bless me bagpipes!

Stuart MacDuff for happiestplacehq

[stuart-macduff]

imattractedtopower​:

Mirage wondered if Stuart could see the irony in his words; he wouldn’t spend astronomical amounts on coffee, yet here he stood in the very café he was complaining about, waiting to buy, she assumed, a coffee. “Oh, of course. You certainly seem a man of create taste and–” Don’t call him frugal. “–an eye for a bargain. I would never expect you to fall for all that.” Her smirk did not falter. “Perhaps try the burger truck near campus? I’m sure their coffees are cheap and cheerful.” Thankfully, with her high-earning job with Mr. Borovsky and taste for the high life, spending a few extra bucks on a lavish coffee was nothing. “Although, now that you’re here… What takes your fancy?”

//

He perfectly got her insinuation, and Stuart was not pleased. No, he did not fall for schemes like that, but when said scheme was the only game in town, beggars could not be choosers. Again, he really wished he had come up with it. "I never said I would not patronize this establishment, you know. I only wish they would think a little about how they're trying to squeeze every last cent out of their customers." (As he himself would have done in the same circumstance.) He might have not been thrilled with the extravagant coffees, and he might well be cheap too, but going to the burger truck for a coffee was totally out of the question. "Since I'm already here, I don't exactly see the sense in going all the way there now," he huffed, "What takes my fancy is something that I can pronounce and isn't a cup with half coffee and half foam."

[stuart-macduff]

notasweetnightingale​:

Deziree gave Mr. MacDuff a once over as he spoke. “Okay, but, like, you can bring your own reusable travel mug and save 25 cents. And their cups are sustainably sourced and recyclable, so…” (Deziree didn’t really care that much about the environment, but buzzwords on social media really worked, and if it justified the stupid price for her coffee, good.)

Frankly, Deziree was completely unsympathetic to anyone who didn’t get with the times. Grumpy, old men were so not her jam. Like, what totally normal, sane person was immune to the call of the pumpkin spice latte? None. She was in the presence of a blasphemer. “Uuuuh, just ask for an Americano. Or an espresso if you’re really gonna be as bitter as your taste.”

//

On the one hand, Stuart liked to save every blessed cent he could. On the other, he could not believe they only would knock off 25 cents for someone bringing a travel mug. "Oh, well I'm glad they're being so wonderfully generous! Remind me to send them a nice thank you note." At least they were doing something for the environment by using recyclable and sustainable cups, but that hardly negated the blatant rip-off already being committed.

While he might not have known all the coffee-ordering jargon, he was not completely ignorant either, and he did not appreciate the young lady giving him pointers on what to order. "I think I know how to order a coffee. It's not my fault these shysters want to make it so bloody complicated!" Raising an eyebrow, Stuart asked her, "I suppose you like to have all that rot on top of your coffee, hmm? Probably think it's the best invention this side of sliced bread." He might not have gone that far, but he still did think it was an infuriatingly good scheme.

[stuart-macduff]

freshasa-rosetta​:

@stuart-macduff​

Rosetta let out a sigh as she drummed her fingers across her desk. She’d honestly lost track of time, and hadn’t been quite paying attention to how much of it was passing. She knew Mr. MacDuff was busy, but she had places to be. Her best friend sat in a hospital, and her she was at her job. “Mr.MacDuff!” Rosetta jumped to her feet, when he stepped out of his office. 

//

Stuart had not gotten to where he was now by hiring people who were not good at their jobs. Thus he had little worry that everything at every branch of his operations would run smoothly. Rosetta had been doing excellent work ever snice he had hired her, so when he came out of his office and heard her suddenly call his name, he doubted she was having some difficulty with any of the day's tasks. "Yes Miss Ramos? What is it?"

[stuart-macduff]

agatha-morrigan​:

“I don’t really do Halloween, it’s a bit silly really.” ( @stuart-macduff​ )

agatha looked over the edge of her drink and her jaw dropped “stuart macduff, you grumpy fuchsia. halloween is a time to let loose and have some fun.” the older resident of the town were obviously quieter than the younger ones running around, but there was still life in these old dandelions. “you’re as bad as archie. come on stuart, come join the festivities”

//

If Agatha thought that Stuart would even remotely like the idea of a holiday where people gave away things for free, she was very much mistaken. "Do I look the kind of person who ever 'lets loose'?" he inquired. Not only was the idea of buying candy just to give it away to children silly, the idea of wasting money on a costume you only wear once was equally foolish. He might admire the geniuses who got such a marketing scheme going, but he was certainly not going to participate in it. "What am I supposed to dress up as, anyway? I like my cranky old miser costume very much, thank you."

