Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald seems like a man anyone would love to have a cup of coffee or share a cigar (his vice of choice) with.
He has let followers on his Facebook page into his life, and many of us mourned when his mother passed away and when he lost his dog.
Heald takes heaps of abuse from passengers, showing himself extremely tolerant of cruisers who get angry about relatively minor things.
He almost always shows that he's more than happy with self-deprecating humor.
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Having worked his way up the system at Carnival, he understands that vacations can be stressful in their own way and that when something goes wrong, it can have an outsized impact on the affected person or people.
In response to a recent post, however, Heald seemed to reach a breaking point. He wasn't rude, but he did question the passenger's sense of entitlement (while still offering to have her problem looked at).
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Image source: John Heald/Facebook
Carnival's Heald offers some perspective
"Do you ever feel that we are a bunch of pampered Glitterknickers?" he wrote on his Facebook page on Nov. 4.
A "glitterknicker" is Heald's term for people who get worked up about minor things.
"I ask because amid everything that is happening with wars in Ukraine, the Middle East, killer floods in Spain, hurricanes that have left hundreds still today in despair, and everything else we see on the CNNOX news, a lady wrote to me last week because her cruise on the Carnival Liberty was 'ruined' and has asked for a 50% refund because she couldn’t get a gluten-free taco at the Blue Iguana," he shared.
Heald rarely refers to brands by their proper names (hence CNNOX). Blue Iguana serves only flour tortillas, not hard-shell tacos, which are corn-based and can be gluten-free.
"Now, I have the greatest of sympathy for those of you who are coeliacs, I really do," he continued. "I truly do know how debilitating it can be. And the Beards have added a superb gluten-free menu to the dinning room and gluten-free items on Lido. We do not yet have a gluten-free tacho ummm, thing. And, today I will ask the Beards to see if we can add one."
"The Beards" is Heald's term for Carnival's leadership team, and he always uses the extra "n" in "dining room." He did agree to look into gluten-free tacos, but he also expressed some anger.
"There are so many choices, though, that are gluten-free, yet this guest claims with excited use of the capital letters that this was 'DISCRIMINATION' and wants 50% back from her cruise fare," he wrote.
"We live in a world where it is easy to complain, and I remain here to listen and help, but sometimes when I read things like this, I sit here thinking, wow, no gluten-free taco things; someone let the people of Mariupol know, would you?"
Carnival passengers share their opinions
Most Carnival passengers were sympathetic to Heald.
"We have lost the art of being grateful and humble as a society. It’s embarrassing and downright awful," Denise E Herman posted.
"I used to be in the service industry, and I do not miss it at all. The entitlement and inability to see a bigger picture outside of oneself is mind-blowing. When and why did we stop being kind to one another, empathetic and compassionate? I miss those days."
Many passengers shared their sympathy with Heald.
"True the word and notion of ENTITLEMENT are out of control," Karen Tarentelli Ungaro wrote. "I know one such person and she is exhausting to be around.
"I commend you for your patience and brilliant British humor used to try to diffuse such people and the situations they create with their totally unrealistic expectations and demands."
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Gail Martineau Giarusso summed up what a lot of people tried to express.
"I am just thankful that I am blessed enough to be able to cruise. Count your blessings; so many people in this world are not as fortunate," she posted.
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