
One moment’s inattention..
Kingsvile, Texas mom Kelsey Golden, a media manager for a local school, was doing what she normally does, transferring photos from her phone to her computer, when her 2-year-old, Barrett grabbed the thing.
He’s especially entranced by the camera. “He likes to look at his reflection,” Golden told CNN. But this time, he went further. “He starts pressing the screen, swinging it around like his arm is a roller coaster,” she said.
And that was that. At least, that’s what Golden thought.
Then she got a cal from DoorDash apologising that her order would take longer than usual. She has used DoorDash in the past and the app is on her phone. But the kid couldn’t have dialled it. Right?
Cut to the chase
“I was outside playing with Barrett on the porch,” Golden relates. “A car pulls in and I was like, ‘what’? So I went over to it, and she gets out a giant McDonald’s bag and is like, ’31 cheeseburgers?'”
What are the odds?
You might well ask. I’m no mathematician, but I have an instinctual sense they are astronomical. First, Barrett had to open the DoorDash app. Then, he had to choose McDonald’s. Then, he had to choose the cheeseburger. Then, he somehow had to specify ‘order x 31’. THEN, he had to check out. And finally, being a nice kid, he tipped the driver – 25 percent! And he did all that in just a few seconds of ‘roller coastering’!
Some might call him a prodigy. Then, again, kids today do have a reputation for being able to understand and use technology more readily than their elders…
What do you do?
Golden decided to go with the flow and share the wealth. Even though the tab was (US)$91.60. She posted on her Facebook page that she was offering free cheeseburgers to anyone who wanted to come over and grab one. A pregnant neighbour was there in no time and took 6. Golden apparently had no trouble getting rid of the burgers, which was a good thing: she told CNN no one in her family likes cheeseburgers.
At the time of the ‘incident’, the DoorDash app was not protected. “I guess I need to hide the app, or something,” Golden mused. Good advice for anyone whose toddler likes to noodle on their phone…
~ Maggie J.