[stuart-macduff]

☃ — [Nani] offers [Stuart] a cup of hot cocoa/apple cider -- @themanagerisavampirex​

Free was Stuart's favorite word, so even if all the Halloween and carnival festivities were not really his thing, he certainly accepted the offered mug of apple cider. "That's nice of you, dear. More people should be so generous." He was not referring to himself, of course. More like the people blatantly overcharging for food and drinks in this town. "Are you giving out drinks to everyone, or are you just taking pity on a poor old man?" He almost chuckled at the idea of anything about him being poor, but he did still appreciate the gesture, at any rate.

[stuart-macduff]

imattractedtopower​:

Mirage stood in line at the café, unsurprised by the length of the line for the time of morning. From her brief visits to the town, she knew that the Enchanted Rose was always bustling at this time in the day, which made blending in easier than one might expect.

She was doing exactly that, waiting to order a simple coffee and something for lunch, when a thick, unmissable accent broke through the general chatter of the other patrons. “Careful, Mr. MacDuff. You’re showing your age,” Mirage cooed over her shoulder, the joke evident in her gentle tone. Mirage would have been a fool not to know Stuart MacDuff, at least in name. He was incredibly wealthy, hard to tune out, and had come up occasionally in meetings, some unrelated to one another. It paid to know who was important. She turned slightly to continue. “I thought you might have been the type to support small ventures. Don’t we all start somewhere?”

//

Stuart huffed a bit, very aware that he was doing that, even if she had meant it as a tease. "True, but I've also been around long enough to know how these tricks go, and to know not to fall for them." A lot of the patrons lining up in the café would never have seen the days of more simple offerings in restaurants, and thus would have no idea such a thing was possible. "Everyone just expects fancy coffees these days, and if you're the only game in town for that, how will anyone complain?" An excellent business set-up, he hated to admit. Practically taken out of his own playbook. "Of course everyone starts somewhere, but this place seems like they've got everything worked out already. If you're already at the point of committing highway robbery, I don't think you need too many pointers."

[stuart-macduff]

webbyvanderwal​:

To be honest, Webby had no idea what the proper price for a coffee was, let alone. On the few occasions she’d been to  a coffee shop with her grandmother, her grandmother had paid for the both of them. But she wasn’t going to admit that to a stranger. So she took a sip of the drink she had ended up ordering- some sugary frappe type thing, and nodded enthusiastically.

“Definitely a Racket!” What a cool phrase! She’d have to save that for later. “I guess I’ll have to find a different shop next time! Which is a shame, because it is really nice in here, I think. Very cozy.”

//

He was not sure if she was actually agreeing with him or just trying to be polite. It did not seem like many people would disagree, considering how full the café was. "The point of the racket is to make sure people can't choose to go somewhere else," he pointed out, "And I don't recall there being another place like this nearby, so unless you're going to make your own coffee at home, I think you're going to be stuck." A very clever ploy, really. Stuart was more upset that he had not come up with it than with actually being made to buy a coffee at a high price. "See, that's how they're going to make you feel guilty for leaving. They know exactly what they're doing, the shysters." And total geniuses, he refrained from adding. Shaking his finger at her, he said, "You've got to try not to fall for that."

[stuart-macduff]

notasweetnightingale​:

Deziree was of the opinion that the cheaper something was, the worse it was, and having not a penny to her name really wasn’t helping that matter. She had begrudgingly taken the cheaper options many times now and she wasn’t enjoying it.

“Coffee for a dime?!” Deziree repeated, almost laughing. Clearly, she was too young to know those days. “That’s either dirty water, or someone’s violating a child labour law.” The thought alone of coffee that cheap turned her stomach. “Obviously it’s going to look more expensive if you’re just paying for, like, a cappuccino. Once you get all the add-ons like syrup, cream, ice, a dusting of chocolate, it evens out the price.”

//

The fact that he was clearly dating himself made Stuart frown. "There was a time when it was that cheap. aye," he retorted irritably, "And yes, it usually was only that cheap in cheap diners. But they don't need to go and mark it up ridiculously either. Not when they're only serving it in a disposable cup!" At least in the days when coffee was a dime, it had been served in a non-disposable mug. 

The thought of getting all that stuff on a coffee was almost as upsetting as the price. What was the point, other than trying to justify the exorbitant price? "I'd prefer not to have all that paraphernalia on top of my coffee, thank you very much. That's got to be part of the racket--you can't just get a plain coffee. No, you've got to get one with everything but the kitchen sink on top of it! Whoever's idea that was, I'd like to give them a piece of my mind!" And secretly fume because he had not thought of it first.

[happiestplacehq]

STUART MACDUFF is sixty-four years old. He is a business executive. He is the humanized version of Scrooge McDuck from the Disney series, DuckTales.

+ Adventurous, Inventive, Determined - Stingy, Cranky, Stubborn

ABOUT STUART

As stated in a recent magazine article about him, “readers might be surprised to hear the humble beginnings of one of the richest men in the world.” Stuart MacDuff was born and raised in a small cottage on a farm in Scotland, living with his parents and younger sister and learning all about how to run a farm. His father kept a herd of sheep and would bring the wool into the nearest town to sell it. When Stuart was old enough, his father brought him along too, so that he might learn how the business end of the farm worked as well. This did not have quite the affect his father hoped for; instead, Stuart became more interested in business, and began to think he would rather become a businessman than a farmer.

His very first foray into business happened on one of these trips. While his father was bartering with a shop owner, Stuart noticed the shop floor needed sweeping, so he took up a nearby broom and did it. The owner was impressed with the young boy’s resolve, and gave him a shilling for his effort. This first earning was very precious to Stuart, and he ended up never spending it; to this day, he keeps it in a small case, an emblem of the beginnings of the fortune he would eventually amass.

After applying to various colleges at home and abroad, he was able to get a scholarship at a prestigious university in America. Though his parents were sad that he was going so far away, they were glad to know he would be on his way to living his dream. In order to achieve that, however, Stuart needed to start working, so remembering the time he had swept up in the shop, he got a job as a janitor in the building of a stock trading firm. All through his time in college, he worked in the building, listening and taking mental notes on everything he heard from the businesspeople around him. Finally, just after graduating, he had saved enough money to buy a very small amount of stock.

Through smart and opportunistic trading, that small amount of stock became a much larger amount of stock, and in seemingly no time at all, Stuart was on his way to owning his first business. All the while, he continued to send money back to his family in Scotland, but during the time he was gone, his sister had ended up marrying a rich man with his own family business in London. When Stuart came to visit, he talked with his brother-in-law and they entered into a partnership to merge their companies together. MacDuff’s and Duckworth’s became McDuck Enterprises, and everyone involved became very rich.

Eventually though, Stuart had earned even more money from his other business ventures, and he bought out his brother-in-law’s share of the company, leaving him the sole owner of McDuck Enterprises, and now one of the most wealthy men in the entire world. Being so wealthy, he naturally has quite a few homes around the world, one of which is in Redwood Hollow, and where he tends to spend a fair amount of time. Because, despite being so obscenely rich, he was born and raised in the country, and does still have a place in his heart for small-town life.

Stuart is currently unavailable. His faceclaim is Peter Capaldi.

[stuart-macduff]

@happieststarters​

Yes, Stuart appreciated any business which maximized their profit at very little cost to them. And he also appreciated any business which could sucker people in and keep them coming back for more. He did not, however, appreciate being on the receiving end of such treatment. "Curse me kilts, look at these prices," he grumbled, glaring at the menu in the café, "Whatever happened to the days when you could get a coffee for a dime?" Alright, that had been quite a long time ago, but that did not make him any more eager to pay the exorbitant prices he was currently looking at. Turning to the person beside him, he asked, "While I appreciate a good money-making scheme as much as the next entrepreneur, don't you think this seems like a flat-out racket?"

[geneticsmostly]